Dahlias - planting and growing. Preparing and planting dahlias in open ground in spring - step-by-step instructions When to plant dahlias in the Leningrad region

Before planting dahlias in open ground, it is necessary to carry out a number of preliminary measures. Dahlias should be planted only when the weather is warm, and unprepared plants may bloom too late. Tuberous dahlias are popular perennials, and the question of how to plant them correctly worries many.

Spring work consists of certain stages. Purchased or own planting material is checked for the presence of buds, then the roots are divided. Then they are planted in a growing substrate. The process of planting in the garden is also carried out according to certain rules.

Some gardeners want to make their life easier in the spring and do not touch the dahlias until planting. Unprepared plants bloom late - closer to autumn. For some varieties, and even those with difficult ripening of the root system, this option is not suitable.

Dahlia tubers, stored in the underground or basement (this is how they and chrysanthemums are wintered for many in our country), are taken out in the last ten days of March or early April (in the conditions of the Middle Zone and areas with similar climates). Until this time, purchased flower seedlings are stored in the cellar or refrigerator - at low positive temperatures, without excessive dampness. As a rule, by the beginning of April, even in the dahlia cellar, small seedlings near the stem are already waking up and becoming visible. If pale shoots stretch out early, then they are broken out - after that new buds will definitely wake up.

Rejecting dahlia tubers

All rot, small dry pieces, as well as tubers hanging on damaged connecting roots are removed from the roots. The wounds can be cauterized with pharmaceutical green.

The most important place in a dahlia is the root collar. It is in the zone of the border between the stem and the root that the shoots wake up and grow. If there is no root collar or it is rotten, it is a hopelessly dead creation of nature. Shoots do not grow from the nodules.

Thickened tubers are also important - as a reserve of valuable substances. If all the tubers are rotten or hanging on broken roots, then they will no longer work. But with a strong root collar and a living thickening from below, the seedling is able to survive - if only at least one bud of the flowers wakes up.

Awakening the buds on the roots

Severely dried out, wrinkled planting material may die, but not always. It makes sense to try to revive it: keep it in a solution of a reliable stimulant (Epin Extra, Zircon, HB-101), and then sprinkle it with a moistened substrate (coconut fiber, peat, moss, vermiculite, scalded sawdust, sometimes with the addition of sand) and keep warm ( from +20 degrees and above). They do the same if the buds on outwardly healthy roots have not yet awakened. As a rule, they hatch within a couple of spring weeks.

If the roots of dahlias were laid perfectly mature, were treated with paraffin, and retained turgor, then to awaken the kidneys, it is enough to keep them in a warm room for some time without any powder, periodically sprinkling them with water.

Root division

Huge "splashes" with a large number of awakened buds should not be planted in their original form. The optimal number of shoots on one plant is one or two, then they will be powerful. Armed with a sharp knife, large flower roots are cut in such a way that each division has a part of the root neck with at least one bud (two or three are allowed). The wounds are dusted with crushed charcoal. Otherwise they do with fashionable low-growing dahlias, in particular, with the modern Gallery series. They are divided only for the purpose of reproduction.

Replanting

Seedlings moved to a spring garden or country beds with already grown shoots form buds earlier and delight in flowering longer. Therefore, in April (or at the end of March), the roots of dahlias are laid for growing. Each plant is placed in a separate container. If they use a large common box, then separate them with partitions. The roots are sprinkled with a moist, loose substrate (as for awakening the kidneys) no higher than the level of the root collar. Keep in a bright place, keeping the temperature at least + 20 degrees.

If three stems shoot from one point, then the central one (as a rule, it is shorter than the others) must be broken out - it is not needed. When the remaining shoots (or the only shoot) grow four pairs of leaves, pinch the tops for better branching. If reproduction is necessary, young shoots of dahlias are separated for cuttings.

When and how to plant dahlias in open ground

The timing and rules of planting are in many ways similar to tomatoes. If we plant flowers under shelter from frost, then in the second or third ten days of May. Without shelter - after the tenth of June. At first, protect (shade) from sunburn.

