Potting up the first dahlias

They grow well in containers as well as the soil

- Ruth Hayes

DAHLIAS are one of the joys of the summer garden, their bright, glossy petals giving a shock of colour throughout the borders, especially when they appear above beautiful bronze foliage.

I restarted my overwintered tubers in March but they seemed to take an age to get going. I don’t think I’m alone in this as I have read several reports of the same thing happening to other gardeners, and I suspect the cold spring helped delay the appearance of new growth.

When the shoots were long enough I took a few to use as cuttings (see next week’s AG for full details) and this week I potted up my ‘Star Wars’ dahlia to go on the patio.

This is a compact variety perfect for pots, with bright red and yellow blooms over attractive bronze foliage.

Dahlias like plenty of sun and freedraining soil as their tubers are at risk of rotting if they sit in waterlogged ground.