Final days ahead for those glorious dahlias
I’m still waiting for the end, as are my dahlias. That hint of frost was only a hint and the dahlia assembly line is still active. I only grew a couple this year and every fall I tell myself I should grow more. I was reminded again after seeing the prize winners at the Harrogate Flower Show in the United Kingdom last month. It’s the largest dahlia show in the country, where in that highly competitive arena, blooms the size of your head are not an exaggeration. And the flowery head must also be perfectly coiffed, so to speak.
The giants of the pompom group do get eye-popping attention, but they’re only one of more than a hundred competition classifications. After twice around the dahlia section gazing at these magnificent blobs of colour, I stopped trying to discern the differences. I loved them all despite feeling I was inside a kaleidoscope, relieved only by shaking my head and staring at plain old green grass for a few minutes.
Back in my garden, my pair of dahlias has been flowering for ages. After the cooler weather of fall arrived they became both more productive and more prominent as the garden around began the transition to the colours of fall. Even late-blooming perennials look a little washed out compared to the vibrancy of the dahlias. Karma Choc is a deep maroon variety that’s been popping out masses of blooms. It’s in a series that was bred to produce especially long-lasting cut flowers.
My current favourite, new this year from Proven Winners and quite a contrast is Mystic illusion. It has simple, lemon yellow flowers that leap out from the purple, almost black, foliage. I do believe this is the same one grouped to great effect in a flower bed in Kitchener’s Victoria Park. Illusion is one in the Mystic series of dahlias developed by Dr. Keith Hammett of New Zealand. He’s a specialist in the breeding of ornamental plants with a new approach using different species of dahlias that had not been used prior to his work.
Despite the dark, heat absorbing foliage, mine has been tolerant of late summer heat in full sun. This shouldn’t be a surprise as dahlias originated in Central America, and in Mexico it’s the national flower. They’ll continue to bloom much later there; however, here in the soon-to-be-frozen-north my dahlias, and yours, won’t last much longer in the garden. As soon as a hard frost has mushed the foliage, it will be time to dig out the tubers for winter storage.
Serious growers have their own techniques to ensure the tubers survive storage, and it can be tricky for first timers. Most important is that they’re not stored in conditions that are too damp as they’re prone to rotting, nor stored so dry that they shrivel up. It’s a matter of finding the right balance.
After digging, I like to wash mine off to ensure there are no bugs present or signs of disease. I then leave them to dry and cure for a couple of weeks in a cool location. After curing, I store the tubers in the dark at temperature of 2 to 7 degrees Celsius in a clear plastic bag with an absorbent material such as wood shavings, dry sand, or peat moss. I moisten the material just barely. If it’s completely dry it will absorb moisture from the tuber, drying it out. Another option is to seal the tubers in a sealed, dark plastic bag without any packing material. By sealing the bag there is no moisture loss from the tuber. Even then, it’s best to check on the condition every couple of weeks.
Yes, more dahlias next year, even one that will intimidate the cauliflowers.
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