The day before

It is advisable to plant dahlias in the wild with strong green sprouts about 10 cm high. Before this, it is advisable to carry out a week-long hardening at a temperature of +10 +15 degrees. A day before moving to the open sky, it is useful to spray the plants with a stimulant such as Epin Extra.

disembarkation

For low-growing varieties growing in pots, their own, special technologies operate. But now we are talking about the traditional, ground placement of dahlias in a summer cottage. These flowers should not be planted in damp, swampy, too acidic areas. They definitely need a space that is well lit by the sun. It is even better if this place is protected from cold winds. The distance between low-growing varieties is a quarter of a meter, medium-growing varieties are half a meter, and tall varieties are up to a meter.

Planting holes (in the form of a conventional cube thirty centimeters in size) for flower tubers are filled with: dolomite flour (if the soil is acidic) and wood ash - a handful, mature humus - a couple of good handfuls, complex mineral fertilizer (like Fertik, 50 grams) and a little extra superphosphate (tablespoon). It would be nice to add a little sand to the loam. All this is well mixed.

We plant dahlias in such a way as to deepen the root collar by five centimeters and hide the first internode of the stem. Then we water the ground (it is useful to add Kornevin or Gumi to the water), and after a while we mulch. The best temporary shelter from the cold and the scorching sun is a covering material. It is better to throw it on some kind of support so that there is a good air gap.

Currently, there are more than 40 natural species of dahlias. Based on them, breeders around the world have bred several thousand very beautiful hybrid varieties with unusual inflorescences. The most common varieties grown in garden plots include the following:

Dahlias can be annual or perennial. According to the size of the bush they are divided into:

Giant - above 25 centimeters; ;
Large - from 20 to 25 centimeters;
Medium - from 15 to 20 centimeters;
Small - from 10 to 15 centimeters;
Dwarf - below 10 centimeters.

To grow dahlias, you should select a level place, well lit and protected from the winds. Therefore, it is better to plant them near buildings or small bushes. It is not recommended to be near large trees, which will draw large amounts of nutrients and moisture from the soil.

The soil in the selected area should be loose, well permeable and contain a sufficient amount of nutrients. This is required for abundant flowering and the formation of full-fledged tubers. If the soil is heavy, then when digging you need to add humus, peat and coarse sand. If it is, on the contrary, sandy, then its composition is improved with the help of clay and compost.

To grow dahlias, you need to choose tubers with a large number of eyes and no signs of mold and rot. They should be of medium size, since large specimens are old and small ones are quite weak. Such tubers may not give a full-fledged bush with abundant flowering.

Although dahlias grown from tubers are considered perennial crops, they do not survive overwintering in soil in most regions. Therefore, after the first frost occurs, the stems of dahlias are cut off, leaving about 10 centimeters above the surface. Then, in the morning or evening of a sunny day, you need to carefully dig the plant out of the ground, remove the remaining soil from the tubers, wash them, soak them in a weak solution of potassium permanganate, Bordeaux mixture or fungicide for about half an hour and dry thoroughly for one week. Before sending them to the room in which they will be stored, they are sprinkled with crushed activated carbon.

To grow dahlias, you need to choose tubers with a large number of eyes

To store dahlias in the winter in a cellar or basement, you can use various methods:

Dried and processed tubers are placed in one layer in wooden boxes or cardboard boxes filled with sand or pine sawdust, and completely covered on top;
Wrap each tuber in cling film and place in boxes or on racks;
Place the tubers in special parchment bags filled with storage compounds;
If several varieties of dahlias are stored, then it is recommended to label the containers with the name;
The basement or cellar should be dry with good ventilation, air temperature from 1 to 10 degrees and humidity from 50 to 80 percent.

If the tubers will be stored in an apartment, then you need to make a special shell for them. To do this, melt 400 grams of paraffin and 100 grams of wax in a water bath and cool slightly. After this, dip each tuber in the resulting mixture and let the coating harden. The prepared planting material should be placed in plastic bags, sprinkled with sawdust or peat, and stored in a cool place, for example, in the refrigerator in a vegetable drawer. In this case, the paraffin-wax shell will prevent the evaporation of moisture from the tubers, and the low temperature will not allow them to germinate for a long time.

