Looking to plant some Dahlias but worried it might be a little too late in the season? Well, my guide will let you know just when is the right time to plant these gorgeous flowers.
When Can You Plant Dahlias?
The easiest way to answer this question without knowing when you are asking it is to simply tell you when you can plant Dahlias, and that is exactly what I plan on doing.
The first thing we need to know is whether you mean planting tubers or planting out young seedlings, let me answer both below.
When Can You Plant Dahlia Tubers?
You can even still plant them in July. if planting this late though you might not get the best display, the plant should still have plenty of time to store up some energy in the tuber ready for next year.
If you plant them like this then chances are they will just die. Don’t worry though as this is normally easily fixed.
Just place the tuber in lukewarm water for around 24 hours. This should allow the tuber to rehydrate before planting.
Once we start getting into august then you really are running out of time. The problem you have though is that Dahlia tubers don’t store that well if they have a full year without any growth.
They don’t easily lay dormant for an entire year as seeds can. This leaves you with a tough decision, plant them now and hope they have long enough to grow before the weather changes, or store the tuber and hope it grows next year.
Personally, if it is early august I would try planting the tuber. Once we are past mid august though I would think about trying to store it until next year.
When Can You Plant Dahlia Seeds?
Dahlia seeds should be started indoors or in a greenhouse early in the season. March and April are great times to sow Dahlia seeds as long as they are undercover.
You can also sow them in May or even early June, but any later than this and you are really better off saving your seeds and waiting until next year.
You want to be moving early sowings out in May as soon as the risk of frost has passed. I like to grow my Dahlia seedlings until they are fairly substantial plants as this helps them survive any possible slug damage.
More on Dahlias
Dahlias are simply stunning summer flowers, the pop pop head produces amazing displays. The plant is a member of the Asteraceae family along with daises, asters and marigolds.
Usually grown from a tuber but they can also be grown from seed. The tubers require special care over winter here in the UK and many growers end up with an almost fanatical devotion to their dahlias.
Despite not being able to survive winter outdoors in most of the UK they actually thrive in our summer conditions. The moderate but wet climate we have is absolutely perfect for them.
Dahlias make the perfect container flower and are commonly grown this way. Growing them in containers also makes preserving the tuber over winter a lot easier.