3,226 Garden Web Discussions | Dahlias
Thanks for the reply! Will you store them right in their pots? OR will you take them out and store them in vermiculite, or something similar?
Do you have any favorites that you would suggest? I think I am going to try the Dinner Plate Dahlias, they look pretty cool.
Thanks again
Sarah
Right now my thoughts are that I will store them in the pots they'll grow in. I'm anxious to see what the tubers look like come the fall after growing in 4" pots. I've been told they will grow like field tubers (tubers not in pots) and I assume there will be some tubers that will grow outside of the pots...its all an experiment for me...;-]
As for favorites, all of mine have come from Swan Island Dahlias; http://www.dahlias.com.
I have several favorites of differing sizes. On the large side, Purple Taiheijo is gorgeous as is Papageno. Both are relatively early bloomers considering their size. Remember, typically the larger the bloom the longer it takes to bloom, or at least that's been my experience.
I highly recommend two of my favorite smaller dahlias, China Doll and Tahiti Sunrise. Both are incredibly prolific on smaller bushes (2.5'). At one point last year I had some 50+ China Doll flowers off a single tuber. They're both ~4".
You really need to take your time pouring over the varieties. They come in all shapes, flower sizes, and bush heights. Taller bushes can be pinched early to create slightly shorter but wider bushes, but not as much as some advice might suggest. I pinched a Cabana Banana, which is a 7' bush, and it still reached 7'...only it had several main stems and was hard to prevent from breaking at the base (side stems broke due to sheer weight.) Even the broken stems continued to flower, however, but it became a much wider plant splayed out like that.
Consider your garden area, and where you will view them from. If your plan is to primarily view them as cuttings it makes less difference, but if you want to see them in bloom on the bush, you have to give them enough space and structure their height to ensure you can see the smaller/shorter varieties.
I rebuilt my deck into a sunroom in the fall just to accomodate better viewing of my (now) expanded dahlia garden bed. I will have 56 dahlias in the garden, and if all goes well should be able to see them all from the sunroom. Aren't theories grand...;-]
I had success with everything without doing much to them. Do remember they will flower right into November so just because you don't see blooms in mid-September don't be frustrated.
Cheers,
Russ
Have a look at this article about growing Dahlias in pots.
http://www.dahlia.org/seasonal.guides/dahlias%20in%20Pots.html
I have not previously grown them in containers myself, but I plan on growing a couple this year.
Zone 6 is definitely fine for Dahlias. IÂm zone 5A and they grow great up here. You can even start them now and they should be blooming by the middle of June.
This link: http://www.scdahlias.org/howto/digdivide.html offers great advice on many things to do with Dahlias, including how to store them. After I divided my tubers, I wrapped them in cellophane and put them into a cloth grocery bag then covered the top of the bag with newspaper. I then put the bag into a fridge as I donÂt have any cold storage area. You canÂt simply leave them inside your apartment as that would be too warm for them to winter. You might get away with putting them in a cooler on the balcony over the winter if the cooler is made well enough.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Russ
Swan Island Dahlias (i've had experience with)
www.dahlias.com
Dans Dahlias (recommended to me)
http://www.dansdahlias.com/
Connel-dahlias (recommended to me)
http://www.connells-dahlias.com/
Have Fun and Take Care!
Hello there,
I think, being kept in the fridge those tubers are like completely dormant. I guess that they start sprouting eyes after you kept them for a while at room temperature.
I splitt mine abot 5 weeks ago. I wasnt too fond of the 2 varieties so I wasnt too anxious. I used a realy sharp knife and diveded a big clump just by guessing roughly. Last year's dry stalks give you a rough idea where to expect eyes. I let the diveded tubers lie for about two weeks so the cuts could dry out nicely (no chemicals needed). Then I potted them in a sand/gravel/ pot ground mixture and watered once. And now after about 3 weeks of sitting around in my cool kitchen they all show some eyes. So if you want a sure bet, pop them in a box with sand/ pot ground ..., water VERY little, give them light and wait. They will sprout. And then you can divide them. But if you plant bigger parts/ tuber clumps, you get stronger plants in my experience.
And even really shriveld tubers of mine produced fresh roots and everything after beeing potted.
Well then, good luck,
cheers, Linaria
Just bringing them out of the fridge, unwrapping them, and giving them some warmth/light should bring the eyes out. Then you can divide. If you put them out in a sunny window with some soil the eyes should come out.
Check out this great thread for more help!