It is not recommended to plant dahlia tubers whole, as the plants grown from them lose their decorative properties. Using a sharp knife, planting material is divided into parts, each of which must contain a peephole. The sections are treated with wood ash and left to dry for several days.

After this, they are sent for germination in boxes filled with special damp, sterilized soil, this can be:

Sand with peat;
Coconut substrate;
Sand with deciduous sawdust.

Tubers are planted for germination from late February to early May, depending on the climatic conditions of the region.

Preparing a place for dahlias

It is advisable to prepare beds for dahlias in the fall. To saturate the soil with useful substances, you need to enrich it with mineral and organic fertilizers, for example, add 30 grams of superphosphate and 2 buckets of manure per square meter. It is also necessary to ensure that the soil reaction is neutral or slightly acidic. To reduce acidity, add 300 grams of slaked lime per square meter of soil. After this, the area is dug up to a depth of at least 30 centimeters and carefully leveled.

It is advisable to prepare beds for dahlias in the fall

In the spring, before planting, you need to add 30 grams of potash fertilizer per square meter of soil and loosen it deeply. Sprouted dahlia tubers are planted in the soil after the spring frosts have ended and the soil has warmed up to 10 degrees. With early forcing, the first inflorescences bloom already in June, and with good care, flowering can continue until mid-autumn.

In order to properly plant germinated material, you should adhere to the following recommendations:

In the prepared area, holes are dug with a depth of 10 to 15 centimeters, depending on the size of the seedling, then they are spilled with warm water;
The distance between single plantings should be from 60 to 100 centimeters;
Tubers with sprouts are carefully removed from the box, placed in a hole, and covered with soil;
After planting is completed, the beds are well watered.

Flowers from seedlings

In order to grow dahlia seedlings from seeds, you should:

Fill the seedling boxes with peat-sand mixture and lightly moisten it;
Distribute the seeds evenly over the surface of the soil and lightly cover with substrate;
Plantings should be covered with polyethylene film or glass and placed in a warm room with good lighting;
Boxes with seedlings need to be regularly cleared from cover for several hours;
If the quality of the seeds is good, the first shoots should appear a week after sowing;
After the third leaf appears, the seedlings are picked into individual containers filled with a soil mixture of equal parts of turf soil, sand and peat. It is best if they are peat. In this case, there will be no need to remove the seedlings from them; you just need to place them in the holes along with the pot, which will dissolve in the soil.

Boxes with seedlings need to be regularly emptied from cover for several hours.

Planting dahlia seedlings in the soil is carried out as follows:

Two weeks before planting in open ground, dahlia seedlings begin to harden. To do this, take it outside and leave it for 10 minutes, gradually increasing the time to several hours;
2–3 hours before planting dahlias, water the seedlings generously;
Holes with a depth of 7 to 10 centimeters are prepared on the site at a distance of at least 50 centimeters from each other;
The seedlings are distributed among the holes, covered with soil, compacted and moistened.

And from cuttings

Cuttings of dahlias allows you to get a large number of seedlings from one tuber. To do this, it is planted in a box with sand and peat and regularly moistened. After the sprouts that appear have reached a height of about 15 centimeters, they must be carefully cut off with a sharp knife above the first internode. After this, new eyes will appear on the tuber, and new shoots will begin to grow from the axils of the remaining parts of the shoots, which will be ready for cutting in a few weeks. In this way, you can get up to 30 cuttings from one tuber. There are other cutting methods.

Cuttings of dahlias allows you to get a large number of seedlings from one tuber

Cut cuttings are rooted in the usual way in seedling boxes with a nutritious soil mixture. Also, for the formation of roots, you can put the cuttings in a container of water, in which a growth stimulator is added. With the onset of suitable weather, rooted cuttings are planted in open ground.

How to grow dahlias from seeds without seedlings

Annual varieties of dahlias are planted using the seedless method. To do this, the seeds are sown directly into the ground after warm weather is established. Planting usually takes place from mid-May to early June. To do this, a flower bed is formed on the prepared site, shallow grooves are made on it, the seeds are evenly distributed over them at a distance of about 20 centimeters from each other, covered with a thin layer of substrate and gently watered. The flowering of annual dahlias grown in a seedless way occurs in early August.

