Thanks jjk, June is our rainy month. We're having a bit of sun, though. Have fun going through the PNW. :)

Dahlias are really starting to come in now. Apologies if these are more dahlia—focused than rose-focused. Enjoy!

Jjk - those bouquets look extravagant!! GORGEOUS!!!!! The colors and shapes blow me away!! I've started dahlias for the first time. They're a long way from blooming. I would love to have gorgeous flowers like you have!! AMAZING!!

@rosecanadian, Aww…thank you for your sweet kudos! This was my boom or bust year with dahlias. I put into practice all the advice I received from a friend who used to exclusively grow dahlias and surely it has made a big difference in my experience! I’m growing several varieties this year of different forms to see which ones are productive in my yard. So far, I prefer the formal decorative and lacinated forms the most, but there’s still the rest of the summer to enjoy more blooms!

jjk - yes, the rest of the summer will have lots of blooms. Do you have any advice for me in growing dahlias? I grow mine in pots. :)

@rosecanadian, I also grow all of my dahlias in pots. The larger and taller ones in 15 gal and the smaller/shorter ones in 5-7 gal. Each pot is planted with a single tuber, 6 inches down from the soil surface. I use Fox Farm Ocean Forest soil. Once I see growth at the soil surface, I fertilize every other week with Grow Big liquid feed. I switch to Tiger Bloom liquid feed once buds start setting, again feeding every other week. Hopefully, this is helpful to you!

Lately, I’ve received bouquet orders from colleagues, which is quite flattering. This one here was commissioned, omakase-style. It was fun to explore flowers creatively. I like to incorporate herbs to give a fresh aroma to the dahlias, while the roses provide sweet perfume. Enjoy!

jjk - thanks for the advice. Unfortunately I can't get Grow Big fertilizer on Amazon.ca, and Tiger Bloom is over $300, for some reason. Rats. Can you tell me the NPK of those? And do they like fertilizer for acid loving plants? I do have Lily Miller fertilizer (granular) for acidic loving plants. Oh, SWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON over your bouquets!!!!!!! They are beyond gorgeous. You have an eye for fashioning bouquets. I'm REALLY impressed!!! And I adore your roses and dahlias. Well done!!

@rosecanadian, Grow Big is 6-4-4 and Tiger Bloom is 2-8-4. The principle is to provide more nitrogen in the beginning of the season, and then switch to more phosphorus. I think liquid feed being more fast acting is helpful for dahlias because their growth rate and therefore their need for nutrients to produce new growth and flowers is higher.

Thanks again for your kind words and kudos!

jjk - thanks for the info, I appreciate it. :)

jjk -- these are stunning! I've been saying that I need to take a course in flower arranging. Maybe I should just study your bouquets. Please tell me names of your dahlias, in the later bouquets! I just posted some of my dahlias on the summer thread. I still have about 4 tubers (5?) that haven't broken the surface yet, but they were planted later than the rest. My first ones blooming were the rooted cuttings from Stonehouse Dhalias. So far only one tuber has rotted. I won't say which retailer it came from, but my former student who got me into dahlias told me not to buy from them.... One rooted cutting also bit the dust, but the others from that grower have done well. I guess I can't complain. But I need to re-think my staking strategy next year! Also, I chickened out putting them 6" deep. I read 3-6, and I erred on side of 3. I might regret it. Anyway -- yours are looking amazing! :-)

Carol -- some of my dahlias are in huge pots, some in raised beds, and some in the ground. So far, I think my Cafe au Lait does not like its pot. I have another in ground, and the difference is night and day. But other dahlias seem to be liking their pots just fine! I'll echo what jjk said -- no fertilizer until you have good growth, then a balanced fertilizer that includes the nitrogen, then switch to something for blooming. Triple Wren Farms throw a little tomato fertilizer on top after planting tubers, and put a little bone meal at the bottom. I'm excited to see what your dahlias do for you!

@DDinSB (Z10b Coastal CA), Thanks for your kind words! You asked what varieties are in the last bouquet pics.

Omakase pic varieties include: Labyrinth, Lavender Blush, Crichton Honey, and Sandia Brocade.

