Dahlia Profile - Floret Bee's Choice Flowers
Hello friends,
Today's dahlia profile is for my Floret Bee's Choice flowers. I bought dahlia and zinnia Floret flower seeds from Emerden in New Zealand last spring, and sowed them in October.
From Floret's Website: "Floret Bee's Choice was collected from all of our different dahlia breeding patches on the farm and includes a wide range of shapes, sizes, and colors—no two plants will be the same! Most of the flowers will have open centers, which will attract lots of pollinators to your garden. If you discover a variety you love, tubers can be saved and planted out the following year." Planted in full sun, plants will reach 48 to 72 in tall.
Floret 1:
Floret 2:
Floret 3:
Floret 4:
Floret 7:
Floret 8:
Floret 10:
As you can see from the Floret Bee's Choice dahlias that have flowered so far, dahlias 1, 2, 3, 4, and 8 all have yellow/orange colouring, with a range of petal numbers, with dahlias 3 and 8 having extra frills. Dahlias 7 and 10 are shades of pink, with dahlia 7 has curled inward petals, and dahlia 10 being pretty plain.
In terms of choosing which dahlias to keep at the end of the season, the only one I definitely want to keep is dahlia 3, with it's yellow/apricot colouring and pretty frills. I'm also kind of tempted by dahlia 8, but I'll see how it looks as the season goes on.
I have really enjoyed the process of dahlia growing from seed, watching the process from germination, to flowering, and I'll definitely collect seed from them in autumn.
Have a wonderful day
Julie-Ann
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Dahlia Profile - Caitlins Joy
Hello friends,
Today's dahlia profile is for the ball dahlia Caitlins Joy, which I got from Bulbs Direct a couple of years ago.
From Bulb's Direct website: "Iridescent raspberry compact blooms. Very long stems, beautiful shape, and a great vase life. A real work horse and a great arrangement flower. A must grow. Flower size of approx 10-14cm wide. Height 90 - 120 cm."
Flower bud opening:
Caitlins Joy Fully Flowering:
Caitlins Joy is a stunning raspberry red ball dahia, with long stems. This dahlia is bred for bouquets and vases, and it a super popular variety over the last few years, you have to get in quick to pick up a dahlia bulb when they go on sale in winter.
I'm so pleased to have Caitlins Joy in my garden, and get so many positive comments about her from our neighbours who see her in our front garden.
Have a wonderful day
Julie-Ann
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Dahlia Profile - Lucky Number
Hello friends,
Today's dahlia profile is for Lucky Number, a large flower decorative dahlia of unknown origin.
I rescued my Lucky Number dahlia tuber one year in Wellington, in November, from the clearance section in Mitre 10. It was in a clear plastic bag and had a cardboard label on top stating it's name. It was in pretty bad condition, with numerous shoots growing through the plastic bag. I took it home and planted it in my garden, and hoped for the best. I was rewarded with a strong growing dahlia, with numerous, beautiful pink flowers, and a bright yellow center which attracted many bees. This was the first dahlia I ever bought, and it's what started my obsession with dahlias. Lucky Number is my favorite dahlia for these reasons.
The plant gets to about 160 cm high and 100 cm wide, and the flowers are approximately 15 cm wide.
Flower bud opening:
Fully Flowering:
Lucky Number has numerous flower buds growing on it, and over the coming it week's it'll absolutely put on a show until late autumn. I collected seed from this dahlia last year, and now have two seedlings, and in the coming weeks they will flower too, I'm excited to see what they look like.
Have a wonderful day
Julie-Ann
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Dahlia Profile - Totally Tangerine
Hello friends,
Today's dahlia profile is for the anemone dahlia Totally Tangerine which I purchased this year from Bulbs Direct.
From the Bulbs Direct website: "Add a splash of tangy citrus hues to your color palette with this lively and spirited flower, Dahlia 'Totally Tangerine'. These vibrant
blooms create a buzz in any garden, flaunting coral pink petals and a bright neon orange ruffled center. This playful dahlia is always ready for a good time - let it loose in your garden and enjoy the lively show!" The plant will reach 50 - 60cm high.
Flower bud opening:
Dahlia Totally Tangarine Fully Flowering:
Totally Tangerine is just amazing. Not only am I loving the bright citrus hues of the flower petals, but I'm really now obsessed with anemone dahlias in general. This dahlia is a total keeper for me, and I can't wait for my other new anemone dahlias to start flowering in the garden.
There are five more dahlias about to flower, including some of the Floret "Bee's Choice" dahlias I grew from seed, so it's super exciting to go for a walk around the garden each morning to check them out.
Have a wonderful day
Julie-Ann
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Dahlia Profile - Keith Hammett Dream Seeker
Hello friends,
Today's dahlia profile is for Keith Hammett's Dream Seeker.
From the Gardening Solutionz website: "Dahlia Dream Seeker is a clump forming, perennial plant that produces beautiful orange collarette blooms with a pink central collar over bronze coloured foliage from late spring into summer. Tall stems hold flowers high above the foliage and create a stunning display for cottage style gardens, garden borders, rockeries and bright container displays. It prefers full sun and well drained soil." The plant will reach 80 cm high and 60 cm wide.
Flower bud opening:
Dream Seeker Fully Flowering:
Dream Seeker is another dahlia bred by Keith Hammett in New Zealand. This dahlia is absolutely stunning in the garden, and everyone who's seen it wants to know it's name. The orange is just so florescent, along with the pink collarette petals in the middle, especially against the dark mahogany of the leaves and stems. I'm just so happy to have it in my garden.
Have a wonderful day
Julie-Ann
Want to discuss my post? Feel free to chat with me on Instagram or Mastodon or Bluesky.
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