Dearest Valentine is so pretty! I love your Dahlias. They are truly a pretty flower but hard to grow. I got some seeds from a friend a few years ago, but nothing grew. My friend had many varieties for a few years but gave up on them. Too much work.

Brad

Dearest Valentine sure has a saturated color for you. Looking good. She was one of my last to bloom but not the last. I've still got reblooms going as well as Paradise Road has a few original blooms to go..........I like seeing your Dahlia. I've not had any luck with them in the past as they don't like our hot summers, but this spring one jumped into my cart and is still hanging on in a pot. No blooms, just foliage as of now, but that's better then what usually remains this late in our season. Fingers crossed mine will bloom later when it cools down........Is that a Walking Stick? Gee, haven't seen one of those in eons. Neat.........Maryl

Dahlias are not hard to grow here, but are a lot of work. They require ample water and staking usually. I have left tubers in the ground and most have survived. However, most people dig the tubers, which is even more work; and they are not easy to store over the winter.

Dearest Valentine looks lovely as the last bloom standing in your garden. If you get more rain, DV just may rebloom for you. The dahlia are gorgeous! Like Maryl, my climate is really too hot for them. I grew some cactus-form dahlias for several years in part shade. Since half my backyard is shady now, I may try some there in the future.

Debra

I had enough success to grow a Dahlia one year to the point that it was time to dig it up, I was told by a REAL Dahlia grower to store the tubers in clay cat litter. You sprinkle the cat litter with water, which it absorbs and keeps the Dahlia tuber moist enough until the next spring. It had to be the clay based litter not the fancy dancy stuff and no scent. It worked. The tubers came through winter alright...........There are now supposed to be Dahlias for warm/hot climates and I may pursue that line. Monty Don (English show "Gardeners World on Britt Box) just planted some tubers in a large pot, so if they have short, heat tolerant ones there may be more chances of success for some of us........Daylilies are soooo easy compared to a lot of these other plants...............Maryl

Brad: I got my Dahlia tubers from Home Depot several months ago. I was not sure they would grow but thought I'd live it a try. Glad I did.

Maryl: Dahlias love the sun and heat but they also like water and with all the rain we got this year I guess it worked out okay. I just know that type of spider as Stick Spider but maybe they call them Walking Stick Spider too.

Mantis: I'm going to see how well I can store them for the winter. I don't intend that they remain where they are in the garden but put them in the new bed. I've learned I need to put stakes in when I plant. The lighter color one is a shorter variety but with those big blooms it does tend to lean.

Shive: I've had mixed results with the DV blooms here in WV. Some open okay and others tended to curl. Our night temps have now been dipping in the low 60's so perhaps that accounts for the deeper color. Daytime have been 80 - low 90's. I think I got these Dahlias to grow is because of all the rain we got. They really love the sun and heat but extreme heat...hmmm, not sure about that.

Julia

I love dahlias, but too lazy to dig. They seem to survive overwinter if I plant in a protected spot, but takes a while to get going so fall before c they bloom. Still, I bought 3 this spring, only 1 came up. Dearest Val is beautiful. Walking stick insects and stick spiders are different. To me. This looks like a walking stick, but hard to tell.

Dearest Valentine always catches my eye--such pretty color. I like the dahlias too. Ours didn't do well this summer. The insect is cool!

Nancy

The Dearest Valentine color contrasts nicely with the gaillardia bloom underneath it. Yes, very saturated color.

I certainly can understand why people specialize in growing dahlias. Such a variety of colors and forms, and usually peaking in September, when there is not a lot of bloom competition. I grew dozens for many years. The cat litter storage idea sounds like a good idea, as drying out was the problem in winter storage. It's also important to pinch your plants in early growth to get better branching.

The DV color is really pretty. Mine did not bloom well this year after moving it. No dahlias for me either although they are so pretty. I grew the small bush type one year but did not dig them up. My mother grew what she always called ”old-fashioned dinner plate dahlias” and never dug them for storage. I am sure hers eventually died but they were glorious when they bloomed.

Never tried dahlias here, storage would be a problem for me…yours are lovely

Sherry

I grew dahlias here for a while and never dug them up, and like amaryllis they just come up again the next year. Your Dahlias are beautiful, and Valentine Sweetheart is lovely as always. Hopefully no hummingbirds will come into that Praying Mantis's reach.

kay