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
Want to discuss my post? Feel free to chat with me on Instagram or Mastodon or Bluesky.
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.
Dahlia Profile - Keith Hammett Mystic Sparkler
Hello friends,
Today's dahlia is a Keith Hammett bred Mystic Sparkler.
I bought the Keith Hammett Mystic Sparkler dahlia from Mitre 10 back when I lived in Wellington. When we moved back home to Dunedin in winter 2019, I dug up all my dahlias and brought them down with me.
According to the breeding notes: "Dahlia variabilis ‘Mystic Sparkler’
features unique single hot
flamingo pink flowers with warm yellow halos and dark central discs on
glossy mahogany-black foliage." Mystic Sparkler will reach 51 to 76 cm
high and has flowers 10 cm wide. Mystic Sparkler is planted in the
middle of my back garden in full sun.
Flower Bud Opening:
Mystic Sparkler in full flower:
As you can see Mystic Sparkler is stunning, with it's super bright colours of pink and yellow, with beautiful striping in the petals. It really is one of my favorite dahlias of all time. Mystic Sparkler is an absolute bee magnet all summer long.
Comparison with the self-seeded seedling of Mystic Sparkler:
Comparing Mystic Sparkler and a self-seeded seedling of Mystic Sparkler, you can really see the difference in colours, but otherwise the flowers are the same shape and size, and the beautiful striping remains. I'm very happy to keep both in my garden.
Multiple other dahlias are about to flower now, so you may see another dahlia profile tomorrow...
Have a wonderful day
Julie-Ann
Want to discuss my post? Feel free to chat with me on Instagram or Mastodon or Bluesky.
Dahlia Profile - Keith Hammett Mystic Sparkler Self-Seeded Seedling
Hello friends,
Today's dahlia is a self-seeded seedling of one of my other dahlias, Mystic Sparkler.
A dahlia with dark leaves popped up in my back garden over spring, and since I didn't plant a dahlia in that position, I concluded that it was a seedling from another dahlia in the garden. And considering that I only have two dark leaved dahlias in my garden, it was either a seedling of Mystic Sparkler or Dream Seeker, which are both Keith Hammett bred dahlias.
I bought the Keith Hammett Mystic Sparkler dahlia back when I lived in Wellington. When we moved back home to Dunedin in winter 2019, I dug up all my dahlias and brought them down with me.
According to the breeding notes: "Dahlia variabilis ‘Mystic Sparkler’ features unique single hot
flamingo pink flowers with warm yellow halos and dark central discs on
glossy mahogany-black foliage." Mystic Sparkler will reach 51 to 76 cm high and has flowers 10 cm wide. Mystic Sparkler is planted in the middle of my back garden in full sun.
My Mystic Sparkler seedling:
Flower Bud Opening:
Mystic Sparkler Seedling in full flower:
As you can see, the Mystic Sparkler seedling differs from the breeders notes. The flamingo pink and yellow colouring has been diluted into soft rosy pinks and yellows, but it has the most pretty striping ocolours. Unfortunately it looks like some earwigs have had a chomp at its flower petals before they unfurled, so she's not perfectly rounded.
I'm quite happy with the Mystic Sparkler seedling, it has more muted tones than Mystic Sparkler, and I love both, so I will keep them both in my garden. You will very soon see a dahlia profile for Mystic Sparkler, as I saw her first flowers unfurling this morning on my walk around the 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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