Watering is essential for growing healthy and well developed dahlia bushes. Both perennial and annual species of these flowers need to be watered abundantly, but only after the soil dries out. With excessive waterlogging, various rots of the root system can develop, which, without timely treatment, often leads to the death of the entire plant.

For tall varieties, you need to install supports and fix growing stems on them. Otherwise, they will break, and the plant will become unsightly. As a support for dahlias, both ordinary wooden or metal stakes and decorative elements for a garden plot can be used.

Watering is essential for growing healthy and well developed dahlia bushes.

For good growth and abundant flowering, dahlias need to be fed regularly once every half month. It is recommended to alternate mineral fertilizers and organic matter. To do this, you can use a superphosphate solution at the rate of 50 grams per 20 liters of water. For organic feeding, 1 kilogram of mullein is diluted in 10 liters of water or 1 kilogram of bird droppings is dissolved in 20 liters of water. 1 liter of the indicated nutritional compositions is poured under each plant. It is recommended to water the plants a few hours before applying fertilizer.

In rainy weather or when planted densely, dahlias may begin to rot their root system. Outwardly, this can be seen by fading stems with traces of rot. In this case, you need to remove the affected leaves and other parts from the plant. After this, you need to spray the bushes with a fungicide solution and spill it on the soil. Dahlias are also often damaged by aphids, thrips and Colorado potato beetles, which suck out large amounts of nutrients from them. If insects are detected, you should immediately treat the plants with an infusion of garlic or onion. In especially severe cases, an insecticide solution is used.

In order for dahlia bushes to have an attractive compact appearance, they are stepsoned

In order for dahlia bushes to have an attractive compact appearance, they are pinched, leaving three shoots on the plants and two buds on each peduncle. In tall varieties, side shoots are removed. This promotes the formation of larger and brighter inflorescences.

Of course, dahlias cannot be called completely unpretentious plants. But, having studied the rules for their maintenance, you can then spend a minimum amount of time and effort on caring for them. At the same time, many modern hybrid varieties of these plants allow you to create the most diverse and original compositions in your garden plot.

Dahlias are very beautiful and bright flowers that are used to decorate flower beds, flower beds and border lines. In order for dahlias to actively grow and develop, the plant must be planted correctly, starting from preparing the tubers before planting them in a permanent place. How to properly prepare, germinate and plant perennial dahlias in open ground in the spring will be discussed in this article.

Types of dahlias

Currently, there are more than 40 natural species of dahlias. Based on them, breeders around the world have bred several thousand very beautiful hybrid varieties with unusual inflorescences.

The following types are distinguished according to the shape of the flowers:

Anemone-shaped – height up to 70 cm, inflorescence size 4-10 cm.
Borateaceae – inflorescence diameter 10 cm, height up to 120 cm.
Peony-shaped – medium inflorescences, up to 15 cm. There are tall ones up to 120 cm and medium heights up to 70 cm.
Lotus-shaped flowers are one of the most beautiful forms of flowers of this species. The diameter can reach 20 cm, height up to 120 cm.
Decorative – the richest variety in colors, the size of the inflorescences is up to 25 cm; plant height 90-95 cm.
Spherical and pompon-shaped - the size of the inflorescences is 8-15 cm, usually used for cutting. Height from 90 to 120 cm.
Cactus is the most original variety. The diameter of the inflorescences is 20-25 cm, the height of the bushes is 100-150 cm.

When to plant dahlias in spring

The most successful place for planting dahlias is a site that is sunny and protected from strong winds. In order for the flower tubers not to die, they should be planted only in warm ground, when there is no likelihood of spring frosts. It is best to plant them in mid-May. The soil should be loose, slightly acidic or neutral, with good drainage. Before planting, mature non-deciduous compost, wood ash is brought to the site. It is advisable to fertilize the planting area with compost or humus in the fall. To prevent disease infection, it is best to plant dahlias in a new place every year. You cannot plant dahlias in the area where asters grew before.