Of these I think Labyrinth is well worth the investment. Crichton Honey requires bagging new growth to avoid pest damage. It seems particularly delicious to many sucking bugs. Lavender Blush is a pretty color, but being a dinner plate, it’s very big, so I have to cut them early to use in mixed arrangements.

The mostly-dahlia bouquet pic varieties include: Peaches-n-Cream, Lee’s Starchild, Labyrinth, Crichton Honey, Sandia Brocade, and RaeAnn’s Volunteer.

I admit that my favorite dahlia hands-down is Peaches-n-Cream. I really LOVE this dahlia!!! It’s a vigorous grower and requires a 15 gal pot and ample room. I think Lee’s Starchild is also a beautiful dahlia. The color is really soft and lovely. Sandia Brocade, while short lived, like most all anemone types, bloomed the earliest and is very productive. I think its a great size for mixed floral arrangements and splashes just the right amount of warmth.

Anyhow, hope this is helpful and good luck with your dahlias this summer!

Thanks, Deborah!! Here's hoping they at least bloom. Your pictures on the Seasonal Thread are stunning!!! They're the belles of the ball. :)

I will have to look these up! I have a labyrinth - still just a baby so far. Thanks, Carol!

My tuberose is finally starting to bloom!!!

jjk - oh my heavens!!!! What a gorgeous bouquet!!!! It has such lovely movement to it. You really are very good with design!!!

@rosecanadian, Aww… thank you so much for your kind compliments. :)

I upgraded the bouquet with some roses.

I think Kong Meng enhances the lavender color in dahlia Lavender Blush.

Here are a couple of other cute bouquets.

Is that a kewpie doll? !

jjk - oh my!!! I can't decide if I like the bouquet best upgraded or not. They're both incredible!! The others are really darling, too. Although I still love the first two the best.

@DDinSB (Z10b Coastal CA), It’s a Goebel Dutch girl creamer that I got from an antique shop in NM a few years ago!

@rosecanadian, a lot of people have commented how they like the soft lavender/lilac tones more than the bright pinks and yellows. Do you think there is more universal appeal with soft pastel colors over brights?

Jjk - I don't think so. :) I adore the in-your-face-loud-color blooms even more than the softer ones. But, maybe I'm an odd-duck with that. :) Which do you like better?

Blooms while I was out of town were made into this bouquet. Happy Hump Day!

@rosecanadian, I like cheerful colors which I interpret from pinks, yellows, peach, and tangerine. I do like moody crimson and burgundy, but I don’t have many flowers in the garden of these colors so its more difficult to make a mixed arrangement. I wish I had more yard space to grow more flowers!

I like any combo of colors, but the one that makes my heart sing most is a riot of color :-D

jjk - wowza!! That's a gorgeous bouquet!! I adore the zinnias and dahlias. What are the tall purple flowers? They add a lot to the bouquet. I agree. I'm not fond of moody colors. I like fun, cheerful colors the best. More room...don't we all wish that. lol

Susan - for sure!! :):)

@rosecanadian, Those are Gomphrena pulchella ‘Truffula Pink’. It’s new to the garden, in a pot until I figure out where exactly to put it. I like them because they look like little fireworks!

Jjk, I enjoy your arrangement thread! I also use herbs in my arrangements; sage, basil, oregano, mint… the aroma is lovely and when I sell at farmers market, the vendors next to me enjoy it as well. One of my favorites so far is Dark Opal Basil. It just adds some nice depth to the rest of the bouquet and sets off the whites and colors so nicely.
I recently got a plant of African Blue Basil after hearing and seeing it praised so highly on this forum, and am looking forward to seeing how that works in arrangements.

@jjkOC zone 10a/22, SoCal, all your bouquets are very happy looking arguments! Love them all!

Arguments! Ha! At first I thought I was mis-reading because it's late and my eyes are crossing, and then I realized you did say arguments...like the Victorians who talked about the language of flowers?? ;-) Tee hee! p.s. your arguments are also very pretty!

JJK -- what are the two pink dahlias on top, flanking the peachy rose?

jjk - well, those little fireworks really caught my attention. :)

Elena - beautiful!! Your roses are looking great. :) I stillhave peonies blooming; they'd look great in an arrangement, although I don't usually cut my flowers.

