Hi Nemo

Do you have any pictures of your what your garden looks like? I saw a hydroponic veggie garden years ago, but never thought of applying it to my dahlias.

Phyllis

Hello, Phyllis. No, I don't have any photos of the garden, and its appearance right now wouldn't win any prizes. It's been fairly flattened by the recent rains (due largely to my failure to adequately stake the mainstem). And even on its best days I don't think it could rival a traditional garden in appearance. It has what I would call a more "functional" look, almost "industrial", with rows of 14" pots supported by 2X4's resting on sawhorses. But the plants are (were) tall, the foliage lush, and the blooms abundant and gorgeous (if I do say so myself). It's, of course, too early to say anything about tuber production. Hydroponics, with its demands, isn't an area to be entered into lightly, and it probably helps to be a little quirky and have an interest in things chemical. But one thing I can promise: You won't get dirt under your fingernails.

Hi Nemo2009, I desire to learn how to grow dahlias hydroponically. I would love what ever information you care to share on how you are doing that, what equipment you are using, time frames for planting, how to fertilize, outdoors, etc.? Thanx, dahlianut

Hello Dahlianut.Glad to hear from you. It would help me if you could give me some idea of your hydroponic background. I'm going to assume that you know nothing about hydroponics, but you may know a great deal.

Hydroponics involves growing plants in an inert medium, with the grower supplying all of the plant's nutritional needs through the nutrient solution which the grower administers to his plants in one of several ways. The system I use is called "ebb-and-flow". Some people call it "fill-and-drain". In my set-up I supply nutrient solution from a reservoir. The solution is pumped up from the reservoir (actually, a 32-gallon garbage can sunk 2 feet below ground level) to supply all of the pots serviced by that one reservoir. The tank (reservoir) is controlled by a timer and runs 25 minutes, sufficiently long to fill the twelve 14-inch plastic pots in that set-up. (I have three such set-ups). After 25 minutes the pump is switched off and the pots drain, by gravity, for 15 minutes back into the tank. This fill-and drain cycle is repeated throughout the daylight hours. Depending on the size and stage of growth of the plants and especially on the weather, the amount and nutrient content of the solution will be altered (sometimes dramatically) in the course of 24 hours and must be checked and corrected daily (a pain in the neck, but absolutely necessary). Throughout the growing season the plants require all the usual dahlia-fussing (disbudding, disbranching, bloom-removal, etc.).

The medium I use in the pots is a commercial product called Turface, obtainable from John Deere Landscaping (a branch of the tractor company). It is a calcined (baked) clay, with excellent drainage and an ideal fluid-to-air ratio. Its primary use is as a soil-conditioner, but it works very well in my set-up. Its good drainage means that it is almost impossible to overwater the plants or the tubers. I have had no trace of rot or mold. But, by the same token, it does require very frequent watering (which the pumps handle very well).

Obviously, there is a great deal more you want/need to know, but I'll stop here until I get some feedback from you.

nemo2009

Now that it's a few years later you must have learned a LOT. I am converting an in ground swimming pool into a pond. It is basicly a deep water floating raft aquaponic system. I have mosquitofish, goldfish, koi, bluegill, and channel catfish, as well as lots of mostly pond type plants. Every thing is growing like crazy. I'd like to try dahlias. What would you suggest? Seeds, cuttings, or tubers? What medium? Maybe gravel, lava, hydroton? Large pots to counter balance top growth? I'm having to top prune harshly on anything that grows over 2 ft tall. Any ideas would be wonderful. Thanks,

Sandy