Dahlia gallery

For all the annuals that we enjoy in our summer gardens I find that people always gravitate towards dahlias. Here are a few recent shots to show some of the fabulous variation of flower, leaf, and habit. Dahlia 'Mystic Illusion'

Dahlia 'Karma Fuschiana'


Dahlia 'Fascination'


Dahlia 'Karma Prospero'

Dahlia 'Bishop of Llandaff"


Dahlia 'Bishop of York'

Dahlia 'Onesta'

I turn to Flora: A Gardener's Encyclopedia (Timber Press, 2003) for some factoids:

Dahlia:
-named after Swedish botanist Andreas Dahl (1751-1789)
-member of the aster family (Asteraceae)
-native from Mexico down to Columbia
-pinnate to tripinnate foliage, hollow cane-like stems
-wild species usually have single flowers, newer hybrids come in wide range of size, color, petal count

-grow in full sun to some part shade for best flower and growth
-grow in rich soil and water and fertilize freely
-an annual for us here in New York, but often the tubers can be overwintered successfully

Dahlias, apparently bee pollinated

A fellow horticulturist named Fred recently wrote me asking what bee populations I had seen around the city this spring and summer. He was concerned their numbers were down drastically this year as he hadn't seen too many in the gardens of his private clients. Apparently they are present though, and loving the annual dahlias planted around the city. ...granted, he is concerned about honey bees and not necessarily bumble bees like this one, but either way, I thought the shots were pretty. And I love capturing the romance between the plant and the pollinator. Makes me think of watching the David Attenborough series The Private Life of Plants in horticulture school. There was one episode entitled "Flowering" that dealt with the topic of pollination, and the footage was mindblowing as a developing horticulturist. Who wouldn't love to be an explorer traveling around the world to make such discoveries. Hmm, I should get my hands on that series. Talk about some killer botanical photography and video, complete with Attenborough's thick accent and safari garb. Yup, priceless.
Full dahlia gallery to be posted soon, once I finish IDing the bizillion cultivars I have on my camera!