Here is a link that might be useful: splitting superthread
The Royal Horticultural Society Plant Finder indicates one other UK supplier for 'War of the Roses' at the location indicated below. However, there still seems to be no North American supplier offering this variety.
Here is a link that might be useful: RHS Plant Finder
I still haven't found a source in the US for this dahlia variety. Here's a link to a photo and description:
Here is a link that might be useful: Dahlia 'War of the Roses'
I have been growing dahlias since 1988.I know that because I have the pictures. This last season I grew dinner plate dahlias ,Snow bound,Sunny, Emory Paul and hakuyou. all did very well and made many tubers. Go to the gallery to see pictures from my last season.
That story is too good to pass up!! I normally check this forum once a month and only rarely post.
We sell dahlias and tree dahlias, but in your case I would like to send you a couple of tree dahlia plants free if you would just pay the shipping. Contact me off line at cgdahlias@yahoo.com to arrange.
Ours are a fully double lavender that have the same growth characteristics as the single lavender, just the disc is filled w/tubular florets and the rays sweep back a bit.
Kevin
I started all of them inside in the little celo packs that garden center packs come in. I re-pot whenever they get too big. On the balcony they were planted in 5 galleon pots. Only the two which were in their own pot with some glad bulbs, bloomed, the other two had great foliage and lots of tubers but no blooms. I do love using pots though as it is so easy to dig them up in the fall.
I tried stargazer dahlia's last year and was very pleased with the results. I did nothing special at all with regards to care or planting. I had one very beautiful cactus like flower with mauve petals with pink towards the center. I had another which was a single layer of flower that was yellow with pink around the edges. The only problem I had was with two which I put in the same pot with a few glads. The dahlia's didn't flower but produced big healthy tubers which I carefully excavated and saved. Some of my tubers went mouldy in storage but a few are good and one is sprouting already. For me the advantage of seed is that I don't have to spend a lot of money for tubers before I learn to store them over the winter.
I've repeatedly grown Bishops children from purchased seed and been extremely pleased with the results. It was pretty easy. I start them early indoors with some bottom heat (my previous house had a gas stove with pilot lights that was great for starting warm season plants - had to get a grow mat once I left there). I've also started them with the "damp paper towel in a baggie method" to sprout (again warm place) then planted. As in starting all seeds indoors, be sure to get sterile seed mix (or sterilize what you're using) so you don't get damping off. I like to start them early as they'll bloom sooner.
Ummm well, I don't think I would want to grow my dahlias inside. You may want to start them in pots under lights inside early....then transplant out to the garden. For me in zone two, I plant the clumps of tubers in the ground in May.......in your zone you could probably plant them right in the ground in April. Just watch that the ground isn't too wet. Unless you want to buy and plant new tubers each year.....then you would lift them out of your garden at the end of the season. This is done after your first frost and leaves are all brown/black. You would just cut off the stems 4 to 6 inches from the top of the tubers. Then just follow the directions that are on this forum for storing for the winter.
Happy gardening,
Sierra
I think what you really mean to say is that the bulbs cannot overwinter in the ground in your zone. They will grow beautifully for you, because they do for me. You just have to dig and clean off and store the tubers inside each winter. I put mine into plastic grocery bags and store them in my garage. As Sierra said, I sometimes start mine inside to get earlier blooms, but you probably won't even have to do that much! I agree with her, though, a dinnerplate dahlia inside probably isn't a very good idea.
That's a Phytosanitory Certificate & is necessary if you are going to ship out of the country. Your local agriculture agent has to inspect the field during growing season for diseases & insects specific to the country you are going to ship to. Then he has to inspect the tubers before you package them up & ship them. Every over-seas order has to have it's own phyto-cert. The certificates cost around $38.00 each- plus you also have to pay for the field inspections & tests. You have to do this every year.
Mick, of course they can be started in pots. That is what I was saying in another discussion. ( See below ) What Vikingcraftsman says is correct as well. If the pot is large, or a raised bed then that is good for growing them as well. Leaving them enough room, as Gladzoe says, is good advice as well. I plant mine about a foot and a half away from each other for the best results. That is purely a personal taste though. You will have to experiment and find out what works best for you in Brantford, given your soil and sun conditions.
Here is a link that might be useful: splitting tubers and starting in pots
Those are very nice and just happen to be two dahlia's I've been eyeing to buy. Appleblossom looks huge-well, at least bigger than I imagined it to be. Thanks for the post of these and all your other posts.