3,226 Garden Web Discussions | Dahlias

David,

My thinking is that if he does not plant them, they will shrivel up and not be very strong, if indeed viable in another year. What I would do, is plant them in large pots ( 1 - 2 gallon size), set them into the garden when the danger of frost is over, pull up the pots when it is time to move, take them to their new abode, and then plant them.

Or.......give them to his friends to keep for a year, and let them make cuttings, and then take them back indoors at his new home in the fall.

It is a lot of extra work, but I did the latter when we were moving, and it really paid off. My friend was happy to get the cuttings, and I was happy not to have to lug the plants around all over the place, considering I was in 5 residences within 2 months because my home was not ready in time for me. I can laugh about it now, but I surely wasn't laughing then.

I agree, for what it's worth, with Jroot. No bulbs or tubers would make it a whole season being unplanted, un-nourished and be expected to be viable the following year.

Jroot, I hope you never ever have to move again- ever.
I moved 14 times in 5 years during college and early marriage and I hope to never move again, ever. But 5 times in 2 months is hideous!
Poochella

Not I, but I just got the original small Cornell in the mail today- so happppppppppppy.

Below is a link that mentions a Giant Ball Cornell. I don't know how they can swipe the name like that or how 'giant' it really might be.

Here is a link that might be useful: Giant Cornell mention

Glad to hear you got your Cornell! It's a lovely flower and last a long time in a vase. Gaint hmmmmmmmmm! I think perhaps it's in the minds eye as to what is gaint. Gaint to me would be 10 to 12 inches, what's gaint to someone else might be whole different thing. ( Can't wait for my package to arrive, LOL, dahlia eye-tis)

Hi Chey John,
Please pass on my Thanks to your son serving in Iraq next time you communicate. I hope he comes home safely and in time to enjoy some blooms from your garden.

Foil is presumably used to prevent excess water from soaking into and rotting the tuber mass down the hollow stalk of a cut off dahlia. You might as well leave it there until April showers have quit and you are reasonably sure the tubers have not rotted.

The other thing would be to cut off the stem entirely and put soil over that spot so water wouldn't be so much of a worry anyway.

You should see shoots coming up whenever mid to late-Spring hits in your area. I left some clumps in last winter and dug one up- half of it is mush, so I have some excavating and cleaning up to do to get rid of that rot. There were already new sprouts shooting forth however. Yay!
Poochella

Thanks Poochella for the info. I am so glad I didn't remove them yet. So if I cut the stalks and cover with soil, this wouldn't still allow water to enter and cause rot. I had though that it might be ok this time of year since they would be getting watered by the rain anyway.
I also want to thank you for making me update my member page. My son did return safely from Iraq last September and was quickly deployed again right before he was to come home for Thanksgiving. But it wasn't back to Iraq and for that I am more than thankful. He gets out near the end of this year and I will be overjoyed. Thanks so much for the kind words! I will relay your message to him.

Chey

Is it somewhat similar to this? It's a collarette named "Mr. Jones" and I grabbed the photo just to see if the little circle of white was what you were describing, not necessarily the whole bloom.

or this? Christmas Star from Connell's Dahlias.

Gosh those are pretty! The more I look at them, the more I want them LOL. It sure sounds like a collarette dahlia and you can search for them all over the w.w.w.

It's a really different bloom- we used to grow it before we started to specialize in AA sized ones. Pink Giraffe is nice, too. The problem with them both is they aren't very good keepers- but they put out loads of nice unusual blooms- about 4' diameter & kind of striped yellowish orange & darker bronze for Giraffe-- Pink Giraffe does the same kind of unusual markings only in light pink & a bit darker pink. I seem to recall that they had really good stems, too which made for good arrangment flowers. Clack's lists Giraffe w/ picture but it looks more like Pink Giraffe to me.

Here is a link that might be useful:

Penn's Gift is a monster, fuller than Emory Paul. Ivory Palaces is large and full. Kelvin Floodlight- a large dinnerplate. There are probably 10,000 others..

Follow the link to many gorgeous blooms from Wynne's Dahlias. They specialize in large dahlias with many original varieties. And oh so pretty I might add!

Here is a link that might be useful: Wynne's supersize dahlias

The summer of 2003 we had a Wanda's Moonlight with a bloom that measured 17" across & 14" deep! It was the first bloom & down in the plant so I couldn't get a really good picture of it but there are pictures of later blooms on the same plant in our albums at the site given in the previous answer. Sir Alfred Ramsey is another biggie but very frequently will "beard" so is not as attractive as some. We won Best AA & Biggest in show in 3 shows in 2003 with Zorros that were huge. They have a wonderful form & don't sag on you! Love those AA's that are a bouquet in themselves!

Hi Patty,
Big clumps are hard to handle and will produce fewer blooms of lesser quality than one or two healthy tubers. (Says she who left 6 clumps in the ground last winter.)They keep reproducing tubers each year, and get more difficult to handle.

Dividing is a great way to get more tubers for planting or sharing. You should be able to see which ones on the clump are developing eyes or growth buds and make your cuts accordingly. I think people advise if in doubt about dividing individual tubers,just cut the clump into halves or quarters and hopefully you'll have something that grows out of each bunch.
I would let the fresh cuts dry over and even dust the cut area with sulphur before they go into the ground though.

Good Luck in your second year of dahlias.
Poochella

Here is a link that might be useful: Dividing Tubers

This is my 4th year growing them, in the ground and in pots. I did not divide 3 clumps that I put in the ground a few years ago and last year they were pretty lame indeed. The other ones that I divided did just as well as when I first bought them.
So in a nutshell, my completely un-scientific opinion is to divide em!

Hi Murka, fellow zone 5 gardener from Ontario:

I would be tempted to put in no more than 5 dahlias in the 24 x 24 pot. They don't want to be too crowded, and you will need to pinch the lower area so that moisture does not become a problem, hence mold.

Actually, 3 large dahlias would be nice. I particularly like the cactus style, with about a 4-6 inch flower. If you pinch the lead steam, it will branch out for you, and you will have plenty of flowers. I had two dahlias in a slightly smaller plant last year, and they did very well, and looked spectacular.

Only plant a few inches, not too deep. If you plant outside around May 20, you may have to protect them from frost, but that is quite easy in a 24x24 planter. Put in a couple of stakes when you plant the tuber, so that you can tie them up later in the season, and you can also throw a sheet over top, in the event of frost. Where I live, near Guelph, we often get frost up to early June, so we have to be prepared.

I start my dahlias before most, and keep them under lights. However, if you have really good southern exposure windows, you should be able to give them a head start.

Good luck. Keep us informed as to how you are progressing.

I second the 3 to a pot idea, especially if they are the bigger types. I'm still learning about what they like, but the ones I crowded too much didn't perform as well as the others. You will be very happy with em.