All About Dahlias

Your Guide to Planning, Planting, and Growing Dahlias

One of the best things about dahlias is how abundantly they blossom. The plants begin flowering in midsummer and continue non-finish right through the fall. But plant the tubers in spring and prepare to be amazed!

Encounter all 8 types of dahlia flowersHERE.

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Start with a Better Institute

We sell grade #1 dahlia clumps, which are the largest size available. These photos show the divergence between a large clump of grade #1 tubers on the correct and a smaller clump of #three tubers on the left. With a larger dodder, you showtime out with more tubers and more growth points, then it accept less time to get a big institute and lots of flowers.

Plan for Success

Dahlias are incredibly easy to grow. Hither are a few tips to assist y'all get the best results.

Lord's day and Shade:  Dahlias are sun-lovers and demand a minimum of 6 hours of sunlight per day. The more sun they go, the better they'll flower, so it's best to plant your dahlias in the sunniest location you can.

Zone:  Though dahlias are only winter hardy in zones eight-eleven, gardeners in zones 3-seven can grow dahlia as annuals. Constitute the tubers in bound, and the plants will exist blooming by mid to belatedly summer. Don't know your hardiness zone? You lot'll notice the USDA Hardiness zone map here.

Soil:  Most plants, including dahlias, grow best in loose, fertile, well drained soil. To improve the quality of your soil, add compost and an all purpose fertilizer at planting fourth dimension. Avoid growing dahlias in areas where the soil is soggy or compacted.

When to Plant: Dahlias tubers should be planted in jump afterward all danger of frost has passed. If y'all live in a common cold climate and want your dahlias to flower as soon every bit possible, yous can start the tubers indoors or in a greenhouse 4 to six weeks before the last frost date. Fill half dozen" or 8" pots with growing mix and constitute one tuber per pot. Put the pots in a warm, sunny place and transplant them into the garden when the weather outside is warm and settled.

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Where to Plant Dahlias

Bloom Gardens:Dahlias flower from late summertime through fall and hit their stride every bit most perennials are starting to fade. Consider each dahlia multifariousness'southward ultimate height when placing them in your borders, with tallest ones in back, mid-size dahlias in the middle and edge dahlias up front.

Entryways, Patios. and Decks: Decorate your dwelling and welcome guests with a brilliant brandish of dahlias. Edge dahlias are ideal for containers. The compact, bushy plants grow just 18-24" tall and embrace themselves with flowers from midsummer to frost.

Along Fences or for Screening: Dahlias tin can be functional as well as decorative. Total-size varieties can exist planted along a property line to add together privacy. They tin can also be planted in pots to enclose a space or in the garden to screen an unwanted view.

Vegetable  Gardens: Dahlias like the same growing conditions as vegetables. Institute them at the aforementioned time as tomatoes and peppers. When you are harvesting your dinner, you can also bring in fresh flowers for your table.

Cut Gardens:Dahlias are fabulous cut flowers and merely a few plants volition provide armloads of blooms. Planting several different blossom styles will give your bouquets a professional await.

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How to Found Dahlias

1. Dig a pigsty to 4-half dozen" deep in well-drained soil.


2. Set the tubers in the hole with the stalk facing up. The crown of the constitute (where tubers connect to the stalk) should be ane-2" deep.


3. Supplant the soil and water only if the soil is very dry. Sprouts will announced in ii-4 weeks.

Watch our video:How to Found Dahlias

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Tips for Success

Choose a sunny spot. Dahlias flower best in full sunday.

To give your dahlias the best possible start, gear up the soil by adding compost or rotted manure, and an all purpose (5-5-v) granular fertilizer.

Position the tubers in the hole so the stalk, where the tubers are joined, is upright.

Sprouts will develop where the tubers join the stem. This junction should be no more than than an inch beneath the soil surface.

Once your dahlias are 8-x" alpine, begin fertilizing them with an all-purpose liquid fertilizer every iii to 4 weeks.

Pinching dahlias when they are nigh x" tall volition give you bushier plants with more flowers. Meet how to do information technology Here.

When the commencement blossom buds appear, cutting dorsum a couple of the tallest stems will aid the plant fill out and produce more flowers.

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How to Support Your Dahlias

If you are growing full size dahlias with large flowers, the stems may need support to prevent them from breaking. You tin can utilise stakes, cages or a corral method.

If you are using stakes, programme on at to the lowest degree one sturdy, 6-foot-tall stake per found. Drive the stake into the ground 8 to 10" deep. As the stems grow, tie them to the stake every foot or ii. Inserting the stakes at planting fourth dimension means you won't harm the plant or tubers later in the season.

Another method is to surround each plant with a tomato cage or a custom muzzle made of reinforcing wire. This is a quick and easy solution and the cages can be used twelvemonth after twelvemonth. Put them in place shortly afterwards planting.

Blossom farmers often use a corral method to support rows of dahlias. Insert stakes every 3 to four anxiety down both sides of the row. Wrap twine from one stake to some other so the plants are contained within the corral. As the plants abound, you may need to add together a 2d or even tertiary row of twine. For double rows of plants, adding a center stake makes it possible to provide even more than support.

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Growing Dahlias in Containers

Dahlias grow well in pots and planters. Though they can be combined with other plants, they grow best when planted on their own. Full size decorative dahlias and dinnerplate dahlias need large pots. The bigger the better. For full size dahlias, the pots should be a minimum of 18" deep and 18" wide.

Border dahlias can be grown in smaller pots with a minimum of width and depth of 12". Container-grown dahlias should be fertilized every few weeks (or apply a irksome-release fertilizer). H2o deeply to ensure all the soil in the pot gets moisture. This may be a daily chore from midsummer on.

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Caring For Dahlias Afterwards They Bloom

Many gardeners care for dahlias as annuals. When the season is over, merely dig up the plant and the tubers and add them to your compost pile. If y'all want to save your dahlia tubers for the next growing season, here'southward how to do it:

• Make sure each plant is labeled so y'all know which tubers are which, because they all look alike. After the offset frost, cutting off the stems to inside four" of the footing. Wait about a week before excavation to requite the tubers fourth dimension to develop next year'south sprouts, also called "eyes".

Begin digging carefully, 10-12" abroad from the stem. Gently elevator the tubers from the ground, using caution as they are delicate. If weather condition permits, allow the entire dodder to air dry out for a few days (protected from pelting and frost). This volition encourage the tubers to toughen their skin for winter storage.

Dahlia tubers are usually divided before they're replanted in the spring. You can dissever them in the fall, or store the clumps and carve up them in the spring. Both techniques work as well. It really depends on your time and storage space.

Trim back the stems to 1" and gently identify the tubers into pots or bins that are filled with sand, sawdust or vermiculite. If you are putting multiple tubers into one container, it's best to layer them so they don't bear upon each other. Store the containers in a cool (40-50°F), dark place and check them monthly to make sure they are non as well moisture (rotting) or too dry (getting wrinkly). Conform the humidity level accordingly.

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