More Beautiful, Colorful Dahlias
Beautiful, colorful dahlias continue to bloom at my Bedford, New York farm.
Dahlias begin to bloom with great profusion just as other plants pass their prime, and they last right up until the first frost. This year, my all-dahlia garden was planted in a large bed behind my vegetable greenhouse. We planted the garden in June and through the summer, we all watched its progression. We have flowers ranging from small to giant dinner-plate size in all different colors and shades - many from Swan Island Dahlias in Oregon, from Floret in the State of Washington, and from The Flower Hat, a flower farm based in Bozeman, Montana.
Here are more of the gorgeous flowers in bloom right now, enjoy.
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- I have already cut many dahlia flowers to decorate my home, but there are still so many to enjoy.
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- The dahlia garden is in a new location this year – in a space behind my vegetable greenhouse that was previously used for growing grapes. When planting dahlias, always choose the location carefully – dahlias grow more blooms where they can have six to eight hours of direct sunlight. This spot was perfect, and because it is behind the glass structure, the flowers are also protected from any strong winds.
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- There are about 42 species of dahlia, with hybrids commonly grown as garden plants. A member of the Asteraceae family of dicotyledonous plants, some of its relatives include the sunflower, daisy, chrysanthemum, and zinnia.
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- The genus Dahlia is native to the high plains of Mexico. Some species can be found in Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Costa Rica as well as parts of South America where it was introduced.
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- Dahlias were first recorded by Westerners in 1615, and were then called by their original Mexican name, acoctli. The first garden dahlias reached the United States in the early 1830s. Today, dahlias are grown all over the world.
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- The Dahlia is named after the Swedish 18th century botanist Anders Dahl, who originally declared the flower a vegetable, as the tubers are edible.
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- Flowers come one head per stem. The blooms can be as small as two-inches in diameter or up to one foot across.
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- It can also vary in height, leaf color, form, and shape. This is because dahlias are octoploids, meaning they have eight sets of homologous chromosomes, whereas most plants have only two.
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- This dahlia is called ‘Zorro’. The ruffled petals accentuate its deep red color. “Zorro’ blooms can reach eight to 10 inches wide on stems that can grow up to four feet tall.
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- Dahlias produce an abundance of wonderful flowers throughout early summer and again in late summer until the first frost. This large bloom is a beautiful white with a hint of creamy yellow in the center.
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- Yesterday afternoon, I asked Elvira to pick some of the most beautiful blooms. To prevent wilting, cut only in the early morning or late afternoon. And only cut them after they open to mature size – dahlias will not open after cutting.
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- The majority of dahlia species do not produce scented flowers or cultivars, but they are brightly colored to attract pollinating insects.
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- Josephine Bonaparte, wife of the French Emperor, was so enamored of dahlias she grew prize varieties in her garden at Malmaison.
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- Dahlias come in white, shades of pink, red, yellow, orange, shades of purple, and various combinations of these colors – every color but true blue. In the 19th century, a London newspaper offered a pound, or a little more than a dollar, to the first breeder to create a blue dahlia—the reward was never claimed, but there have been many attempts that are near-blue. Like many flower varieties, there is also no pure black variety—only dark red and dark purple. This one is white with soft lavender tips.
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- This one is creamy white with a yellow center. There are some 57,000 varieties of dahlia, with many new ones created each year.
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- This is a single with just one row of petals surrounding the center disc.
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- Dahlias are borne from tubers and are popularly grown for their long-lasting cut flowers. This is a cactus dahlia with its beautiful ‘spiny’ petals rolled up along more than two-thirds of their length.
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- Dahlias thrive in rich, well-drained soil with a pH level of 6.5 to 7.0 and slightly acidic.
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- From the side, many dahlia petals grow all around the flower head giving it a very full appearance.
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- Experiment with the varieties – dahlias look great arranged in different colors. Look at all the pretty blooms.
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- Elvira places them in a bin topped with simple baking cooling rack from the kitchen. The stems fit through the holes – and are free to dangle underneath without getting damaged. Using a cooling rack atop a plastic storage container for collecting flowers… it’s a good thing. Enjoy your dahlias.
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