To dig or not to dig and when to lift, I’m talking dahlias!

Hello my lovely flower friends,

It’s the time of year again when I get asked what to do with dahlias (that’s if you were lucky enough not to have them all eaten by slugs early on). So to dig them up or leave them be…

I’d only recommend leaving them if you have very free draining soil, anything that holds too much water or heavy clay - you can forget it, the tubers will either rot or get eaten by slugs. If you’re one of the lucky ones that have perfect soil conditions then save yourself the job and leave them be.

Either way I recommend leaving the plants until the first frost that turns them black and they start to collapse - thus ensuring all nutrients are packed into the tuber for next year. The longer you leave them it gives the tuber every opportunity to grow into a big healthy one and every week counts. Once the frost has taken them, cut back so you have 2-3 inches of stork left. If you’re leaving them in the ground it’s a good idea to mark where they are as you will now need to cover with a very, very thick layer of mulch. If you are lifting start very gently away from the dahlia with a wide fork, try to be careful not to stab the tuber, not always easy. Loosen bit by bit until you have all the tuber, don’t be tempted to get the mud off it yet, instead bring them into the dry and store stalk side down on crumpled up old newspaper for a around a week, this allows the stalk to dry and not rot down into the tuber, keeping a section of stalk will help you plant it again next year. Once the mud has dried, take off any excess but don’t worry about leaving a dusting, so long as it’s dry. Tubers that have a little mud left on I’ve found store better. If there is any obvious rot (soggy bits) remove that part of the tuber. To store your dahlias over winter there are a few things you can pack them in, I’ve tried them all and have found no difference. In a cardboard box use either scrunched up newspaper, dry sand or sawdust and tuck them up. The next bit is really important - you want to store them somewhere dry that won’t sit below freezing for too long. I once stored mine in my old conservatory at my last house, it had heating but was still cold, I’ve found this the best. I’ve also used a greenhouse but it can’t be in the minuses for too long as the tubers will freeze and rot. I’ve even kept them under the stairs. So long as they are dry, not too hot and not below freezing. I’ll check on them in mid Jan just to make sure everything is ok, if there are any rotten bits I remove them with clean snips and put them back. I go through them like this as I don’t have lots anymore and I really cherish the ones I have. If I had over 100, in all honesty, I probably wouldn’t bother as I’m quite a lazy gardener, I just have years of growing/gardening experience so I know what I can get away with and how precious or not I am about things.

I hope you’ve found that helpful, any questions please feel free to ask and I’ll do my best!

What I’ve been up to the past few weeks- Well the garden has been a soggy mess and I had to cancel a garden morning which was a shame, that’s it till next year now. I’ve been slowly editing the gravel garden, cutting back some of the bronze fennel and verbena, being careful not to take too much as I love winter interest in the garden and these things provide not only wonderful places for hibernating ladybirds and such like but also look beautiful when draped with cobwebs and crystallised with frost. Such scenes in the winter months bring me joy! I’ve been back in my pottery and art studio creating a new collection of ceramics and painting.

I’ll pop my shop link below but I’ll let you know when the new collection is complete, it features little spoons, fine porcelain pieces and some gorgeous little bells with my hand dyed silk ribbon. I’ve been painting a large canvas and having lots of fun doing an abstract piece - quite different for me as I usually do landscapes. In the cutting garden I’m cutting strawflowers (helichrysum) when the sun shines and they are dry enough. These ones I’m bringing into the house in an inch of water just to open the flowers up more and to make sure the flower head is dry. I plan on using them to cheer up winter, I thought I’d make some garlands out of them this year.

I think that’s about it for now. I need to pull up my cosmos when I gat a dry moment. These usually keep going till the first frosts but we’ve had so much rain they are just a mess. I will keep a couple of my favourite plants a bit longer so I can get some seed on a dry day.

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Emma x