3,226 Garden Web Discussions | Dahlias
I had one last year(Peaches and Cream) that did not flower for various reasons. I saved it and it flowered this year. Not an indicator that the plant is bad, maybe an indicator that it is a very slow variety. Slow varieties don't last too long with me.
This year I have at least ten that didn't bloom. Too hot, too dry, poor soil, maybe the dahlia fairies were against it. I'll change their growing conditions and see what happens next year. After that second chance, they're outta here.
There is an excellent link recently posted in the discussions forum.
Here is a link that might be useful: What to do
Thank you all for taking the time to post some suggestions. :)
I examined the leaves and didn't see any signs of webbing or spider mites. The leaf miner photos I found showed little trails showing a kind of surface path the leaf miner "mined" on the leaf, and I saw none of that on my leaves. Powdery mildew might be the culprit. I did see a *few* leaves with a white powdery surface, but that was only late in the season. Plus, we don't have much humidity in my region, though some parts of the dahlia garden do catch some lawn sprinkler overspray. Bad, I know, but unavoidable. The fungal infection in the soil is also a contender, but this is a brand new garden in heavily amended soil that used to be a lawn. Plus, none of the other surrounding non-dahlia plants showed any signs of sickness. Wouldn't a fungal infection have affected them as well?
-Ray
All dahlias come from tubers, and can be started from seed, after which the plant produces a tuber (by the end of the season). As far as I know, there are no dahlias which are perennial to zone 6 - so they all have to be dug up and stored inside. People who don't want to bother doing this consider dahlias annual - but what a waste, in my opinion. The attached link has lots of great information for beginner and expert alike.
Anna
Here is a link that might be useful: Lots of Dahlia Information
It doesn't look like powdery mildew to me. Looks more like spider mites. In either case, it won't affect the tubers, so don't throw away (unless you're looking for a reason to get some new ones). But -- you should cut down the plants and get rid of the debris. DON'T COMPOST IT!!
I never compost any dahlia debris, just in case there is some disease or bug in it. I had dahlia smut this year for the first time, and I will be very careful to clean everything off the ground when I dig. Luckily I live in the country and can burn.
Teresa
Depending on how large your clumps are, how many years in the ground, I'd advise going for the 'delicate' approach. hacking will destroy viable tubers, break necks and not guaranty you get an eye on each tuber or clump portion.
If you have a huge, heavy clump, then hacking just to break it up may be the better option to start; then move on to more delicate tuber division. Many people store whole clumps or mini clumps and look for sprouts in spring before dividing further. If you have space for this, that's another way to go.
An article here from this forum
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/dahlia/msg0913415430587.html
Jroot's spring division and potting thread with photos
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/dahlia/msg041343391520.html
And some photos to ID eyes, some division photos at this link. I have even better photos I may get to posting one day soon.
Here is a link that might be useful: another eye/dividing thread
Pooch, Still some good information in your old thread there. Not all Poochievision pics either.
Delicate VS hacking does depend on how many you want to save or try to have for next year. I don't fully divide mine until spring - they are stored in mini clumps of 2-4 tubers.
Hi Steve
I guess you were serious! I'm sorry, I only have one of these so I wasn't planning on dividing it. But there are so many gorgeous dahlias out there - somebody who has more of a tuber crop would probably help you out.
They are nothing short of magnificent!!!!