My dahlias really are petering out but Dahlia 'Break Out' is a notable exception. At the start of the season it was the most abundant of my dahlias by far. I gave away many of the cut blooms because I couldn't use them for my own purposes fast enough. Eventually, I exhausted the supply, or so I'd thought. I cut back both plants severely, leaving them in place but not expecting them to rebound. They did take an extended hiatus but, after a break of six to eight weeks or so, they were back. One of them has been especially vigorous, producing so many large, heavy flowers that its branches threatened to break during our recent, relatively light, rain. As it stood, I had to cut them for this week's vase.
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| Interestingly, the current crop of 'Break Out' Dahlias have more pink in the petals than I recall seeing in most of the previous flowers. I also included 2 stems of Dahlia 'Honeymoon'. By my count, that dahlia produced no more than 6 flowers all season. |
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| Back view: Because the rain surprised me with a new flush of Callistemon 'Cane's Hybrid' flowers, I tucked some of those into the arrangement too |
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| Overhead view |
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| Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: Callistemom 'Cane's Hybrid', Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder', a single stem of the all yellow form of Dahlia 'Break Out', the pinkish form of D. 'Break Out' in considerable numbers, D. 'Honeymoon', Zinnia 'Queeny Lemon Peach' and Z. 'Benary's Giant Salmon Rose' |
My cat Meeko "helped" with this week's arrangement. I managed to take most of my photographs without her intervention but she did weasel in at one point.
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| She likes to oversee activities in the kitchen area whenever possible |
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| The completed arrangement in place in the front entryway |
I've finally begun the process of pulling out the dahlia tubers I don't intend to hold onto to replant next spring. I currently expect to toss quite a few. Choices need to be made as I've already submitted advance orders for a dozen varieties to grow next year! On the definite "keep" list are: 'Break Out', Good Day', 'Labyrinth' and 'Omega'. Although they weren't top performers this year, I'll probably also keep 'Enchantress', 'Mikayla Miranda', 'Snowball' and 'Table Dancer' (assuming the tubers still look good once I've dug them up). 'Admiral Rawlings', Creme de Cognac', 'Hartennas', 'Honeymoon', 'Karma Caroline', 'Mystery Day' and 'Nicholas' will go.
Check in with Cathy at Rambling in the Garden to see what she and other contributors to IAVOM have to share this week.
All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
I love the exuberance and color of this arrangement! You've chosen some great keepers, thinning the herd is hard but worth it in the long run.
ReplyDeleteI DO have to remind myself that I should not/ cannot order any more dahlia tubers! I tend to forget in the face of a pretty ad...
DeleteOh gosh, I wish I lived nearby and I had more sun in my garden: I'd be begging for your Dahlia cast-offs. Dahlias are ... sigh, very special. And your Callistemoms and Leucadendrons really make this arrangement sparkle. Nicholas (dog) and Lexie (cat) say "hi" to Meeko.
ReplyDeleteI'm hesitant to offer hand-offs of the tubers that proved disappointing but, as some of those I ordered are sold in packs of two, I imagine I may end up giving some away next year. I only have so much room for them in my cutting garden and other areas of my garden don't get enough water to support dahlias.
DeleteMeeko is quite the handsome helper. This vase is outstanding in those colors. I love how they play off each other. What a dahlia!
ReplyDeleteIt is a pretty dahlia, especially when it "blushes", Donna!
DeleteThe Breakout dahlias have such an interesting variation in colours on the petals, don't they, and it's intriguing that they seem to have varied over the season too. It means they can complement blooms of different colours too. I will wait till I have dug up my dahlias before I decide which dahlias to ditch
ReplyDeleteMy speculation is that variable temperatures and possibly day length may factor into the color variations in those dahlia petals, Cathy.
DeleteAbsolutely stunning! And Meeko’s a pretty girl too.
ReplyDeleteIf only she was just a little better behaved!
DeleteDahlia dilemmas! So hard to choose from so many hybrids. I'll be up to about ten next year, which I think is a lot, but you will grow more than that, wow! It took me several days to dig, wash and sort my lot, but at last they are tucked away for winter, half designated to be given away next spring. No one wants to overwinter them in this climate!
ReplyDeleteEliza
While digging the dahlia tubers up and preparing them for storage certainly isn't fun, it's worth the hassle even in my climate too. In my case, I want to be able to use that space for other purposes for the next 6+ months, which wouldn't be possible if the area ground was populated with bulky hibernating dahlia tubers.
DeleteI love this rich, full spectrum abundance. Not being a Dahlia expert I'm surprised you can cut them hard and get a new flush of foliage and flowers. I have a Dahlia that suffers from mildew every year, I may this next year and see what happens.
ReplyDeleteAs gorgeous as your vase is this week, I'm admitting to being smitten with Meeko most ardently. What a character! What a sweetheart!
Chavli
Meeko looks sweeter than she often is, Chavli. I adopted her from a shelter and I suspect she had a hard start in life. She's slowly mellowing, though. In another 5 years, she may be the perfect cat ;)
DeleteWhat a comeback from 'Break Out' after that long pause! The fresh Callistemon flowers make a lovely companion to those pink-tinged dahlias.
ReplyDeleteI'm very impressed by 'Break Out'. I grew it once before but it's really overachieved this time. What's funny is that I received the 2 tubers I grew this year by mistake from the seller - it was labeled as 'Belle of Barmera'! I've grown 'Belle' before too but 'Break Out' surpasses it in terms of productivity.
DeleteWhat a happy mix-up! Those unexpected 'Break Out' tubers certainly earned their place on next year's keep list.
DeleteI really like that yellow and pink combination in Breakout, and hasn't it done well! All your dahlias have been wonderful and I can understand why you grow so many varieties as they seem to like your garden much better than mine! I also like that pink Callistemom - I think I have only seen red ones before. Lovely!
ReplyDeleteThe pink tinges in 'Bright Star' elevate its appearance. If only I could figure out how to reinforce that feature but I suspect weather conditions and Mother Nature have roles there. The coral-pink Callistemon was a great investment years ago but its flower flushes are relatively unpredictable too.
DeleteIt's nice to see Meeko again! Yeah, I hear you on those dahlias... I made the mistake of buying too many fall-planted bulbs again and now I have no idea where I will put them all. I forget how full the garden seems in spring after all the bulb foliage dies back and disappears by summer.
ReplyDelete