All About Dahlias
From August until frost, dahlias unfurl one of the widest-ranging palettes of flower color, forms and sizes of any plant. They bloom in nearly every flower color except true blue, and bloom size ranges from 12-inch-wide dinner plates to anemone-like forms to small button-like pompons. Dahlias are popular, long-lasting cut flowers with about 30 species among them and tens of thousands of cultivars. Dahlias make excellent cut flowers. Native to central Mexico, dahlias are easy to grow if given adequate sunlight and rich well-drained soil. These shrubby plants grow from bulb-like tuberous roots, or tubers – which often present two challenges for gardeners. The tubers, sold in garden centers and mail-order nurseries, often rot. And depending on how cold your winters get, they may require digging and storing indoors until planting time next spring. As a result many gardeners treat dahlias not as perennials, but as tender bulbs or annuals.
