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Dahlias - lift or leave?

124

Posts

  • Mags2Mags2 Posts: 35
    I usually just mulch mine really well and they seem to come through the winter ok.
  • dappledshadedappledshade Posts: 1,017
    I need to get some mulch anyway, so I’ll do exactly that. Thanks!
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Just make sure the mulch isn't sitting on top of a lot of wet stuff. It'll tend to trap the moisture in, which is what you're trying to avoid  :)
    Ask away about the hydrangeas - better to start a new thread though. Marlorena also grwos a lot of them - and will be far more knowlegeable than myself  ;)

    I'll see if I can find the thread we were discussing them on recently  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • dappledshadedappledshade Posts: 1,017
    Thanks 😊 you’re a star
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Thanks 😊 you’re a star
    aw shucks.... :D
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    I grow mine in large terracotta pots. I leave them in, mulch and fleece the pots, putting a tarp over the top surface. It's worked wonderfully well and they start resprouting in March.
  • dappledshadedappledshade Posts: 1,017
    Dahlia update: one of mine is still covered in soil and vermiculite, in the shed, in a pot.
    The other i left in the ground over winter (very free draining bed, south facing).
    The one in the shed is First Date. Can I keep it in the shed for another season? The reason being that we are building a side return in May and there will be new beds going in around it, one of which will be FD’s new home.
    Re the other dahlia (currently in the ground); there are still some old stems from last year, but no other signs of life yet. Is it too soon or have I lost one?
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    It's too early for dahlias in the ground to start shooting yet.  The one in the shed will need planting this year or it will die.  It will do ok in a pot if the ground is out of the question because of the building.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • dappledshadedappledshade Posts: 1,017
    Thanks Bob, I’ll get it into a pot then. It’s such a beast of a plant though - had a span of about 2m last summer at its best, as well as being about 1.20m tall. Glorious flowers. Do you think it’d need a huge pot or could I just put it in a smaller one?
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