Those who have given this video a ‘Thumbs Down’ must be garden centres and Dutch nurseries. Super helpful vid - thank you. I love my dahlias and I’m going to make more of my own thanks to this :)
I'm much newer than yourself to Dahlias but I found your video very helpful. You've explained things carefully and taken a lot of trouble to produce it. You're a natural teacher. Many thanks.
Every day is a school day -as they say! I watched on You Tube in how one separate's Dahlia tubers, then tonight I view your blog in which taking cuttings from Dahlia can create more plants which I would not think that was possible! Many thanks!
I have ordered some dahlias for planting this summer. I will take cuttings according to your instructions and see how successful I am! Thank you for your kind instructions. Your videos are very instructional and educating.
I am so delighted at the detail and simplicity of your video. This is something I would be willing to try at my place. We live in a cooler climate and when flowers come up, they are appreciated by all. I purchased some tubers and now have more confidence in trying to do some cuttings with them. Thank you so very much for your time and efforts in sharing your passion.
I really enjoyed that. Love the rooting & potting medium you're using. Was wondering all along, if tubers would form from cuttings, so thanks for mentioning that they do! It's hard for me to imagine this process, so thanks for filling in that blank. I hadn't realized one could strike cuttings from Dahlias. I'd thought one must begin with tubers, for every plant. Now I've just got to learn how these little cuttings manage to do this miraculous thing. Of course the Dahlia flowers are the real miracles. Thanks again.
Barry, I can not tell you how grateful I am for you taking the time to make this video. It has demystified the process and, I am sure, saved me at least two seasons of trial and error! I discovered Dahlias three years ago and now my fascination and adoration as become borderline obsession! So much so that I have built a growlight shelf system in my basement and a "guerilla greenhouse" on my back city patio. I am growing on tubers in the basement for cuttings then plan to transfer to the greenhouse in March before finally planting. I have certainly overgrown capacity of my small city (Cambridge, MA) beds and have now wrangled my sisters backyard about 45 minutes outside of the city. At this point, I am definitely suffering from "watched pot" syndrome - almost willing the shoots to come up. At this point I have just taken my first small cuttings (perhaps over ambitiously as they are small). We shall see. My one remaining question is just how wet and compact to keep the medium / compost around the tubers. In your video it looks quite moist but I have always heard that when you plant tubers, do not water until shoots appear. In a tray with multiple tubers where shoots come up at different times, it hard to know how much to water! Is it compost or grow medium (peat/sand/vermiculite)? Finally, I hope you ignore criticisms of the video being too long. I share your view that one should not dumb things down to accommodate for diminished attention spans. All boats should rise with the tide.
Sir, I just wanted to thank you for taking the time to make your video. I am just starting out (love Dahlias as my Mum grew them when I was a little girl) and I found your advice extremely helpful. You explain everything so well. Thanks for being such a good teacher!
I started my dahlias from seed this year. I went by recommended seed sowing time, but mine are gigantic and taking up all the space in my grow setup. I'll definitely start them later next year!
I think you will find that plants raised from seed will mostly not come true to the original variety - they will be a mixture of what ever varieties the pollenator visited ...
@@vc131a they were from a packet, not personally saved seeds. Yeah, I have no idea what I'll get. I also don't know why I said I would start them later next year when I will have tubers to replant 😆
Very informative video on propagating Dahlias from cuttings. Made it look so easy-peasy. Am waiting to try out this method from today itself. Thank you and keep updating us about your new Dahlias.
So much information so well presented! I just rooted a dozen cuttings from three dahlia varieties. However, a confession. I propagate plants mostly for the challenge of it...the flowers are just the icing on the cake. Fortunately here in Alberta, Canada we have very dry air...little issue with disease, fungi, etc. also lots of hour of growing sunshine.
Tom Aaron Tom, Glad you found it helpful. I too grow Dahlias for the challenge of propagating them while most members of our Dahlia Society are heavily into showing. I have to admit that we also like them as cut flowers for the house too. I've recently got into self saved seeds too - far better germination than most commercially available seed and some very interesting varieties too. This year for the first time, I have saved some Dahlia seed too. Will maybe have a go at cross pollinating Dahlias to create 'new' varieties, but need to think about that one! Regards, Barry
An excellent video - thank you, I have learned everything I wanted to know. I felt like I was in my own greenhouse - I use a saucepan, same hormone powder and the same potting tray! I now know why my nodal cuttings were failing.....my mix was way too dense. I thoroughly enjoyed you’re video - great stuff 😊
Thanks a lot for showing your experience from zero to the bigger part, I love the way you started cutting and then transformed to a ceiling trays and then to the big pots and sent to the big parts that’s so great thank you so very much for safe sharing your experience
I've only just started with Dahlias. I have watched many videos on them and I consider yours the best. VERY informative, easy to understand, great graphics and last but not least, I can easily see, you have a passion for these gorgeous plants. Thank you for taking time to make these videos for all your students!
This is a great video, now I can try my hand at doing this rather then spending tons on new tuber sets.It is nice to see some who is passionate about gardening..I find it to be the most relaxing and rewarding, I need my garden space!
Wonderful explanation in detail about Dahlia cuttings! Thank you so much for making taking cuttings more understandable. I hope you will continue to give more detailed information on all your gardening techniques.
