3,226 Garden Web Discussions | Dahlias
You could have stored them by cutting off those other stems, also.
I usually left my bulbs in-ground or in-pot for the winter, but about 2 years ago, we had a pretty late ice storm. A few days after the storm was over, I could see that my amaryllis bulbs took a beating. Some made it and most didn't. I waited at least 2 months to see the normal growth in the pots for the dahlias and lily bulbs, but they didn't. When I finally checked by digging up that dirt, there was no sign of the tubers and bulbs. They had been disintegrated. Even the larger amaryllis bulbs which looked OK above ground but weren't growing, had squishy bulb parts beneath the soil.
The funny thing is, that same spring, I found some dahlia tubers that had been in the house, which I got on clearance in the previous late summer. I apparently had forgotten about them. I potted them up and they actually grew and put out some great blooms. This year, they have returned, with growth better than last year.
Thanks once again for your help cicivacation !! I don't know why I wasn't seeing the shipping rate and email address at first..but went back and found it..even talked to the lady...the were very nice..and sent a substantial order. Wonderful prices! :)
My favorite for getting answers about growing is...
Dahlia Information on Growing and Exhibiting
https://www.facebook.com/groups/363854624030
If you do a FB search, there's about four main ones with many regional forums. My favorite one above doesn't want pictures posted unless they are part of a question or it is informational. There are other forums that don't mind pretty pictures without the variety name, though you'll still be bugged to list them.
Thank you! I have been thinking about it all weekend.
My husband is planning to build a raised garden and transplanting his veggies, and put in more. We are planning to get comfortable here, too. The only way I want to move is when my mom returns from caring for my grandmother in NY, which could be a couple of years. Our yard is small but most of it is on the east side of the house. The best sun spots are in the back. Is there a point where it is too late to transplant? Also, are there any variety of dahlias that do well in a pot?
Again, thank you so much for all this help!
I think they look great for indoor seedlings. I use 6 T5 tubes over 4 flats of trays. Sorry, I dont know more about the lumes ect. Your plants look nice and stocky though, I would not be concerned. Maybe get the light closer if they stretch out a bit too reach it?
It is hard to say what size container you will need as growth is dependent on SO many variables. See how they look each week... They will probably need to be transplanted but you never know!
Good luck!
Wow! What a change! This first season will be quite a learning curve for you.
Filtered vs unfiltered sun- Depends... I'd plant some in both places to learn what works best in your climate, and in your personal gardening space. Soil can differ in separate locations in a yard, too, so experimenting is a good idea the first year before you expand the dahlia beds.
I'm thinking that you are so much closer to the equator that the sun's output might be deceptively 'hotter' in terms of UV and burning, even if the temps aren't way up there... But I don't know. (One Australian grower with extremely hot temps has had success with spraying his dahlias before they bud up with a clay-based sunscreen to keep them from scorching, along with pulse-watering at the roots to maintain a constant level of moisture at the roots.
Most growers I know like to water at soil level, using t-tape or leaky hoses. Some use sprinklers early on, but have to set them under the plants when grown to make sure water gets to the roots. In their active growing cycle, dahlias require ample watering on a consistent basis, like tomatoes.
Some growers here purposely spray their plants in the morning to assist with pest control, but I have no idea what pests you would be dealing with down there. I'm assuming you have a humid climate? Mildew might be an issue if it is always humid.
Hope some of this will help... Please keep us updated on your dahlia adventures! Love to learn what you find works best in Costa Rico!
Thanks for the information Cici.. I really appreciate it! At least now I have something to start with!
It definitely is a change from where we use to live and I will have to learn all over again but I think it will be fun at the same time as there are so many colorful and beautiful plants here. I’m looking forward to finally being able to plant something other than Impatients and Hostas! LOL
We are in the mountains at elevation 3500 feet so it’s not particularly humid and the mid-day temps are between 75-85 degrees. Nighttime temps are 65 degrees. But as you said, the morning sun does feel very hot at times, even though the temperature is only about 70 degrees. So this may cause an issue for me. :(
The place I decided for planting faces to the east and gets full morning sun, and afternoon sun is filtered through some trees that currently do not have many leaves (it is summer/dry season here) so I think this will work for now. Not sure how it will go when the winter/rainy season comes as the trees will bud out and not sure if the dahlias will get enough afternoon sun at that point. This is our first year in this house so not even sure how our yard changes during the seasons. Everything is going to be a learning experience for me!
I have 3 planted so far, and will visit the garden center again to pick up a few more to finish out the bed. Keep your fingers crossed!
Hi silverrowan, some of my personal favorites in low(er) varieties - all ones I've grown myself, are Park Princess (pink cactus), Yellow Happiness (sunny yellow, nice form), There is a red waterlily form called Japanese that stays low and has lovely flowers. A beautiful pastel blend is zingaro. Le Baron gets about 1m tall for me - needs staking but is bushy and blooms like mad. Velda Inez - nice lavender/white blend. Firepot is an amazing sunset blend that is stunning. Bishop of Llandaff or Japanese Bishop (or bishop's children) are all in the range and have dark foliage, as does Fascination.
