I’m so terribly sorry if you’re sick to death of me writing about my dahlia journey, but I just have one more thing to tell you, and then I’ll be quiet. Probably. Most likely. I swear I’ll try.
Last year, I planted, grew, harvested, dug up, organized, wintered, woke up, and replanted more than a dozen varieties of dahlias. At each step of the process, I was mentored, but I was so nervous that I would mess it up, especially learning how to separate and winterize dahlia tubers. What if I ruined them all when I tried to separate them? Or what if I went to all the trouble of winterizing and none of the tubers survived in my basement? The stress was real! But if I can do it, so can you.
Tips for saving dahlia tubers overwinter
First, my dahlias were blooming well into November, which for zone 5 is very late — bonkers, really. As much as I wanted to have just one more bouquet, I reluctantly chopped them down and left them for a week before digging them up.
Then, I spent the better part of two days carefully and diligently snipping them apart. Each tuber clump could have as many as 10 tubers, but not all would make viable plants next year. I checked each for an intact neck, a solid body and what I hoped would become an eye.
Next came the painstaking process of keeping them all organized and separated by dahlia variety so I didn’t mix them up. This was my favorite part because creating an organized system is my love language. I stored them in plastic shoebox containers filled with vermiculite, neatly labeled.
Finally, I had to decide where to store them to keep them at a steady temperature and where none of my rascal cats would try to get into them. A cool, dark spot that doesn’t freeze but doesn’t get too warm either isn’t the easiest thing to come by in a 113-year-old house. The closet shelves under the basement steps ended up being the best bet, and they stayed there, out of sight and out of mind, until it was time to wake them.
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Anticipation for spring
I can’t tell you how nervous I was to open those boxes in the spring. But lo and behold, most tubers survived and showed signs of new growth! I lovingly switched out the vermiculite for potting soil for a few weeks until they were ready to plant.
Friends, we did it. We’re true dahlia farmers now! I can’t wait to hear about your success stories.
Jamie successfully grew and harvested 8 varieties of dahlias the first year. She replanted those and added 10 new varieties in her second year. Photos to come!
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