I’m so happy you have a UA-cam! The tubers and the seedlings! All of this just makes me feel so happy! Your genuine love for flowers can be felt and it lifts me. My niece just gave me one of your books for my birthday. We’ve both watched your show so many times! Yes, over and over. She’s even sent in her request for a scholarship. If she does or does not get it? You are all part of our lives now. We talk about you, all of you, and how much we’ve gained. It’s more than flowers. Much more. Thank you. 🍃🌸🍃
Thank you, thank you Erin for finally getting UA-cam going! I am the "spare wheel/unpaid laborer" of a dahlia farming wife and both your TV series but certainly also these just get me even more excited in the "labor of love".
I am going to try my hand at growing dahlias from seed this winter, due to our cold climate, Zone 3, I will start the seeds in January and hopefully by the middle of April I will have nice sized plants that I can put in my greenhouse and then transplant the long weekend in May. I am trying to overwinter the dahlia tubers I dug out this fall and I will be dividing them in the spring when their eyes are more evident. I love your videos, thank you so much for your expertise and encouragement!
Love your content! The first year seedling reminds me of a toddler and the second year, a preschooler!🙃. Third year, a teen? Keep doing what you are doing! Spreading so much beauty in the world!🙏🏻
Oh I'm so glad you shared this with us. Now I know that when I get the seeds from you, what to expect. I can't wait to get my Petite Florets!! There all so beautiful! And I was fortunate enough to get two of your books. So many amazing pictures along with instructions. I'm so glad i found you!!
Thankyou! Im growing from seed and can now see how tubers look first year..marvelous! And i see your spacing is little closer together which is whst i hsve done with my seedlings. Thankyou so much for your very helpful vid! X
Thanks for the great dahlia info. I love them and want to grow more next year. I discovered I need a fence. A big fence to keep the deer out! Apparently, they love dahlias too
I grew some from seed and the tubers were the size of giant sweet potatoes! I didn’t fertilize and I didn’t even water them once they were established. We had a really dry summer and I left them alone which was really surprising to me.
Congrats on the UA-cam channel! I can't wait to catch up on all the videos! I joined the fall mini course, which was excellent. You take the time to clearly explain all the steps and reasons behind the different methods. So helpful! I'm in NC, zone 7b, and need to lift and move my first year dahlias. Since we won't have a hard frost for another few weeks, can you suggest another method to lift and store before the plants get frozen? Love everything you do, and thank you!
Hi, @sheila1961! You'll follow the same process as you would if you were digging them up later, but you'll want to be more careful when you're lifting the tuber clumps because they may not have had time to cure properly. Tubers that are dug early can also have a tendency to shrivel more quickly, so you'll want to keep an eye on that and wash and divide them as soon as you can. Good luck!
First time growing Dahlias this year, and one thing I heard is they get powdery mildew easily so to space them out well, but you planted them so close together. How do you not get powdery mildew on them being so closely planted together?
I have 4 dahlias in pots that I got from seed, can I leave them in the basement near winwow, over the winter? In winter, the temperature in the basement does not go below 4 degrees Celsius. I live in hardiness zone 7 b.
So, first year tuber clumps will have maybe one or two viable eye-neck-and body tubers? Do you process the one year clump the same as the older tuber clumps…cleaning, cutting, and storing? Do you classify and store your one year tubers separately from the older tubers..and when do you consider a tuber/ mother plant to be fully established?
Hi, @lindapeterson2684! Yes, you'll generally get between 1 and 3 viable tubers from a single dahlia seedling. You follow the same process for digging, dividing, and storing dahlia seedling tubers as you would for tubers from established plants. Year-one tubers do not need to be stored separately from established tubers, but you'll want to make sure they're labeled so you remember what they are. Dahlia hybridizers generally grow a new variety for several seasons before they consider it genetically stable.