When to plant dahlias in 2019

According to the lunar calendar, favorable days in 2019 for planting dahlia tubers:

1,2, 3, from April 21 to 30;
1, 2, 3, from 21 to 30 May;
1, from 17 to 29 June.

Buying dahlias, how to choose the right one

If you are facing such a task for the first time, then you did not grow the tubers yourself, but purchased them, it is important to choose exactly those that are needed to implement your landscape design idea, since the flowers must correspond to the basic concept of a garden or flower bed.

It is better to buy dahlias in specialized outlets that have documents for a particular variety. Most often, tubers are packed in sealed plastic bags with holes, which makes it possible to examine and feel them well. They should be elastic, quite strong and quite weighty. If the tubers are shriveled and dry, and also very light, most likely they have died and are not suitable for planting.

How to prepare dahlia tubers for planting

All winter and until spring, dahlias are stored either in a paraffin or clay shell, vermiculite, sand, sawdust, peat ... There are many options, as it is more convenient for anyone. Since dahlias do not tolerate frost very well, they are planted in open ground no earlier than mid-May. But they are planted not directly from their winter “shelter”, but prepared.

Preparation of dahlia tubers for planting should begin 3-4 weeks before this event. It is in early to mid-April that dahlia tubers are taken out, dry roots are removed, damaged areas are removed, and they begin to germinate.

Germination of dahlias can be carried out in different ways - in the ground, wet sawdust, peat. In fact, the nutritional value of the substrate is not particularly important at the moment, because the nodules, deprived of suction roots since the autumn laying, will still not “take” anything from the substrate. They feed the buds, at first, from the reserves in the nodules. Here, the increase in temperature, the presence of sunlight and humidity are more important - this is what the kidneys react to, this is why they wake up.

Dahlias are sprouted on the veranda, balcony, loggia - a place where it is not very cold, but there is sunlight. It is very important that the tubers are surrounded by moist material, be it sand, sawdust or any other material. To avoid excessive evaporation, you can cover the tubers with polyethylene with small holes and ventilate them from time to time. If frosts occur, planting material must be covered or brought indoors.

When buds or even small sprouts appear on dahlias, you can start planting them in open ground.

Planting dahlias in spring in open ground

The process of planting dahlias in a permanent place of growth can be described in stages:

Before planting annual dahlias in a previously prepared area, you should dig holes for the bulbs. The depth of the holes should be approximately 10 cm, and the distance between individual recesses can range from 30 to 80 cm, depending on the specific crop variety and the height of the bush. In the holes intended for planting, it is advisable to make a drainage layer.
In each such hole you will need to plant 2 tubers - this will allow you to achieve beautiful lush bushes with bright, abundant flowering. It is not recommended to plant more than 2 bulbs in one hole.
When the weather is warm outside and the ground warms up to 10°C, dahlia tubers can be dug into the soil. If the soil is not moist enough, it is recommended to water each hole with a small amount of water before planting flowers. The bulbs need to be buried in the soil so that they are positioned horizontally - this will allow the root system to develop to its full potential.

Care after planting dahlias in spring

An important condition for the normal growth and development of a flower is to constantly keep the soil in which it grows moist. Drying out is unacceptable, as this can lead to the death of the plant. Watering is carried out using a watering can with a spray nozzle for 10-15 minutes. This promotes uniform absorption of moisture into the soil and increases air humidity, which has a beneficial effect on the plant.

If the vegetative mass is high, leaves should be removed to a height of 30 cm from ground level. Such care does not allow the stem to grow at the root collar, which will subsequently simplify the storage of tubers in the off-season.

After each watering or rain, the surface of the soil under the bushes must be loosened to prevent the formation of a soil crust. If this is not done, the root system begins to lack oxygen, which in turn negatively affects the development of the entire plant.

Attention! After watering and loosening, make sure that the tubers are not exposed. If this does happen, you need to add soil to the base of the bush, that is, to sort of hill it up.

