What Do You Do With Dahlia Bulbs

If you ve ever grown dahlias you know they can quickly become a gardener s prize flower.

What do you do with dahlia bulbs.

To do this press the tubers down onto a tray of shallow compost and leave them to start growth in a greenhouse or in a sunny room. In hardiness zone 7 dahlias will usually survive the winter outdoors as long if the soil is well drained and the tubers are insulated with a thick layer of mulch to avoid any risk bring the tubers indoors following the instructions for colder zones. You should do this as soon as the first frost of the season has arrived. Once the skin is wrinkled the tubers should be dry enough.

They are grown from tubers which look like a cluster of brown carrot like roots joined by the previous year s dried stem. Loosen the soil around the dahlia tubers by thrusting the fork or shovel into the ground about a foot away from the plant. If you garden in zones 3 6 you ll need to dig up your dahlia bulbs and store them indoors for this task you need pruning shears a shovel or. To start seeds indoors use a well drained seed raising mix and position in a warm spot away from direct sunlight.

Dahlia tubers of a good size can be divided in spring. You can now leave the roots for two to three more weeks before removing the bulbs. Dahlias are beautiful tender perennials that flower all summer long. Dahlia is a genus of tuberous plants that are members of the asteraceae family.

However they do need to keep slightly moist on the interior to keep the embryo alive. You can dig up dahlia tubers with a garden fork or standard shovel. Be careful not to let the tool come in contact with the tuberous roots which are easily damaged. Cut back the stems until they re about 6 inches 15 centimeters from the ground.

Before you can remove dahlia bulbs from the ground you will need to cut down the stems. Gardeners differ on the best way to pack overwintering dahlia tubers. You can also grow dahlias from seed which is usually sown in spring though in tropical and sub tropical zones you can sow from mid winter seeds can be started indoors or sown directly into the ground. Storing dahlia tubers for winter.

You can buy fresh tubers every spring from garden centres or by mail order or use your own tubers that have been overwintered. You ll need to dig the tubers up at the end of the season if you live in all but the warmest regions of the usa. As well as coming in a rainbow of colors dahlia flowers can range in size from petite 2 inch lollipop style pompoms. Once they are dry they are packed away.

Related species include the sunflower daisy chrysanthemum and zinnia they grow from small tubers planted in the spring. Picking a favorite dahlia is like going through a button box.