one more thing...if i could grow dahlias for cutting which ones would you reccomend for a newbie like me?!

Hi and welcome.

Yes, you have to dig them up every year but you can divide them and get more plants in subsequent years.

Yes, they are only hardy to about zone 8 but microclimates farther north can wintered them.

Types.. that is up to you. The larger the plant/flower, the more water and fertilizer (within ratio to the water), but everything else is the same lightÂcare.. ect.. same ease of maintenance/care.

They are wonderful to grow and quite inexpensive once you make the initial purchase of each variety and then divide every year to plant more individual plants.

I hope that helps!

One amazing thing about Dahlias is that you can cut from them for weeks and weeks and as long as they are happy, you will get tons of blooms all season.

Where in z5 are you? I am on the WI/IL border

Cheers

Keriann~

I am in my 4th or fifth year of Dahlia fever up here in MN. Last year after studiously reading up on suggestions and tips in this forum I turned 8 Dahlia tubers into 35 gorgeous plants this summer.

I would suggest going to the Swan Island Dahlia site. They specifically mention which ones are long stemmed , and therefore good for cut flowers. My observation is plants with largest blooms on the longest stems produce the fewest flowers so if you need bulk, you may have to compromise on the size of the blooms.

Hi!

Thanks for the advice kerrian it helps of course... Where am i? Im in Pemberton BC Canada. Its a few hours north of vancouver. Since posting Ive met my neighbour who has a few dahlia plants. How great is that? So she too gave me some good advice..I'll be spending lots of time reading this forum and thanks madolls i'm looking into swan island...

That is great news, about a fellow dahlia grower. That makes it nice and encouraging.

I would spend the winter searching this forum on where to find the best tubers for your buck. Soem bulk store tubers do great and they are worth the investment. Some specific types from more expensive farms are also very worth the money because they are different, unusual and special.

Dahlias are really easy to grow and I would HIGHLY suggest starting them indoors in the spring so you get blooms sooner in the season.

This far north, starting them 3 weeks early gives me blooms 45 days earlier than the ones I planted directly.

Have fun and post often to get reviews and suggestions on hardy varities :)

Keriann~

Hi Coral
Try getting to the Vancouver Dahlia Club sale in the spring. They are all knowledgeable and will have oodles of info for you on what varieties do well. You should have no trouble growing dahlias...I've grown them in the interior and now grow on the island. Swan Island is a great resource as are many of the other growers listed on the Big List...although sadly not all ship to Canada!
Janice

You asked if it would be too much of a hassle to grow them when i could grow so many other flowers that are hardier? Absolutely not! I think dahlias are the greatest flowers there are, because there are so many types, colors, sizes, etc. They are not that hard to grow and I have found every year that the tubers sold at the less expensive big box stores are actually more productive than a lot of the tubers you order from the specialty businesses.

Can someone kindly help me too? Does anyone from this forum know anything about dahlia diseases? I just posted "Dahlias diseased with what?" Please, will someone read this and feel free to respond. By the way these dahlias I mention in that posting are in their third year with me. I overwinter them in peat moss in tubs in my basement. They're sick, but huge, and I forgot to mention that they've continued to flower profusly with out fail all summer. One of them is 'Boogie Woogie' and it's beautiful....HELP!!!!