The tried and trusted way of drying out dahlias is to cut back the stems, shake of surplus soil from the tubers, and then invert them so that moisture drains out of the stems. When you cut them, you will see that the main stems are hollow, which can result in water collecting and contributing to the tubers going soft. Once reasonably dry they can be stored for the winter, either wrapped in newspaper or kept in dry sand.
It would be possible to leave them in their pots and allow them to dry out, of course, providing you kept them dry and under cover ie frost-free.
PS It may well be that newer advice is different from this method, but I have done it for years, having learnt it at my mother's knee! And she loved her garden!
I grow over 250 varieties of dahlia in Devon, mainly in two big display beds and I dig them all up each autumn as they are too valuable to loose! Whilst they may survive if really well mulched the biggest enemy here seems to be the weather: wet, which rots the tubers and frost which can get really deep into the ground and pulp them. slugs will then eat any tubers which may survive the weather! The wash and storage methods detailed above are the best way to deal with the tubers. The beauty of digging them up is that you can start your tubers off early in the year (if you can protect them in a greenhouse or tunnel). They then start flowering earlier too! If they survive in the ground usually the new shoots get caught by frosts and the plant has to restart shooting, loosing valuable growing time. Also the slugs and snails spot them and eat them too. If you start them off early, in pots or cardboard boxes, you can take cuttings from the emerging shoots and start more plants and increase your display! Beware, you may become addicted to dahlia growing!
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The tried and trusted way of drying out dahlias is to cut back the stems, shake of surplus soil from the tubers, and then invert them so that moisture drains out of the stems. When you cut them, you will see that the main stems are hollow, which can result in water collecting and contributing to the tubers going soft. Once reasonably dry they can be stored for the winter, either wrapped in newspaper or kept in dry sand.
It would be possible to leave them in their pots and allow them to dry out, of course, providing you kept them dry and under cover ie frost-free.
PS It may well be that newer advice is different from this method, but I have done it for years, having learnt it at my mother's knee!
And she loved her garden!
Wonderful, really appreciate you explaining that for me!
I grow over 250 varieties of dahlia in Devon, mainly in two big display beds and I dig them all up each autumn as they are too valuable to loose! Whilst they may survive if really well mulched the biggest enemy here seems to be the weather: wet, which rots the tubers and frost which can get really deep into the ground and pulp them. slugs will then eat any tubers which may survive the weather! The wash and storage methods detailed above are the best way to deal with the tubers. The beauty of digging them up is that you can start your tubers off early in the year (if you can protect them in a greenhouse or tunnel). They then start flowering earlier too! If they survive in the ground usually the new shoots get caught by frosts and the plant has to restart shooting, loosing valuable growing time. Also the slugs and snails spot them and eat them too. If you start them off early, in pots or cardboard boxes, you can take cuttings from the emerging shoots and start more plants and increase your display! Beware, you may become addicted to dahlia growing!