Who’s growing Dahlias this year

[Onionbhajisandwich]

What varieties are you growing this year? I’ve got some Babylon Bronze and Kelvin Floodlight (among quite a few others) that I’m really looking forward to growing this year!

A previous poster suggested blackfly - I'm wondering the same or some other type of aphid. My dahlias tend to attract greenfly (another type) - they love the soft growing tips of plants like dahlias and can absolutely cover them in late spring. They can distort the leaves in the same way as your picture.

I'd be tempted to cut back some of the growing tips to see if you get a new flush of growth (keep some in case that isn't the issue!). I've been having mine back to help them cope with the heat and lack of water and there are new buds forming.

I blast aphids off with a hose - there tends to be a week or so when they are really bad and that is enough to do the trick.

Thanks @WobblyLondoner I've looked all over and can't any aphids anywhere. Someone on Facebook suggested maybe it's a fungus?

Am considering cutting it back a bit and then spraying it with Neem oil.

Can anyone think of anything else that might be worth trying?

It's so weird because I have other dahlias planted at the same time that are thriving, attaching a photo!

Horrible. I would cut back and spray regularly with this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/SB-Plant-Invigorator-500ml-Concentrate/dp/B00BIG471S/ref=ascdff_B00BIG471S/

Don't be scared to cut dahlia's back! It stimulates new growth. Some of my tubers I didn't even plant until two weeks ago 🙈 and the plants are already pretty big and have buds forming. They are vigorous.

You can also spray that ^^ regularly as a preventative measure.

More opening!

Loving all the dahlia updates!

I've been eagerly awaiting my Café au Lait opening. It did, and it is... not Café au Lait, imho. It looks like one of its 'sister' varieties- it has really prominent pink stripes! Not what I expected at all. It's magnificent, but not what I thought I was getting.

I contacted the seller and they said yes, that is Cafe Au Lait, it opens like that. Except their website literally says opens white and then gets its coffee shade.

Grr. My cheapies from B&Q and Wilko I am very happy with, and have got exactly what I expected.

... and here is my pic of my not Café au Lait that I forgot to attach.

Here's my dahlia bed with some in bloom (a mixed colour one I grew from seed and Pink Princess). The one closest to you in the third photo is meant to be a Chat Noir but not sure by the bud colour🤔

@TheSpottedZebra yeah, that's not what I'd expect to open if I'd bought a Cafe Au Lait. This site though does show different types, so like you say, sisters of the original. I suspect you got one of those
www.ashridgetrees.co.uk/cafe-au-lait-twist-dahlia-tubers?gclid=Cj0KCQjwxIOXBhCrARIsAL1QFCa1RJAEoLWEQcBs12eCMVnu2FT_AY2zaszA08eEtGjXXyJCOvy4YjQaAhfMEALw_wcB

Reminds me of one I bought from a charity open day at our local hospital. Thought I was getting a white dahlia but got a very orange one. I did contact them but there wasn't much they could (or would) do

More blooms!

And my little girl’s “pompom plant”

I love the little pompoms.

She sings to them and plays them music. It seems to have worked!

Oh😍

Three years old but seems to have the touch! She planted it herself and is very proud.

Stop it, too adorable.

CAL can be quite pink, and it doesn’t look pink enough to be one of the actual pink varieties, so don’t lose faith yet. Dahlias are genetically unstable plants (more genes than others) and can do some odd things.

some of my babies …

Some more …

And a few more …

Used to dislike the balls and pompons, but I am a complete convert now.

Beautiful @Whitney168! Same here. Franz Kafka converted me last year and now the small one has planted more "pompom plants" so hope to have more pics soon!

Love your photos.

This is a big favourite this year too, chucking out loads of flowers - Selina.

(Just realised I didn’t put names on the others.😆)

This is so beautiful.

I think this is my favourite so far of mine.

That peachy pompom is lovely and the shaggy purple is amazing. It never ceases to amaze me the different forms that dahlias, 'mums and peonies come in, but dahlias are my favourite.

I was reading up on them and there are so many types of dahlias because of some kind of genetic instability, so they mutate easily. Fascinating. I am sure a biologist will turn up and explain it better than me but it blew my mind.

Even when I've planted lots of the same variety bought from the same place at the same time, they flowers look different.

They are hard work in some ways - keeping the pests off and the watering - but so interesting that they are worth it I think.