Winters are here!! ... Happy Dahlias to you

There are winter flowers and then there is Dahlia J

Gigantic flowers in attention-seeking shades. Symmetrical flowers... a photographers delight....!

The initial method of caring for a dahlia sapling is more or less similar to Chrysanthemums (see earlier post). They can be started using tubers (you can use last years’ produce), but from my experience, fresh plants procured from nursery or raised from seeds are a much better bet.

Caring for the full grown plant becomes much more important in Dahlia. Dahlia flower is a heavy flower and hence the plant must be supported using wooden stakes (or something similar).

The second significant thing is pruning – though we would love Dahlias to bloom like a Chrysanthemum plant, but it would not! And hence a good gardener must be less greedy and prune her Dahlias to let only a couple of healthy buds to survive. This is essential for heavier, healthier flowers.  

Thirdly, a good sun is essential for blooming however, too much of heat can burn out the flowers which otherwise can survive for weeks together in Delhi winters.

Happy Dahlias to you... This years’ beauties...