I am also in 7A. I potted in March. Waiting on the last two varieties to get their first buds!

I planted in mid-May this year. I am hoping they take off soon!

One trick to getting your dahlias to bloom early is letting them sprout indoors. When the weather is warm and danger of frost is over, plant them with the sprouts just below the surface . As they grow, you can put 2-3 inches of soil around the stems. Just remember to provide support to the growing stems as they will topple if you don't. Most of my dahlias have already begun to bloom. These were planted in mid May.

Beautiful! I will probably do that next year.

KarenPA_6b is a great example of early forcing to get a jump on the eventual blooming period over the summer. One of my neighbors, an 85 year old retired Catholic Nun over-winters her tubers in nursery pots which come on very early, sprouting and gaining growth while mine are trying figure out their place in our garden. Her's are triple the size of mine and full of swollen buds ready to burst forth with all their splendor. I forced one dahlia of unknown name [single white] that has grown tremendously and is well ahead of its neighbors in terms of mass and height. While I don't know that I will be able to force all my tubers next season, it sure makes for a more rapid delivery of the ultimate gift, the flower!