Dahlias in bloom
By sofs
@sofssu (23660)
August 27, 2016 3:36am CST
I love dahlias .. especially the dinner plate dahlias. They are easy to grow, as they grow from tubers. However, its a pain guarding the flowers. They usually bloom in the rainy season here and the blooms cannot often withstand the fierce rain and the winds. I have to quickly move the plants inside if I want to see the blooms for a longer time.
Moving these huge plants in and out is a difficult job. Sometime I have to run leaving what ever I do when it starts raining.. and my dog Spark thinks I am on some major adventure and runs up the stairs along side me sniffing out the pots like a sleuth on the scene of a crime.
He thinks I am always up to something which he should be doing, so he tries to reach up to the flowers or pull of leaves like I do with dead leaves. Its so funny to watch him, but I fear for my flowers LOL. This little rascal's face is much smaller than the flowers themselves lol.
13 people like this
13 responses
@crazyhorseladycx (39503)
• United States
28 Aug 16
beautiful dahlias! i've not planted any'n some years. the gophers thought they t'were tasty treats. gigglin' 'o'er mr. spark tryin' to aid ya with the prunin' :)
1 person likes this
@sofssu (23660)
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29 Aug 16
@crazyhorseladycx Spark fancies himself to be a great gardener.. and at times a detective, The grass hopper menace seems to be quite high in your area.
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@sofssu (23660)
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29 Aug 16
@crazyhorseladycx Oh we had a cat here ( a stray one) that used to dig up my plants and poop in them,..After Spark came he is not to be seen in the vicinity. I hope the grasshopper population slowly balances itself out.
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@crazyhorseladycx (39503)
• United States
29 Aug 16
@sofssu those pups sure feel that, eh? the cat used to follow me 'nto the garden 's well, thought she 'twas great help, too. thankfully the grasshoppers aint's bad 's the past 2 years. but, they've sure tried my patience.
1 person likes this
@salonga (27775)
• Philippines
28 Aug 16
What a lovely flower!
I can understand why you take the pain of putting the huge plants in and out. I would not mind doing so if I were in your place. Sadly, I can't really grow huge Dahlias here maybe because of our hot weather.. I only see Dahlias in full bloom in Baguio City, the coldest place in the Philippines. which is six hour drive from our place.
I can understand why you take the pain of putting the huge plants in and out. I would not mind doing so if I were in your place. Sadly, I can't really grow huge Dahlias here maybe because of our hot weather.. I only see Dahlias in full bloom in Baguio City, the coldest place in the Philippines. which is six hour drive from our place.1 person likes this
@sofssu (23660)
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28 Aug 16
@salonga I have grown it in a semi shaded area.. Dahlias I think have adapted themselves to this hot weather too over the years. The best thing about them is that the come up promptly year after year when you put them in the ground. They last really long and they look so good. Its worth the trouble.
1 person likes this
@epiffanie (11327)
• Australia
28 Aug 16
Yes they are lovely! I have a couple of potted ones..
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@Jessicalynnt (50523)
• Centralia, Missouri
27 Aug 16
lol, big flower, tiny dog! that's sounds like a cute photo
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@sofssu (23660)
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29 Aug 16
@Jessicalynnt Most of the time I am alone with spark while this happens ,.. I wish I could get a picture of his face near the flower.
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@BelleStarr (61463)
• United States
27 Aug 16
I used to grow dahlias and for years I dug up the tubers and stored them over the winder in vermiculite and then replanted them in the spring and then one year they just rotted over the winter. I miss them.
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@sofssu (23660)
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29 Aug 16
@BelleStarr That is so sad.. That happens to me sometimes.. I keep buying the tubers.. to replenish the stock.
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@sueznewz2 (10409)
• Alicante, Spain
28 Aug 16
OOHHH I know what you mean.... dahlias are my favourites too .... , and funnily enough my dad loves them too so his garden has loads of them in ... and every year I go mad taking photos of them... lol... but like you say sometimes they suffer at the hands of heavy rain... which in the uk, is quite a frequent occurance... 
...
...1 person likes this
@sofssu (23660)
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28 Aug 16
@sueznewz2 That is so true.. Like you this is one flower I photograph over and over again. I can understand how they fare in the fickle UK weather.
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@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
27 Aug 16
beautiful big dahlia, my dear. so colorful with its bright pinkish-orangey look. what color is this, to be exact?
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@sofssu (23660)
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27 Aug 16
@ridingbet Its a deep magenta hue. Looks very dark without the back light.
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@ridingbet (66854)
• Philippines
27 Aug 16
@sofssu oh, i see. it looks so beautiful.
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@responsiveme (22923)
• India
27 Aug 16
Spark likes gardening.... I had the sameproblem with dahlias, they would break off easily. beautiful photo.
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@sofssu (23660)
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29 Aug 16
@responsiveme True, delicate beauties.. though they don't look all that delicate.
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