Store your new arrivals in a cool, dark, dry, spot, until you are ready to plant. Dahlia tubers can make a tasty treat for rodents so be sure to keep them away from little critters. The dahlias may decide to sprout in the bag and thats okay.

Dahlia tubers are cold sensitive and will only produce roots in optimal ground temperatures of around 15 degrees celsius. Care should be taken not to plant tubers too early in the season. If a tuber is planted before the ground temp rises, you risk losing them to rot. In New Zealand, it is recommended to start planting your tubers in October at the earliest (depending on your location).

Once the threat of frost has passed and the ground temp rises, plant your tubers in well draining, fertile, soil. If you don't have free draining soil, raised garden beds work a treat.

Plant your tuber 10cm deep, and at least 30cm apart from other tubers. Overcrowding can cause outbreaks of powdery mildew.

It is recommended to stake your dahlia now, in order to avoid stakes piercing tubers at a later date.

Tips

*Only water your dahlias once they have started to produce green shoots. This is usually about 3-4 weeks after planting.

*If you have the space, start your dahlias indoors. Greenhouse, garage, spare room, anywhere! Doing this can save the heartbreak of losing them to rot by planting them outdoors too early, and can also give you the chance to check them for disease before moving them to your garden bed.

A great way to increase your stock for summer. Take your dormant tuber and plant in shallow potting mix with the top of the tuber clump exposed. At this stage the clump/tuber does not need to be watered. Keep indoors for this process as too much moisture will rot your tuber. Your tuber should start to wake up after around 3-6 weeks. When the shoot is about 8cm long, take a knife and cut out the shoot from where it first appears on the tuber. Remove the lower leaves and pinch out the top. Dip the end in hormone rooting powder, and push into damp potting mix. Cover with a plastic bag and keep out of direct sunlight. After a few weeks, your cutting should have developed roots and will be ready for the garden once the threat of frost has passed. Be sure to protect your cuttings from slugs and snails.

To get the best from your plants, it is recommended to pinch out the top of the main stem. This promotes the growth of multiple stems from just above the cut which, in turn, gives you way more flowering stems with a longer stem length. Pinch out once your dahlia has produced around 4 sets of leaves.

Dahlias get tall and heavy, especially those dinner plate varieties. A downpour of rain can snap flower stems in an instant. Staking your blooms helps provide the support needed to bloom again and again. It is best to pop your stakes into the ground BEFORE planting your tuber. This stops the stake potentially going straight through the tuber after planting.

Once in bloom, dahlias thrive when fertilised monthly with a good balanced organic liquid fertiliser. This is especially the case if you are growing your dahlias in containers.

If adding compost, make sure it is bought from a reputable supplier and free of pesticides and herbicides. If adding animal manures, make sure these are well aged before adding.

Dahlias love Bone Flour and Organic Potash - both high in Potassium (K).

Cut your dahlia blooms early morning or late in the evening. Dahlia blooms aren't the longest lasting cut flower, they will usually look good for 4-5 days in a vase. It is important to harvest them at the right time of development as they wont unfurl much more once cut. So make sure they are not too closed or too open. Cut long stems and place immediately into a bucket of water. Pick your blooms every 3-4 days to encourage a constant supply of flowers.

A fun and exciting part of growing dahlia, is the seed! If you leave your blooms to set seed (usually best at the end of the season as your plant is winding down) you have a few surprises in store for next season. Unlike tubers, dahlia seeds will never be 100% true to their parent, so what will grow, is anyones guess. Wait until the seed head is brown and dry, give it a squeeze to check. No moisture should come out. If it is dry, cut and store - as is - in a dark, cool and dry place, until next season.

Dahlias are generally easy care provided you have the right conditions. They are prone to rot and powdery mildew. To avoid these, watch your watering before the tuber has sprouted and plant in well draining soil and remove the lower leaves of dahlia plants to encourage airflow and stop powdery mildew. The only other threat to your dahlias are slugs and snails.... don't get me started! These pests can decimate a garden of newly sprouted dahlia shoots in one night. You could use bait. We prefer not to do this, so I usually spend my mornings and evenings covering and uncovering newly emerging shoots with bottles that will protect from slug damage but still allow the plant to breathe. It is time consuming. Another option is to head out at dusk and pick off the little critters or use a beer/yeast trap to catch them in. Its all very gross, but all a part of growing dahlias!

Earwigs are generally the only other pest we encounter here. They do a fair bit of damage to the blooms as they burrow in to the bud and have a snack before they open.

Other issues on the rise include crown gall and leafy gall. There is plenty of info online about these and what to look out for. Although it isn't super common, it is increasing. Unfortunately, there is no cure for either, and plants should be destroyed - into the bin, not the compost.

It is recommended to lift your dahlias each year or every second year. This promotes healthy future plants for the coming seasons by keeping clumps small and stoping over crowding and preventing tuber loss through rot over the winter. Lifting can also help find pests and diseases quickly, and possibly save the rest of your garden from nasties like gall and pesky ants, who love to nest in burrowed out tubers.

Tubers can be lifted around 4 weeks after the dahlia foliage has died down, any earlier and you risk losing your tubers in storage as they haven't had a chance to harden.

Lift tuber clumps with a garden fork, not spade. I lost many a tuber in the early days due to a spade going straight through the center.

There are so many recommended ways to store tubers online. Some, I feel, are a bit over the top. Here at The Wildstyler, tubers are lifted around 3-4 weeks after the foliage has died back. If lifted earlier than this, the tubers have not had a chance to harden and will shrivel in storage. Another bonus of not lifting until then, the shorter day length kick starts tuber production. So leaving them in the ground that little bit longer, means more (and usually bigger) tubers for next season.

After being lifted, the entire clump is rinsed under the hose, left in the shade overnight to dry (not in the sun) and then placed on shelves in a cool, dark shed. Thats it! The shed has a natural airflow with small vents at the top and is secure from little rodents wanting a tasty treat. I check them every so often and give them a little squeeze, but so far have had no issues with storing tubers this way. Come spring, the clumps are divided and ready to plant. I find that clumps always store better than single tubers and there is less chance of loss. There is usually enough moisture and energy in the clump to sit out the winter, all ready for spring.

Here at The Wildstyler, I only divide tubers before planting. As mentioned, I find the tuber clumps store better over the winter months than singular tubers do.

There are many online videos on how to divide dahlia tubers. The key things to remember - for a dahlia tuber to sprout, it needs a neck, a crown and eyes. I suggest doing a little bit of research on what to look out for before having a go on your dahlia clump.