@judijunebugarizonazn8, thanks for your kind kudos! I’ll havevto check out Dark Opal; thsts a new one to me. I grow ALOT of African Blue Basil. Mostly because I love all the bees it attracts. It’s sterile so it keeps blooming really long inflorescences. I found tgat you have to let them recover well after cutting because they droop a little. They will perk up though. I like Tulsi basil better for arrangements, eventhough it’s got short stems.

@elenazone6, beautiful bouquet! It’s so Victorian with the lilies. Did you grow those? My regal lilies bloomed for the first time this year. I was so amazed by the powerful fragrance! Are the pink roses Olivia (ORA)?

@DDinSB (Z10b Coastal CA), those dahlias are Peaches n Cream. I cannot say enough about this variety. It’s fire! Easy to grow and bloom and always looks so good. Very consistent in appearance, just gets slightly smaller in the heat of July.

Two faces of a bouquet:

Dahlias shown: Peaches n Cream, Linda’s Baby, Veronne’s DF; Rose: Jubilee Celebration

Oh, they're so beautiful!!! The blue goes so well with the pinks and peaches. It's darling!!

@rosecanadian, thank you! I think Salvia Mystic Spires is such a great plant!

Saturday bouquet

Dahlias: Linda’s Baby, Veronne’s DF, and April Heather.

jjk - oh!!!! I love your bouquet!!! I want that look in my yard. So inspiring!! I planted dahlias in pots this spring, and there are some buds forming, but still no blooms. When are dahlias supposed to bloom? Maybe they haven't had enough heat?

@rosecanadian Thank you for your kind words! I’m a newbie to dahlias, but I started mine in March to April because here in zone 10a we don’t get frost. The last of my mail-order tubers arrived in June. Veronne’s DF and Linda’s Baby were in that shipment. They started blooming at the end of July. Most of the other dahlias started blooming in June.

In my experience, dahlias do respond to heat. Though, some of the varieties I tried this year definitely prefer cooler temps than summer SoCal weather; they simply collapsed under the scorching July sun. I’m thinking that the heat-tolerant varieties will have another ”flush” in October like the roses do. However, I think it will also depend upon my diligence fertilizing them. They require frequent fertilization when grown in pots. I can’t wait until I’ve whittled down my collection to only my MUST-HAVE varieties.

Wow...June and July, and mine has buds that won't open. Harrumph! Our weather is going to start getting cooler, so I wonder if the blooms will open. Rats. Yes, I'm fertilizing my dahlias weekly. I hope yours get another flush. :) :)

@rosecanadian, could you remind me of your grow zone?

What I’ve read on various forums is that it’s helpful to choose early blooming varieties if your growing season is short, or if you expect a summer shutdown of production. I’ve also heard that some growers in warm climates with a long growing season, plant their tubers a bit later to avoid the sizzling summer sun and get most of their blooms in the fall when temps are more mild.

Once I get mine planted in the ground, I’ll invest in shade cloth to help the plants produce more blooms in July, when the dry air and burning sun fry everything.

I have learned a lot this year, though. Especially those varieties that are well-suited to my garden. :)

I very much hope you will be able to see some flowers from your labor of love!

Here’s a bouquet from this morning. Rescuing the roses from being turned into potpourri!

Shown: Jubilee Celebration, KA Pearl, Peaches n Cream, Lee’s Starchild, and Regal Pelargoniums.

jjk - we're in zone 4. Feels weird to type that, as we've been zone 3 as long as I've been alive until now. Hmmmm...getting earlier blooming varieties is a great idea! Thanks! :) Actually one of my Dahlias, Lifestyle, has a bloom that is starting to open!! I'm excited. :) :) I thought my Dahlias would bloom all summer. Guess that's not going to happen. That's an exquisite bouquet!! I'm agog!!! You have a gift!!

@rosecanadian, Whoohoo! Please share your dahlia wwhen it opens! Its always so exciting to look forward to a bud opening!

Here's the same one (only dahlia blooming so far) fully opened.

@rosecanadian, Congrats!!!

Curious if you have any branching?

Heres a bouquet in early morning light.

These were all cut to rescue from the burning sun…

Yes, there is branching. None of my Dahlias are large enough to need staking. Thanks! Oh, my!!!! What a fabulous bouquet!! I love all the light colors you've put together, with nothing bold enough to ruin the effect. Lovely!!