Garden Dahlias
It's dahlia season and here at my Bedford, New York farm we have lots of gorgeous, bright, and colorful dahlias blooming in my garden.
Dahlia is a genus of tuberous plants that are members of the Asteraceae family and are related to the sunflower, daisy, chrysanthemum, and zinnia. They grow from small tubers planted in the spring. And from summer until the first autumn frost, these flowers give off a stunning show with blooms ranging from small to giant dinner-plate size.
Enjoy these photos.
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- Dahlias grow more blooms when they get at least six to eight hours of direct sunlight per day. My dahlia garden gets great sun behind my vegetable greenhouse. And because this spot is behind this large structure, it is also protected from strong winds.
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- Currently, 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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- Dahlias are named after 18th-century Swedish botanist Anders Dahl. He actually categorized dahlias as a vegetable because of their edible tubers. The tubers are said to taste like a mix between potatoes and radishes.
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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 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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- The array of flower colors, sizes, and shapes is astounding. Dahlias come in shades of pink, red, yellow, orange, white, shades of purple, and various combinations of these colors – every color but true blue.
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- Do you know… 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? Interestingly, 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.
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- This one is bright creamy white with a very light yellow center.
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- Dahlias 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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- Dahlia plant leaves grow opposite each other and are simple to pinnately compound with segments that are ovate to oblong to lanceolate in shape. The leaf margins may be lobed or dentate. Leaves may be green, reddish-purple, or purple-black depending on the variety.
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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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- Dahlias are classified according to flower shape and petal arrangement.
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- They range from a charming single, daisy-like flower to the popular double varieties which can be two-inch-pompons to 12-inch dinner plate size.
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- They are divided into 10 groups: single, anemone, collarette, waterlily, decorative, fall, pompon, cactus, semi-cactus, and miscellaneous.
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- Pompon dahlias yield masses of intricate, fully double blooms measuring up to two-and-a-half inches across.
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- This cactus variety is called ‘Park Princess’ with tightly rolled rich, vibrant pink petals. It is a prolific re-bloomer and an excellent cut flower.
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- As they grow it’s important to provide tall dahlia stems with good support to help the plants weather any storms and strong winds. Phurba puts in green painted wooden stakes throughout the bed.
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- Phurba ties one end of the twine to a stake about two feet off the ground and then stretches it to the next stake a few feet away on one side creating triangular quadrants. He does the same for a second row a little higher allowing the stems to sit in between the jute ties.
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- Here is an elegant dahlia which produces large blossoms with fully double, slender, deep pink petals with creamy throats that produce a frilled effect-hence the name Fimbriata meaning frilly.
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- Experiment with the blooms – dahlias look great arranged in different colors or as a bunch of the same variety. Harvesting flowers is good for the plants and encourages them to continue flowering month after month.
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- And when arranging, always strip off all the leaves that would be below the water line in the vase. This is true for all flower arrangements, not just dahlias. When leaves stay underwater, they decay and release bacteria that shorten the vase life of the flowers. And change the water daily so they look fresh and last longer. With good sunlight, proper watering, and a little bit of luck, we’ll have gorgeous, colorful dahlias growing all the way until Halloween.
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