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Spring has come and more and more often we are wondering what flowers will delight us this season. Of course, any site has at least a few rose bushes, wintering perennial flowers, and when the threat of spring frosts has passed, the time for petunias and other summer people will come. But the dahlia, which was still lovingly grown by our grandmothers and great-grandmothers, will take its rightful place among the most beautiful flowers. There was a time when we forgot a little about it, but fashion is returning, and hardly any other perennial can boast of such a variety and duration of flowering. Dahlia, having released the first buds in the middle of summer, delights our eyes until the frost. Germinating dahlias after winter is one of the most crucial stages in caring for a plant, and we will talk about it in this article.
What we need to know about dahlias
Dahlia (Dahlia) is a perennial from the Astrov family; it came to Europe from Chile, where about 40 natural species grow. In culture, species are not used, at home we grow mainly varieties and hybrids bred with the help of Dahlia Changeable. Today there are more than 15,000 varieties of very diverse bushes in height, size, shape and color of the flower.
The dahlia flower is an inflorescence - a complex basket, consisting of reed and tubular flowers, with a diameter of it can be from 5 cm to 25 cm or more. She has a hollow stem, sometimes reaching more than one and a half meters in height, but there are very miniature dahlias that do not even reach 30 cm. Large plants require mandatory support, under the weight of flowers and in a strong wind, the stem can easily break and end up on the ground.
The root system of dahlias is represented by root cones or root tubers, which are thickened roots, but we call them tubers out of habit. So, the tubers of dahlias in the ground do not hibernate even in the southern regions, for the winter we dig them up and store them in suitable conditions.
Sprouting dahlias before planting
Dahlia is a very thermophilic plant, it is important to plant it in the ground on time, therefore, it is advisable not to miss the time when it is time to pull the root tubers out of the cellar or basement. We will tell you what you need to do with their traditional storage, and in conclusion, we will offer you to watch a video about the features of sprouting tubers embedded in paraffin.
When to get tubers
The question is often asked when to get dahlias out of place. storage for germination. An unambiguous answer cannot be given - our territory is vast, when in some regions everything is already blooming, in others the land is just beginning to thaw.
If you get them ahead of time, at a high temperature and in the presence of lighting, the shoots will stretch out excessively and outgrow, the tubers will be difficult to divide and, when planted in the ground, they can easily break. If you pull out the dahlias late, the sprouts will be too small. Nothing bad will happen, but for every day of late awakening of the root tubers, there will be several days of delay in flowering.
If you are going propagate dahlias by cuttings, you need to get them a month earlier, but the technology of germination and processing of tubers will not change from this.
Cooking dahlia tubers for germination
We think we have answered the question of when to get dahlias. Now let's see what to do next. The ideal storage temperature is 4-8 degrees. Even if it was higher, the difference from room temperature would be significant. You can't get the tubers out of the cellar and just bring them into the house. First, put the container with dahlias in a warmer place for 2-3 days, covered with cellophane to avoid moisture loss, only then bring it into the house.
If you have not washed the tubers from the soil in the fall, you need to get them and do it now. Then carefully inspect, remove the rotten and dried dahlia root cones, trim off any spoiled thin roots. Don't worry, it won't hurt them. It is also necessary to cut out all the rotten areas down to healthy tissue.
Pay special attention to tubers that are good, but either loosely attached to the root collar, or hanging on a thin thread. When you plant dahlias, they will simply rot, all growth buds are not on the root tubers, but on the old root collar, which cannot be cut off for this very reason. Throw away all the beautiful, but unnecessary processes - there will still be no sense from them.
Dahlia tubers disinfection
It must be said that each owner prepares dahlias for germination after they were taken out of the basement in different ways, but you need to disinfect the tubers in any case. Do this immediately after cleaning and trimming are finished. You can soak the dahlia root cones for 30 minutes in a weak potassium permanganate solution or a fungicide solution, for example foundazole... This will kill pathogens that may have remained after winter storage.
Then, if the buds are clearly visible, you can carefully disassemble the dahlias into sections for germination, each of which will have at least one growth point and always a good piece of the root collar with the old stem cut off. Do this with your hands, if it turns out to divide the tubers without breaking, or with a sharp knife, if you cannot do without it. Experienced gardeners, especially those who plant dahlias for sale, manage to make thin parcels with a piece of last year's stem, which nevertheless take root well.
Dahlias planted with a large nest of tubers with many shoots will be weak, they will give few flowers.
After the overwintered dahlia tubers have been washed, disinfected and divided, sprinkle the cuts with crushed activated carbon, leave for a few hours or a day so that the water glass and the kalyus is formed, and only then plant for germination.
Planting a dahlia for germination
Prepare a place for germination of dahlias, it should be light, well-ventilated and warm, at least 20 degrees. It is very important to plant dahlias for germination so that the root collar is on top, young sprouts appear on it, and not on the tuber. If you turn it down, it can lead to the following consequences:
- The shoots will first grow down, and then, bending around the tubers, up. This will significantly delay flowering.
- When transplanted into the ground, germinated shoots can break off.
- There is a danger of rotting them in the substrate.
Pour the substrate at the bottom of the boxes and place the dahlia tubers so that they do not interfere with each other. As a substrate for germination, you can use:
- any soil;
- sand;
- perlite;
- sawdust;
- coconut fiber.
Here, the quality of the soil for germination does not play a big role - the main thing is that it is loose, water-, air-permeable and disinfected. You can spill earth and sand with potassium permanganate in advance, and pour boiling water over perlite, coconut fiber and sawdust, cover with a lid, and let cool.
Do not cover the tubers with the substrate too much, it will be enough if it just covers them in order to avoid moisture loss.
If in doubt whether there is enough moisture, it is best to refrain from watering. Thick tubers contain enough water and nutrients to survive even brief droughts. For the same reason, do not feed young shoots.
If you have very few dahlia tubers, and they were stored, perhaps, in the refrigerator on the bottom shelf, they can be planted for germination in flower pots with drainage, and when planting, they can simply be transferred into the ground.
The content of germinated tubers before planting in the ground
Further care for the sprouted tubers will consist in periodic moistening and airing. When the first shoots of dahlia appear on the surface of the substrate, it is better to transfer the boxes to a cooler place, with a temperature of about 15-16 degrees.
But what to do if the root tubers were not stored at an ideal temperature of 4-8 degrees, but at a higher temperature and germination had already taken place without our participation? You can let the dahlia shoots color in the light, gently break them out or cut them out with a piece of tubers, plant them like cuttings, or you can plant them in the ground when the time comes for the whole nest.
When the threat of spring frosts has passed, carefully remove the dahlias from the substrate and plant them in a permanent place, having previously installed supports for tall varieties.
How to germinate dahlia tubers, before storing treated with paraffin and how to choose good root tubers in a store or garden center, the video will tell:
Conclusion
So, the most important thing: plant the tubers with the root neck up, provide them with a bright, warm place, water very moderately - these are the main components of the success of dahlia germination. And they will delight you with lush flowering until the very frost.