Dear Erin. Love the channel. I've been growing plants for 40 years, 30 years commercially and I am (still) shocked at modern breeding practices. Some viewers would find it horrific that you are going to plough in all those beautiful flowers because they don't live up to commercial expectations. We have human rights, we have animal rights but we don't extend the same level of respect to the lives of plants. Rather than adopting the common attitude of professional plant breeders ( culling/killing perfectly good plants ) there is another, more respectful attitude you can have toward the plants that support your lifestyle. There are two viable alternatives for ethical plant breeding of Dahlia's. You have a crop of 3,500 seedlings x $5 = $17,500 USD you are thinking of ploughing in. The first option is to sell them as first year seedlings to customers ( as packs of 5 ) who want to support your breeding program. A lot of customers would love a seedling from your farm. The second option is to package them up and donate them to charity as part of a campaign to raise awareness for a cause and use it as part of your annual marketing. A charity close to your homebase to uplift local community. Either way, you harness the resource and respect the life of the plants in your care. Keep up the good work. Brendan Rohan | Melbourne, Australia
For dahlia seeds, if you find that the seed parent or pollen parent has hall or a virus, could the seed saved from that seed pod be infected too? Do either virus or gall pass on through the seed or pollen to the resulting seed pods?
When do you split the seedlings? Do you leave it whole and plant the whole thing for a first year? Or do you split a first year? I bet people love having weddings between a seeding area.
Hi Erin! I’ve only been growing dahlias for 2 years. I started with tubers. I separated my tubers the first year and stored them in my unheated garage, but right next to the wall of the house. Most the tubers didn’t look good come Spring. I did get one to grow and bloom this year. My question for you is, at what temperature should the tubers be stored at? I’m thinking of storing my tubers this year in a cool room inside my house. Unfortunately, I don’t have a basement to store them in. I want to make sure I store them at the correct temperature. Thank you!
@laurenoreilly4140 Hi! Dahlia tubers are extremely cold-sensitive and need to be kept at a constant temperature that's cold but doesn't freeze, ideally between 40-50 degrees. If you haven't signed up already, our free Dahlia course goes into tuber storage in greater detail. The link to join is in the video description.
I'm so in love with these flowers but I don't know if I can them in my area. I live in Central Alabama and I don't know if the heat is too much for them. I'm in zone 9. Do you think they would make it here?
Hi, @ladonnadavis8710! Dahlias can often struggle to thrive in warm climates like Florida, Hawaii, and Texas, but it is possible to grow them. We don't have first-hand experience growing in these conditions, but there are a handful of wonderful growers that we recommend following to learn more: 3 Porch Farm in Georgia, FarmGal Flowers in Florida, and La Musa de las Flores in Mexico.
A light frost won't hurt the seeds, but eventually, the plant will start to die off and seeds that aren't fully mature won't be viable. You could harvest them now and how the seeds look. We have a video on saving dahlia seeds that will show you what mature seeds look like. Good luck!
The seedling tubers don't seem to have the same tough skin on them and mine dried out with a few weeks. Is there something you do differently with them to store?
Hi, @jenniferc.5232! We don't handle our dahlia seedling tubers any differently than we do tubers from established plants, but we are in a very humid climate. If you're finding that yours are drying out, you could try leaving the dirt on the tuber clumps and then washing and dividing before planting out in the spring. You could also use a humidifier if you notice that your clumps are starting to dry out.
Hi, @thisalaskagirlhough4615! It's hard to say without being able to see them. If they're not too squishy, you can still try saving them but if they've turned to mush they're probably not viable and aren't worth saving.
I just dug up my first year seedlings and the tubers and clumps are HUGE! I'm not sure why or how but I was so surprised!
A million thanks for explaining it simply enough for a novice to comprehend ❤
I’m so happy you have a UA-cam! The tubers and the seedlings! All of this just makes me feel so happy! Your genuine love for flowers can be felt and it lifts me. My niece just gave me one of your books for my birthday. We’ve both watched your show so many times! Yes, over and over. She’s even sent in her request for a scholarship. If she does or does not get it? You are all part of our lives now. We talk about you, all of you, and how much we’ve gained. It’s more than flowers. Much more. Thank you.
🍃🌸🍃
Thank you, thank you Erin for finally getting UA-cam going! I am the "spare wheel/unpaid laborer" of a dahlia farming wife and both your TV series but certainly also these just get me even more excited in the "labor of love".
