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Dahlias were named for Andreas Dahl, a Swedish botanist. They were originally found growing wild in the mountainous regions of Mexico during the early exploration of the new world. They were initially taken to Spain and then spread throughout Europe where the botanists, most notably in Sweden, began experiments that led to the development of the broad range of cultivars that we presently enjoy. Today there are about 50,000 different named dahlia varieties.
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Dahlias are easy to grow. Many gardeners have really never seen exhibition quality dahlias and thus have never experienced the joy of growing this wonderful and highly rewarding plant. They are grown from tubers, (roots) and come in just about every variation of colors except blue. Depending on the variety, the plants can grow anywhere from 2 to 6 feet tall and range in flower size from less than 1 inch to more than 12 inches in diameter. There are also many variations in form including formal decorative, cactus, ball, water lily and pompons to name a few.
The taller varieties require staking with about 4 feet above ground to support the mature plant. Again depending on the variety, the flower size can be very small, medium or very large. The very large dahlias are often called “Dinner Plates”
Kenora Canada
Here are some excerpts from our Southwest Pennsylvania Dahlia Association growing instructions that Lady Marian and I recently put together.
Ideally dahlias require 6 to 7 hours of sunshine a day and prefer a sandy loam but will do well in any ordinary garden soil. An application of a 5-10-10 fertilizer about 2 weeks before planting is advisable. They can be planted any time after the last expected frost date. Here in western Pennsylvania, we plant them in mid May and get our first blooms around the first of August and get continuous blooms for about 2 ˝ months until the first killing frost.
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For the taller dahlias, drive a stake in the ground and lay the tuber flat about 2 inches from the stake in a hole 6 inches deep, with the eye or sprout facing upwards.
For the low growing dahlias do the same, except eliminate the stake. When the plants reach a foot or so in height and display 3 sets of leaves, pinch out the growing terminal to induce the growth of laterals. This will produce a bushy plant with more abundant blooms. When the buds appear, they usually come in threes. Pinch out the two side buds to get larger and more beautiful blooms.
Dahlias are frost tender and require lifting and storage over the winter in areas where the ground is expected to freeze. Each tuber that was planted will produce a clump of tubers that can be divided to increase your stock or to share with other gardening friends.
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For more information regarding growing dahlias including specific details on all aspects of dahlia culture, suppliers, photos, plant locator etc, please visit http://www.dahlias.net
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| Written by Bernie |
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