A good place to start is with an understanding of
the resources available to assist us in making choices and obtaining the tubers
or plants we want. Then you may ask, "Which
Ones Do I Choose."
For what purpose do you wish to grow dahlias? How
much room do you have? Will you have beds to grow show dahlias or do you just
want some foliage and cutting flowers to enhance your landscape. Different
dahlia cultivars range in height from twelve inches to seven or eight feet. One
"tree dahlia" can reach twenty feet. Most plants are around three or
four feet. My annual flower beds will be lined with border dahlias this year. Maybe
they will be no taller than two feet with a profusion of blooms.
Buying dahlia stock is much like buying anything
else—you get what you pay for. Needless to say, there are some really beautiful
dahlias out there that are not on the Fabulous Fifty list. If you want to start
with possible show winning blooms though, look at the blossoms pictured in the "Gallery."
You should also know that it is almost impossible to capture the true color of
deep burgundy, reds, purples, and lavenders on film. Not very many flowers are
the shocking pink you will see on the screen. Sometimes the description is not
really what you think it should be because the number of colors allowed is very
limited. You probably already know what your favorite flower color is. Or maybe
you want the dahlias to carry out a color theme for your landscape. My
favorites are deep, rich colors in large blossoms such as Spartacus and
Islander.
Talk with someone who has grown dahlias—they all
like to talk about them. The size of the plant and its blooms depend upon how
well it likes where you place it and whether you do all the necessary pruning
and disbudding to control growth. You probably will not have a ten inch bloom
unless you prune everything off one branch except one bud. You must remove
spent blooms and remove extra buds if you want the plant to blossom
continuously. I suggest you start with a few plants of your favorite color,
size of bloom, and a combination of formal decorative, informal decorative, and
cactus varieties. Once you’ve grown a few, you’ll be hooked. We have trouble
every year deciding what we will grow and I’d like to have one of everything. I
know of no other more beautiful flower...Louise Lawrence
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