Nonette is a low orange variegated with red that is very nice.
As you know, you MUST dig the lower varieties - I guess in Toronto you have to dig them all! I don't know how many of these varieties you can find in Canada.
If you like the REALLY low mounded ones just "for show", the gallery dahlias are only about a foot tall and wide. The ones I mentioned above all have stems that you can cut.
hey vince, I have been saving 20-30 tubers a year for the past 2-3 years and I wash them, remove roots, let them dry a bit as people suggest and i use rubbermaid totes, place a layer of tubers in the bottom and cover with play sand, add another layer of tubers and cover with sand and so on. I only loose one or two a year with this method. They stay in my basement thats average basement temp hi 50's low 60's?? Not even sure haha. Good luck
Honestly, I've always jumped the gun on timing and have 12-18 inch plants to set out, so I couldn't tell you exactly even if there were exact heights to share with you... Depends on if tuber was sprouted when you preplant it, and on variety. Some, like Pooh, will spring into action and be over a foot tall before you know it. Others seem to take forever to wake up and get height.
If you don't have adequate light, they will be more leggy between the leaf sets, hence taller.
Most experienced growers I've talked to prefer the plants to be around 8-10 inches high. This avoids the stalks from being 'flimsy' from the pampered inside, but enough height to avoid the worst of the slug nibbling. I typically plant my tall ones a bit deeper, taking any leaves off that would be underground. Tubers will form at those leaf junctions by the fall.
I've heard a couple folks that have success storing in the fridge, but heard many more sob stories about how the tubers rotted trying that method.
I'd keep them in the original packing material at room temp, and pre-start them 4-6 weeks before planting time in small pots with just-damp potting mix so they will be nice and ready to go into the ground.
I start my dahlia seeds now and start tubers in trays next week. Both bloom around the 12 week mark for me give or take cici is correct, tubers produce (usually) the larger named varieties.... Seeds and small plants that thrive in containers! I love both!
Thanks for the responses. I am planning on raising the beds as best i can with 3" leaf gro. We are 25 miles west of Baltimore and DO have clay but not extremely heavy. The garden I am using for the dahlias has been in veg production for more than 40 years. It is LOADED with worms. My chickens had a feast when i was digging the tubers! The dahlias did great last year! I also do not want to till these beds annually. My biggest thorn will be the weeds. I covered the entire 30x60 bed with commercial weed cloth last year. Worked great but i know the weed seeds last forever!!! There are going to be 15 16'x3' beds with 4' paths that i will put cloth on again. But haven't decided how to deal w weeds in the beds besides hand weeding... Grass clippings? I don't have time to waste....thanks for any ideas!
A speaker at the last club meeting suggested four layers of newspaper under any type of mulch to keep weeds at bay through the growing season. The newspaper and mulch break down and add to the soil composition when you dig the tubers.
He added that color inks in newsprint are all made with vegetable dyes and not of heavy metals like they used to be, so color newspapers are safe to use in the garden.
Edited to add...
The speaker was a director of a University Agricultural Extension Office.
Six on one, half dozen on the other. An earlier start might help them bloom earlier...if they're getting enough sunlight to develop. That's about four hours of direct sun per day absolute minimum (six would be far better).
Really, a well-planted dahlia should blossom about six to eight weeks post-planting, and I've gotten that down to four by feeding well and making sure they have a LOT of sunlight (eight to ten hours). It does depend somewhat on the dahlia as well. Most of my cultivars seem to be fast.
A couple thoughts for you...
You describe the tubers as "small congested clumps of (pot-grown) tubers," which makes me think that it might be difficult for even an expert to successfully divide them. Many growers would just keep the pot tuber planted intact in a potting mix, take cuttings until enough plants are created, then plant out the clump as-is.
If you really want to divide it and are thrown off by the roots, it is a safe bet to divide directly down the middle of last year's stem, being sure to avoid slicing the necks or bodies of the tubers, and 'wiggling' the two halves apart. You might lose a tuber or two, but there should be eyes on both halves if you do it this way.
I don't personally know any growers that use straight peat moss for prestarting tubers. I would be concerned that it might hold too much moisture next to the tuber and invite rot. Some combination of peat, vermiculite, perlite and/or 'sharp' builders sand provides better drainage to the peat. (Growers in the UK especially feel it is important that sand be in the mix, although I have never used it and don't quite understand what benefit it has to the tubers or cuttings. I have asked a couple UK master growers, and they respond 'drainage' and that it always works for them)
Hope this helps... Good luck, and let us know how it works out for you!
Cheers,
CiCi
I've not had any experience with taking cuttings, so I'll go for planting the whole pot tuber/s intact. Last year I planted some Bishop of Llandaff in open ground. By the end of the season when I dug them up, the clumps of tubers resembled an Octopus in shape. All stuck out sideways, and not like the vertical bunches one sees in packets for sale.