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Congested Dahlias

jamesharcourtjamesharcourt Posts: 465
in Plants
Hi, I have a fairly small corner garden in a sunny spot outfront at our house.

I have her upright/column habit Acer in the middle - Twombly’s Red Sentinel and some low growing roses “Queen of Sweden” along with some bulbs that look good and sit nicely in this small area.

However I also planted dahlias last autumn without really knowing much about them… I bought a pack of three different clusters of tubers from Waitrose and I put them in the ground and forgot about them.

 When they first started growing I didn’t know what they were and when I used a plant identification app it said it was a marijuana plant!

Anyway I just left them and eventually they started producing the tell-tale flowers but they’re all in the wrong position and swamping each other out and growing over the Acer and roses :-/ and I just would like to move them but I’ve never really found the right time.

Is now a decent time to move some of those to a spot where they can breathe a bit better?

I don’t think I need to lift them because that area is very well drained, doesn’t get waterlogged and even in very cold conditions has a blanket of leaves and compost to help overwinter.  

It was around this time last year that I originally put the tubers in the ground. Maybe it was a month on actually - more like October

Posts

  • Pete.8Pete.8 Posts: 11,340
    If it were me, I'd wait until they get nipped by frost (or wait until late Oct/Nov) then lift them and store them somewhere frost free over winter then replant them where you want them next Spring when the frosts are done.
    I never lift mine and they've been in place for many years

    Billericay - Essex

    Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
    Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
  • Caroline-19Caroline-19 Posts: 23
    I never lift  my dahlias either I have 6 in pots which I just cut down give him a good mulch and put them somewhere frost free over winter. 
    Divide the tubers in October mulch and leave Or dig up and keep in a dry place over winter. 
  • jamesharcourtjamesharcourt Posts: 465
    Temps are plummetting here (5 degrees yesterday) so I guess I'll be doing this sooner rather than later :-)

    I'm actually hoping for at least one extremely cold spell this winter - to kill off some fuchsia gall mite.
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    Tubers are better divided in Spring, when you can see where the eyes are.
    They are also much more likely to rot if you divide them in Autumn.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • jamesharcourtjamesharcourt Posts: 465
    punkdoc said:
    Tubers are better divided in Spring, when you can see where the eyes are.
    They are also much more likely to rot if you divide them in Autumn.
    I was actually thinking of just moving them rather than dividing them.  They've only been in the ground a year ... it's more that I planted them all bunched up when I didnt' really mean to / want to / know how they grew etc. etc.
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