Am I Over Dahlias?
Let’s chat dahlias; the Instagram Queen of flowers. Am I over her? Well, let’s start with her perks. She pumps out an enormous amount of blooms come the latter half of summer. You can also multiply your stock in just one season, and you can also breed your own by collecting the seed of a dahlia. However, do dahlias perks outweigh the fact that it is a difficult cut flower that gives only 3-5 days in a vase?
The image above captures the sensational bloom of the Cafe au Lait Dahlia. She rules the game in the dahlia world due to her stunning appearance. This dahlia begins with evident hints of pink and over the season, it mellows to a creamy colour, honouring its name of the Cafe au Lait. See below for a bloom from the exact same plant. Note: the above flower was photographed on July 24, 2022, the second was photographed on September 20, 2022.
One of the main perks of Dahlias is the compound interest of a tuberous plant. The initial investment of a few dahlia tubers quickly multiplies in just one season. Following the first couple of weeks of frost, I pull up my tubers with a pitchfork and experience the excitement of seeing a clump of tubers that was once a singular tuber. Additionally, if you wake up your dahlias early (bring them out of dormant conditions), you can take cuttings by cutting, or if you are like me, yanking a shoot off of the main tuber. I dip the tuber in a rooting hormone then place it in a perlite/potting mix substrate. I provide the cuttings with humidity, drainage and a light source, then within a week, I typically have roots on my cuttings.
July 2023 update: I have yet to plant out my dahlia tubers. Well, maybe 5 have been planted in my perennial gardens, but thats the extent. I currently have 300+ dahlia tubers that have been woken up since March and unfortunately most of my time has been directed towards caring for my perennial gardens. My honest thoughts are that dahlias are quite short-lived in a vase and time consuming. While I adore dahlias, growing is my part-time job, and for my current life circumstances, I have to be working smarter, not harder.
What does this mean? I have been focusing more on the perennial gardens and will continue to grow the classic cut and come again flowers, but not to the extent that I have. This year I have put in 150+ perennials into the gardens and have documented when varieties blooms this year. During times such as the tail-end of spring until the beginning of summer when there is an awkward gap of harvestable flowers, it is the perennials that I am harvesting during this time.
