ninnyMary & cwhit590 should see these :)

[digitS']

. . . stakes.

They would hate, hate, hate them!

This is my dahlia garden this year. I've had a little larger garden to grow about 300 plants. There are some dahlias elsewhere which was necessary to maintain about that number.

This garden only has 18" paths! I'm not only losing some square feet in the beds but I've got 6" less in the paths for moving around!!

Stakes? Yeah! I need stakes!!

Steve
who probably should have photoshopped that picture to make the foliage a little more green on a gray day. They are a little peaked what with not quite enuf sunshine thru June.

 

[journey11]

What do you do with all those dahlias, Steve? Do you cut them and give them away or sell them? That's a lot of dahlias! Can't wait to see a pic in bloom.

I guess stakes look better than flowers laying in the dirt though, huh!

 

[lesa]

Yes, Steve, inquiring minds want to know- what in the world do you do with a field of dahlia's?? And where do you get the energy to dig them all up?? Your garden looks beautiful, neat and tidy. Stakes are a necessary evil! I will be awaiting eagerly pics of blossoms! Mine are quite pretty, right now. They have kind of made a bouquet!

 

[digitS']

You know, Journey, they don't actually generate many blooms. The season is a little too short here to get many flowers before the weather begins to cool and frost is then, right around the corner. I find that digging them out of these soft dirt beds is really easy. It does take a couple of days to get them back downstairs, in the basement.

I get a few off each plant and they go to the farmers' market. Dahlias aren't the most lasting cut flower. They are stunning, however!

Lesa, I'll try to refine my photographic technique and get some flower close ups in about a month.

And yeah! This would become an impassable jungle by that time without the stakes and baling twine. I'm afraid that in general and unless they are dwarf bedding plants, dahlias require staking. A rainstorm when those big flowers are open would be devasting, otherwise. I grow very few "dinnerplates" but flowers of 4" are considered miniatures.

Most of my dahlias came from here (click). And, there's always room for more !

Steve

 

[digitS']

. . . Mine are quite pretty, right now. They have kind of made a bouquet!

Oh! Blooming? Another zone 4 gardener showing me up!!!

I'm going to take my zone 5 designation and mail it back to the USDA!

Steve

 

[obsessed]

What kind of Dalhias do you have? I got some from lowes and they are stunning but they are not very big. Do you have any pics of your flowers?

 

[digitS']

O, I have only some old photo's. The ones on the cell phone aren't very good. And, I have to better understand this digital camera to get close ups. It has been hard to "do them justice."

I used to think that I wouldn't have to tag or even remember the varieties since there was so much information in the Swan Island catalog. Then I noticed that their selection slowly changes. Now, there are many that I can no longer identify.

I still don't tag any except the dinnerplates and partly that is because I don't want too many. Mostly, I have "B Size (6" blooms) because they work better in bouquets.

There are still some Pom Pons that I grew originally from seed. Starting them in the greenhouse and setting out the plants gave them just enuf time to have a bloom or 2 in their first year so that I could decide if I wanted to keep them. The tubers make earlier flowers, after that.

Of the dinnerplates, this one could knock your socks off at 20 paces! It is a favorite and I should have quite a few again this year: Show 'n' Tell

Steve

 

[cwhit590]

AH! Stakes...noooo!!!

Good ole Steve. How ya doing?


Well that is quite the stake maze you have going on there...but I'm sure the results will be worth all the effort. Dahlias are beautiful flowers and always a hit.


I guess I don't hate the stakes themselves....just all the effort that goes into buying them, setting them up, tying things up, taking it down, then storing....trying to find them in the spring..........meh. I'm a lazy gardener!


Funny you should bring this up Steve....I am doing a big veggie/cutflower garden at a friends house.....and I need to STAKE my pole beans ASAP! I haven't had time so I've been pinching the poor things back when I've stopped by. I don't feel like buying stakes so I think I'll use saplings to give something for them to climb on...maybe this will be accomplished tomorrow.........maybe.......

 

[digitS']

C, I'll admit -- they do look rather silly.

After awhile, there is some color other than green to distract the eye .
. . . happy you are back .

Steve

 

[ninnymary]

OMG!!!!STAKES!!!!UGLY ONES TOO!!!!!

I guess I shouldn't complain about my pretty green metal stakes that are 24" high!

Digits...I'm still laughing thinking of all those stakes! I love dahlias and used to grow them. Then I got tired of the mildew and tried growing them again and they just didn't do as well. Maybe I'll try them again after being inspired by you. But I think I'll use the tall plastic green stakes from Home Depot!

Mary