Feeding dahlias

Dahlias begin to be fed 2-3 weeks after planting in open ground. Feed every 10 days, alternating organic and mineral fertilizers. During the period of rapid growth of dahlias, when a lack of nitrogen is possible, we add ammonium nitrate to the soil (15 grams per 1 sq.m.).

Before flowering, we stop applying nitrogen-containing fertilizers and replace them with potassium and superphosphate ones.

Dahlias are one of the most popular flowers among gardeners in many countries. They are loved for their variety of shapes and colors, and for their resistance to diseases and pests. With their beauty they delight visitors to city gardens and parks. Every year, at the beginning of May, flower lovers and landscape design specialists plant tubers in flower beds in the form of rainbow or monochrome compositions. By their color, dahlias can complement any of them. An important condition for growing dahlias is ensuring proper wintering of the bulbs and preparing the soil for their spring planting.

If you follow the recommendations, then in the spring, when it’s time to plant them in open ground, you will not be upset about their condition and can safely start planting them in flower beds. We advise you to take the following steps before sending the tubers for the winter:

in the fall, when the main stem of the plant begins to dry out, cut it off, leaving 10-15 centimeters near the root;
Carefully dig up the root, remove soil and weeds from it;
air dry for 10-12 hours;
disinfect the tubers in a slightly pink solution of potassium permanganate, immersing the bulbs in the liquid for 30 minutes, dry them again after this procedure;

prepare containers with sand or sawdust;
In winter, you should regularly check the condition of the tubers, remove dried shoots and flaccid soft bulbs.

Attention! Only strong, elastic rhizomes are left for planting. Softened bulbs should not be planted; they will not grow into the strong and healthy plant we want in our garden.

Spring preparation for planting dahlias

What needs to be done and how to properly plant dahlia tubers in the spring? The whole process consists of the following activities:

Advice. All gardeners should know the acidity level of the soil in their gardens. Dahlias are very susceptible to such unfavorable conditions. It is worth maintaining the required level of acid in the soil. Determine the acidity and increase or decrease it by applying appropriate preparations and fertilizers.

Aftercare for dahlias

According to experienced gardeners, dahlias are an unpretentious plant; the agricultural technology for growing and caring for them is not complicated, but requires regular fulfillment of basic conditions:

maintain moisture when the soil dries out, regulate watering according to climatic conditions: in rainy weather - cancel, and in hot weather - increase;
constantly loosen the soil to maintain aeration of air masses and air access to the roots of the plant;
fertilize at least 2-3 times during the season;

remove weeds and shoots on the plant so that the main flower stalks have a better opportunity to preserve flowers.

Attention! By pruning weak, poorly developing young branches, you increase the flow of organic matter to the stronger parts of the plant, which promotes their proper development and makes dahlias strong and healthy.

Now you have received complete information on how to properly plant dahlia bulbs after winter storage, we hope that it will help you in floriculture. Flowers are our joy, they carry positive energy, charge us and the people around us. There are never too many flowers; plant them in your garden to the surprise and admiration of your family and friends.

How to plant dahlias: video

It’s not for nothing that dahlias have earned the love of flower growers all over the Earth. This amazing embodiment of the sun in plant form, loving warmth and distinguished by a variety of colors, can be planted by everyone on their plot. The main thing is to find a suitable place and comply with all conditions when planting and further proper care.

And nothing complicated

Planting dahlias in open ground in the spring will not be difficult for you. The main point in this case is the proper preparation of tubers before planting. Dahlias are divided into early, middle and late. Early and medium-sized dahlias can be planted in the ground as early as mid-March. However, this land is in a container, and not on the plot, since it is too early to plant in open ground - it is usually still cold outside at this time, and the dahlia is a heat-loving flower. By the way, the soil for planting will need to be loose and nutritious.

With proper care, dahlias turn the area into a blooming festive meadow

It is thanks to planting in a container that you can count on early flowering, in contrast to direct planting in open ground. Dahlias should be planted here no earlier than May, but even here you need to be guided by the weather. Some middle and late varieties do not need to be sown in containers. They are typically planted directly in open ground - then they will bloom on time. Provided that the disembarkation deadlines are met.