I am going to try my hand at growing dahlias from seed this winter, due to our cold climate, Zone 3, I will start the seeds in January and hopefully by the middle of April I will have nice sized plants that I can put in my greenhouse and then transplant the long weekend in May. I am trying to overwinter the dahlia tubers I dug out this fall and I will be dividing them in the spring when their eyes are more evident. I love your videos, thank you so much for your expertise and encouragement!
Wonderful video. You are a good teacher. Well spoken, and so interesting. Thank you!
The dahlia field is just amazing. I’m planting more.
This is so awesome! You’re a fantastic teacher!
What fun to find you here on the tubes!
Love your content! The first year seedling reminds me of a toddler and the second year, a preschooler!🙃. Third year, a teen? Keep doing what you are doing! Spreading so much beauty in the world!🙏🏻
YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW BENEFICIAL THIS WAS!! thank you!!!
I SO envy your soil!
Oh I'm so glad you shared this with us. Now I know that when I get the seeds from you, what to expect. I can't wait to get my Petite Florets!! There all so beautiful! And I was fortunate enough to get two of your books. So many amazing pictures along with instructions. I'm so glad i found you!!
Thankyou! Im growing from seed and can now see how tubers look first year..marvelous! And i see your spacing is little closer together which is whst i hsve done with my seedlings. Thankyou so much for your very helpful vid! X
Thanks for the great dahlia info. I love them and want to grow more next year. I discovered I need a fence. A big fence to keep the deer out! Apparently, they love dahlias too
Oh thank you so much for this video, I have been wondering what to expect from my Floret seeds, if there would be little tubers this year !!!
Oh thank you for sharing. You are so very knowledgeable. 😊
I grew some from seed and the tubers were the size of giant sweet potatoes! I didn’t fertilize and I didn’t even water them once they were established. We had a really dry summer and I left them alone which was really surprising to me.
Know I understand- your channel is gonna be a game changer for us 🎉Thanks ~ Zone 8A North Texas
I'm so excited to try this!
Liked and sub'd!♥ Love how you get right to the point of the subject matter.
Very Nice gardening
Great video. Very informative.
Congrats on the UA-cam channel! I can't wait to catch up on all the videos! I joined the fall mini course, which was excellent. You take the time to clearly explain all the steps and reasons behind the different methods. So helpful! I'm in NC, zone 7b, and need to lift and move my first year dahlias. Since we won't have a hard frost for another few weeks, can you suggest another method to lift and store before the plants get frozen? Love everything you do, and thank you!
Hi, @sheila1961! You'll follow the same process as you would if you were digging them up later, but you'll want to be more careful when you're lifting the tuber clumps because they may not have had time to cure properly. Tubers that are dug early can also have a tendency to shrivel more quickly, so you'll want to keep an eye on that and wash and divide them as soon as you can. Good luck!
First time growing Dahlias this year, and one thing I heard is they get powdery mildew easily so to space them out well, but you planted them so close together. How do you not get powdery mildew on them being so closely planted together?
Is that Table Rock Mountain? 🥰
Thank you for explaining! This is fantastic I was just asking about this. ❤thank you, subscribed for info
Well when i get my tubers, i usually get one tuber with an active eye from my online place
I have 4 dahlias in pots that I got from seed, can I leave them in the basement near winwow, over the winter? In winter, the temperature in the basement does not go below 4 degrees Celsius. I live in hardiness zone 7 b.
Does the same thing go for cuttings first year tubers are way smaller and few?
So, first year tuber clumps will have maybe one or two viable eye-neck-and body tubers? Do you process the one year clump the same as the older tuber clumps…cleaning, cutting, and storing? Do you classify and store your one year tubers separately from the older tubers..and when do you consider a tuber/ mother plant to be fully established?
Hi, @lindapeterson2684! Yes, you'll generally get between 1 and 3 viable tubers from a single dahlia seedling. You follow the same process for digging, dividing, and storing dahlia seedling tubers as you would for tubers from established plants. Year-one tubers do not need to be stored separately from established tubers, but you'll want to make sure they're labeled so you remember what they are. Dahlia hybridizers generally grow a new variety for several seasons before they consider it genetically stable.
