Dahlias in pots

Yes I do, I love dahlias, and I’ve got about 20 I think, the first ones are 5 years old now. I just remove the loose dirt, and store the tubers in the garage over the winter on stacked mushroom trays with newspaper so they are separated, I’ve only lost one so far. You can’t let them get frosted though, so they need to be on the inside wall or in a frost free greenhouse.
The main thing is to keep on picking or deadheading to keep the flowers coming. I just use liquid plant food once a week otherwise, as you are doing. I hate cutting them down in the autumn, but I now do it mid October even if the frost hasn’t killed the tops, because it’s a horrible chore on a damp miserable November day.

I love dahlias and usually do the same with then as Casdon, but last year I left the ones in pots and they succumbed to frost and water logging which is only to be expected. A few I forgot to dig up from the flower beds have come back and are flourishing. I have a lot this year that I have grown from seed because I didn’t think I would have any otherwise.

I was too poorly last year to lift my tubers so they remained in the ground all winter - we have sandy soil which drains well.

All my dahlias are beautiful this year but I'm not risking leaving them in the ground again, I will definitely be lifting them and storing like Casdon does.

I’ve left them in pots over winter twice, an extra topping of compost just for good luck, then put them in a sheltered spot (lost 3 out of 5) but in the shed last winter (lost them all) so I think I’ll be taking them up and storing as suggested this time round.

I’m curious about growing from seed Greyduster - I’ve bought tubers so far. What’s the routine?

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I'm a first timer growing dahlias, so haven't had any experience over winter. I think I'll risk leaving them, well mulched, as we live in a mild climate with sandy soil.

Does anyone know what the black creatures are I have on my stalks? They don't seem to be doing any harm to the actual flower.

I have some in the ground and some in large pots - don't lift them in autumn and they're doing fine- been in same place for a few years. I live in SE Ireland where we don't have very cold winters.
My mother was a keen gardener and grew a lot of dahlias which she lifted every year, but I'm more careless - too much trouble for me! My dahlias are mostly common, cheap varieties so probably fairly hardy.

Dahlias are one of the easiest flowers to grow from seed. Sow them in seed trays, cover with sieved compost and they come through fairly quickly. Germination is very reliable. Keep potting them on until they’re big enough to plant out. You get a lot of plants from one packet. When my DH was in the Army and we were moving around, outside of the tropics I grew dahlias in every garden we had.

It’s hard to tell from your photo, Joseann, but those black creatures look a bit like black fly. Just rub them off.

Sidelined, I grow dahlias successfully in pots, but, like casdon I over winter the tubers in the garage, storing them in cardboard boxes. This year, I successfully split some big tubers and now have two or three of the same variety in separate pots rather than just the one.

Never grown any from seed, but might give that a try next year.

Thanks all. Despite the weather, my potted dahlias are amazing and I’ve got a nice selection from tiny ones right through to the dinner plate ones. I’m very pleased. I’m definitely getting more for next year - is splitting easy? The tubers baffle me I did wonder if I’d put one or two in upside down but they’re all through. Phew!

As for seeds - when’s best to sow them?

Thanks again.

Post us a picture Sidelined, I’d love to see everybody’s dahlias! Yes, they are very easy to split, you just tease them apart and plant them in clumps. Make sure you label them with what size they are as you put them in storage for the winter, or you’ll end up with small ones in big pots, and vice versa- the size of the tubers doesn’t seem to indicate the size of the plant.

Here are some of mine, the dark red one is my absolute favourite.

This is one of the Cafe au Lait and it’s enormous but pinker than I expected

That’s lovely, I must look out for Cafe au Lait next year.