Planting dahlias in spring (video)

It all starts, of course, with preparing the tubers. These tubers are dug up in the fall and stored until spring, and in the spring they are cleaned of rotten parts, after which the entire unit is divided into parts, each of which consists of two tubers with sprouts. This way you can get a plant with a large supply of vitality, which will produce many buds in the future. If the number of nodules is increased, the shoots will become smaller and will interfere with each other during growth, which will affect the result. The sections of the nodules should be sprinkled with charcoal.

E If at least one of the tubers is damaged or rotten, it can be safely disposed of so as not to expose the rest of the tubers to the risk of infection. Such a tuber is separated with a sharp knife, and healthy nodules are immersed in a weak manganese solution for half an hour.

After this procedure, the tubers are left without action so that they can get used to the surrounding temperature and awaken the growth of new buds. This is done if the sprouts have not yet appeared. Fresh loose soil is mixed with sawdust, thoroughly moistened, and the tubers are sprinkled with this mixture. During this period, containers with tubers are kept in or outdoors, avoiding direct sunlight. At night they are taken indoors.

Depending on the variety of dahlia, the time for planting it in open ground also varies.

As soon as the temperature outside is stably maintained within 10-15 degrees, the time will come to plant dahlias in open ground. For planting, you can dig small grooves where the tubers will be planted at an equal distance from each other, or holes. The second option is simpler and more convenient to implement.

The distance between the bushes is selected depending on the expected growth of the plants. So, for short dahlias a distance of 30 cm is suitable, and for the tallest ones – 80 cm.

The hole is made 10cm deep. It is not necessary to bury the sprouted tuber too deeply. If the soil is dry, it must be watered right before planting. The nodule is placed horizontally in the hole - this way the dahlia can develop a good root system.

Spring flower care

If you planted dahlias, give them time to adapt and don’t bother them over trifles. Just periodically remove the weeds that pop up nearby - there is no need for competitors for the flowers. Even simple watering is not required from you now. However, in spring there is still enough moisture in the soil. The only exception in the month of May should be made if the weather is too hot and stable. After watering, loosen the soil above the planted tubers so that they receive enough oxygen and can safely grow greenery.

As soon as the seedlings grow, you will have to leave only two sprouts - the strongest and tallest.

Pruning will have to be carried out regularly until flowering - this contributes to the formation of powerful buds.

In spring, you shouldn’t get carried away with fertilizing flowers - there will be enough greenery to grow, but the flowers will be too small.

Photo gallery of dahlia varieties

Here are just a few of the many varieties available on the gardening market.

Variety "Midnight Moon" - pompom dahlias Variety "Lucky Nambre" ("Lucky Number") - spherical dahlias Variety "Mingus Gregory" - lace dahlias Variety "Musette" - decorative dahlias

Some Important Terms

When choosing a location, it is important to remember that shaded areas should be avoided. Dahlias will certainly grow in the shade, but at the same time they will become quite elongated and will bloom poorly. And the tubers will not receive the necessary supply of nutrients and strength, which will be useful next year.

Dahlias are undemanding to the soil, setting only two conditions - a high nutrient content and well-permeable soil.

Another important rule - although dahlias are not against water, an excess of it will only do harm, and even more so, you cannot plant them in places where the water stagnates.

Dahlias do not like neighbors with a highly developed root system. They are able to take the substances necessary for flowers from the soil, depriving dahlias of the opportunity to fully grow and develop.

The place for the dahlia should be sunny, the water should not stagnate on it

Find a place to plant dahlias in the fall. Dig up the soil and add compost or rotted manure. With the onset of spring, the soil is loosened with a pitchfork, and bone meal is added to it. To protect flowers from pests such as wireworms and onion root mites, apply granular insecticides to the soil.

A solution of copper sulfate, potassium permanganate or formalin can be used if roses or fruit crops that suffered from any diseases grew in this place before the dahlias.

If all conditions are met, dahlias will grow strong, will not waste all their energy on greenery, and will delight you with large buds that will look beautiful both on the site and as a cut. After a successful result, the dahlia will certainly become one of your favorite flowers and will be included in the list of annual plantings.