Dear Erin. Love the channel. I've been growing plants for 40 years, 30 years commercially and I am (still) shocked at modern breeding practices. Some viewers would find it horrific that you are going to plough in all those beautiful flowers because they don't live up to commercial expectations. We have human rights, we have animal rights but we don't extend the same level of respect to the lives of plants. Rather than adopting the common attitude of professional plant breeders ( culling/killing perfectly good plants ) there is another, more respectful attitude you can have toward the plants that support your lifestyle. There are two viable alternatives for ethical plant breeding of Dahlia's. You have a crop of 3,500 seedlings x $5 = $17,500 USD you are thinking of ploughing in. The first option is to sell them as first year seedlings to customers ( as packs of 5 ) who want to support your breeding program. A lot of customers would love a seedling from your farm. The second option is to package them up and donate them to charity as part of a campaign to raise awareness for a cause and use it as part of your annual marketing. A charity close to your homebase to uplift local community. Either way, you harness the resource and respect the life of the plants in your care. Keep up the good work. Brendan Rohan | Melbourne, Australia
For dahlia seeds, if you find that the seed parent or pollen parent has hall or a virus, could the seed saved from that seed pod be infected too? Do either virus or gall pass on through the seed or pollen to the resulting seed pods?
"...blooming their brains out..."!!!! Lol
When do you split the seedlings? Do you leave it whole and plant the whole thing for a first year? Or do you split a first year? I bet people love having weddings between a seeding area.
We'll have a course coming out about dahlias in October. Stay tuned for that! It will help with dividing dahlias, storing them & so much more.
Thank you great info !!!!
Hi Erin! I’ve only been growing dahlias for 2 years. I started with tubers. I separated my tubers the first year and stored them in my unheated garage, but right next to the wall of the house. Most the tubers didn’t look good come Spring. I did get one to grow and bloom this year.
My question for you is, at what temperature should the tubers be stored at? I’m thinking of storing my tubers this year in a cool room inside my house. Unfortunately, I don’t have a basement to store them in. I want to make sure I store them at the correct temperature. Thank you!
@laurenoreilly4140 Hi! Dahlia tubers are extremely cold-sensitive and need to be kept at a constant temperature that's cold but doesn't freeze, ideally between 40-50 degrees. If you haven't signed up already, our free Dahlia course goes into tuber storage in greater detail. The link to join is in the video description.
I'm so in love with these flowers but I don't know if I can them in my area. I live in Central Alabama and I don't know if the heat is too much for them. I'm in zone 9. Do you think they would make it here?
Hi, @ladonnadavis8710! Dahlias can often struggle to thrive in warm climates like Florida, Hawaii, and Texas, but it is possible to grow them. We don't have first-hand experience growing in these conditions, but there are a handful of wonderful growers that we recommend following to learn more: 3 Porch Farm in Georgia, FarmGal Flowers in Florida, and La Musa de las Flores in Mexico.
We just had an uplanned first frost and it turned all the dahlia leaves black. Is it too late to harvest the dahlia seeds?
A light frost won't hurt the seeds, but eventually, the plant will start to die off and seeds that aren't fully mature won't be viable. You could harvest them now and how the seeds look. We have a video on saving dahlia seeds that will show you what mature seeds look like. Good luck!
The seedling tubers don't seem to have the same tough skin on them and mine dried out with a few weeks. Is there something you do differently with them to store?
Hi, @jenniferc.5232! We don't handle our dahlia seedling tubers any differently than we do tubers from established plants, but we are in a very humid climate. If you're finding that yours are drying out, you could try leaving the dirt on the tuber clumps and then washing and dividing before planting out in the spring. You could also use a humidifier if you notice that your clumps are starting to dry out.
Love it
HELP! i dug my seedling tubers. and they are already squishy?!! Why?? Is this normal?? Save them? Toss?
Hi, @thisalaskagirlhough4615! It's hard to say without being able to see them. If they're not too squishy, you can still try saving them but if they've turned to mush they're probably not viable and aren't worth saving.
🌸🪴🌼Thanks 🌼🪴🌸
Erin, I can barely hear you. No problem with other youtube videos I subscribe to.
Not sure what the problem is.