July Dahlia

Enjoying a much deserved return to popularity, Dahlias are perfect for planting in summer borders and patio containers as well as for cut flowers in the home. Often flowering until the first frosts this bushy, tuberous, herbaceous perennial is native mainly to Mexico but also Central America and Colombia.

Planting Dahlias in July will bring instant impact and warm, vibrant colour to your garden. Easy to grow and tolerant of a wide range of soil types, you don’t need to be a gardening expert to plant, grow and enjoy these plants in your garden year after year.

Dahlias can become very tall, so be prepared to support them as they emerge and grow. Always make sure that the dahlias are kept well fed and watered, dosing with a high potash plant feed as soon as the flowers heads appear. To keep them flowering for as long as possible dead head as the flower petals fall and expose a pointed bud. Don’t confuse these with the rounded buds which are the new flowers!

Dahlia tubers can be left to over-winter in well drained soils but to be certain of having them again for the following year tubers should be lifted after the first frost have blackened the top growth. Dry them off in a frost proof shed or greenhouse and then store them in dry compost until Spring. In March or April they can be started into growth in pots and planted out after the last Spring frost.