Dahlias are very popular among amateur gardeners and landscape designers. Bright hats of flowers from the middle of summer adorn the house area. Bushes are dwarf and tall.
Description of Dahlias Fun Guys
Funny guys are a dwarf variety of culture. Their height varies from 25 to 70 cm. A sturdy stem is covered with green leaves. Root tubers form weak, so these plants are considered annuals.
Dahlias Funny Guys
Additional Information! Low-growing varieties of dahlias bloom earlier than tall ones.
The diameter of inflorescences varies from 8 to 10 cm. They can be simple, terry, semi-double. The color of the petals: yellow, white, pink, red, purple, burgundy.
The bushes easily tolerate short droughts, but die during the first frosts. The buds bloom in early July. Flowering lasts until late autumn. A gardener can collect seeds on his own in the fall and sow a large area with them next year.
Planting a plant
Initially, seeds are purchased in a garden center. Usually in a bag is a mixture of dahlias of various color palettes. First sown seeds for seedlings, then planted on the site. In warm regions, sowing is carried out immediately in open ground after passing the threat of frost.
Dahlia Seeds
Seed planting
The procedure is started in early spring. Sow the seeds as follows:
- a mixture of garden soil, humus, sand is poured into a box with shallow sides;
- spread seeds at a distance of 2-3 cm from each other;
- watered, fall asleep with a small layer of sand;
- cover with a film.
After emergence, the shelter is removed. When the seedlings reach a height of 10 cm, make a pick. For this, separate containers are prepared in which bushes are planted. Put containers with seedlings in a bright place.
Important! Before planting in open ground, dahlias are tempered. The procedure will then help plants more easily adapt to new conditions.
Planting seedlings in open ground
Developed and hardened bushes are planted in a permanent place. The territory is selected well-lit by the sun, otherwise dahlias will stretch out. Landing is as follows:
- dig holes in the depth of 20 cm at a distance of 30 cm;
- a mixture of humus and ash is spilled to the bottom;
- seedlings are planted;
- bushes abundantly watered.
To preserve moisture, a dahlia bed is mulched.
A plot for dahlias is selected sunny, protected from cold winds
How to Care for Dahlias Funny Guys
Care of the crop consists in timely watering, periodic top dressing, loosening the soil, pruning faded buds. For prevention, bushes are sprayed with insectofungicides before flowering.
Watering
Irrigate the ground under the plants once a week. Excessive moisture can cause fungal infections. Therefore, with long-term rainfall, irrigation is adjusted. One-year-olds withstand short-term drought.
Top dressing
The first top dressing is performed with nitrogen 2 weeks after planting. The next time fertilized with potassium and phosphorus during budding. At the time of flowering, dahlias need to be fed with organics. If the plants are planted in fertile soil, the first fertilizer application is skipped.
Pruning
Cheerful children independently form lush bushes. A large number of buds are growing on them. Therefore, these dahlias do not need to be formed. They only need to trim the faded buds. You can pinch the top of the main stem once, and then the bushes will be even more magnificent and more beautiful.
Breeding methods
The gardener can propagate Cheerful guys dahlias seeds, root tubers, cuttings. The most common is the first method of growing. Seeds are sown first in a box for seedlings, or in the middle of spring immediately into the ground. To sprout faster sprouts, the ground is covered with a film.
Dahlia seedling
Root tubers are formed weak. If nevertheless the gardener was able to save them, in the spring he starts planting in the ground. To do this, dig holes in which the root system is planted, watered, and covered with earth. The root neck is not buried.
Another method of propagation is cuttings. To do this, the root tubers in the spring are placed in a mixture of peat and sand, kept in a warm place. When the resulting shoots reach 10-12 cm, they are cut, planted in pots. Rooted cuttings are planted on the site.
Transfer
Dahlias Friends in the spring can be planted immediately in the open ground. When the bushes reach a height of 10-12 centimeters, they are dug up, and with an earthen lump transplanted to a permanent place. A plot for dahlias is selected well lit by the sun, without blowing cold winds.
Note! Bushes will take root easier if transplanted in the evening.
Diseases and Pests
With excessive moisture in the soil, the Friendly Family can become the object of fungal diseases. The most common of them: white and gray rot, fusarium. At the first sign of disease, the affected parts are removed, the bushes are sprayed with fungicides.
When grown under adverse conditions, dahlias can be affected by fungus.
The main pest is aphids. Affected by insects, the leaves begin to curl, dry out. If the aphid has just appeared, it can be removed manually. In an advanced situation, the bushes are sprayed with insecticides.
Flowering period
Dwarf dahlias begin to bloom in July. The petals of the buds are painted with a diverse palette. In full disclosure, the diameter of the flowers reaches 8-10 cm. Flowering continues until frost. So that the bushes remain decorative for a long time, the drying buds are cut off.
Winter preparations
Plants do not withstand frost, so the aerial part is removed, root tubers are dug up in late autumn. They are not as developed as those of tall dahlias, so it’s more difficult to keep them until spring.
They are inspected, discarded damaged, dried. Root tubers are placed in a box with dry sand; contain in the basement. Cheerful guys easily propagate by seeds, which are collected, dried, stored in a dry place.
Use in landscape design
Dwarf dahlias are a decoration of a flower bed. Their floral hats of various colors will look good in design against the background of decorative deciduous shrubs.
Dahlias landed along the path
The beauty of dahlias will be emphasized in landscape compositions when planting with less spectacular plants, for example, sage, lavender, delphinium. Bushes are used to decorate garden paths, planted in arrays on the slopes.
Additional Information! Initially, dahlias were grown as a vegetable because of edible tubers.
Dahlias A friendly family for a short time allows you to decorate the house territory. They are easy to grow on a plot of seeds. Bushes do not require special care. It is enough to water them once a week, to feed 2-3 times a season, to remove dried buds. With proper agricultural technology, dahlias will delight their view from the beginning of summer to late autumn.