Thank You so much for creating this video. My husband and I are experimenting with taking cuttings from several kinds of flowers. I've been growing dahlias for many years so it was refreshing to see how to take dahlia cuttings look so easy. Best wishes & happy gardening.
Hi Kathi, Pleased to hear that you found it useful - I started some of my tubers off on Monday 23rd, so the cycle has started all over again! Good luck with your experiment ... Barry
29:59 Thankyou so much for your amazing tips for Dahlias, just a tip for the hollow stem cuttings, slice down the middle stem to split in two, better chance of rooting x2 ….
Hi Barry Just wondered how your Dahlias went this year? Mine were very good. I think I took about 200 cuttings in total, had some for my garden of course, but also sold about 150 young plants at Car boot sales, they sold really well. I think the most successful varieties this year have been Trooper Dan, a giant Dec, that I managed to get about 12in across and have been stunning! And George Marston, a small ball burgundy, which is so statuesque and a beautifulo addition which really stands out. Already planning for next year now. So how are yours going?
Thanks, great content! Now I know why my Dahilas are not doing well. Planted them only in coconut coir - darn. Hopefully I'll be able to replant in new soil modifications.
Really good video. I just brought home my first Dahlia. Very crowded pot. Blooms dying. Cactus style? I went to transplant it in the garden. Stems cracked and snapped easily (accidentally). I tried to divide it and cut the tuber too short on one side. A lot of the soil fell away, but I didn't see any tubers, and I wasn't looking for eyes. Maybe they were hidden in some of the soil. Really worried that it won't live through the night. I removed all the flowers and most of the larger leaves. If it lives through the night, maybe I can do some cuttings?
Love your videos! And decades of expertise... clearly you were in a greenhouse -somewhere in England I imagine ?which is a very high zone compared to us Canadians and our wicked winters.... by the time dahlias bloom at the end of summer here (zone 4) we would have to have a heated greenhouse to start the next generation from cuttings, yes? They take 3mos. And we run out of warmth and sunlight...could you tell us -by your estimation -how long it takes for a cutting to start developing tubers ? And are plants growing just w roots smaller ? Thank you! Your CDN fans...
Ive just started with dhalias and i was amazed watching others how much the tubers multiply but you can take cuttings too??! Well... I may run out of garden space in the next few year for all the dhalias I could have hahaha 😂
Thank you for making this video as I was told you couldn’t take cutting from these plants ....and buy them fresh each year as the ones in tubs they never grow , yet the ones planted in my garden come back every year ( 5 years now) and I never take them up each year and dry them out ...frightened to dig them up and dry them out at the end of the year, in case they don’t grow back next year as they are so beautiful
Hi, great video. Whats the depth of the medium the dahlia Tubers are initially planted in? Whats the height the tubers should be buried to for best cutting? Thanks
Thank u so much for your instructive videos. The love you put into your garden definitely comes back to you. I have a variety I have seen driving around town and would gladly pay the browser for some cuttings. I live in the fourth coast of British Columbia and would like to inquire from growers if I may have or purchase cuttings from their amazing plants. I would love to send you a photo of a gorgeous dahlia but do not know if I can over TH-cam but it is something I will investigate thank u for your information presented in very insightful way. Bravo.
Good morning to you,lve just started growing Dahlias for the first time and are doing very well indeed !!!!! Blackfly seem to love this beautiful plant,can you advise me on what to do,thank you very much.Joyce from South West Torbay 🌱🌱🌼🌱🌻🌱🌱🌞
Very helpful video and very well presented but I am concerned peat was recommended not an environmentally responsible choice. I presume a Peat Free compost would do the same job.
just wondering what growing zone you are at? this way i will be able to judge when i should start growing on my own dahlia tubers to grow enough to take cuttings from. here i am a zone 4 it very wintery here at the moment. and last frost is sometime late may. thank you for sharing your video and sharing your knowledge.
Hi Barry, Many thanks for very informative video, once you have planted the cuttings and put the tray in propagator, how often you should water them, as they may take about three weeks to root. Thank you. Ajay
I check the cuttings every day, usually misting them daily and watering probably every other day but more frequently if required. Check by putting your finger in the rooting compost. HTH Barry
what a fantastic video! Thank you for making this. I'm in USA zone 7A and just planted outside all my bulbs that I started inside under grow lights. Can I take my cuttings now end of May and plant them in a medium and leave them outside since it will be so warm? i will of course monitor and water all of them. Does that idea sound feasible?? warmest regards.
Normally you would take cuttings prior to planting out the tubers - I start mine off in a glass house in January and the plant out the resulting plants in July when all chance of frosts has passed. If you take cuttings after planting them out, you will limit the number of flowers on each plant, also the resulting plants will not be suitable for planting outside (not big enough) until next year. HTH Barry
And i understand from yr video if i top off a stem more growth and flowers will form. Thank you. But, can i propogate the top cutting as I top the plant off?
Will these cuttings flower this year? Or will their tubers need to mature through the next season? Thank you for your videos, I have enjoyed them greatly!
I really enjoy this video. The one with the pebbles under when you water the plants, how do you drain the excess water in the tray. Or do you leave it in there like self-watering?
Mostly I water the plants from below, so instead of watering from above, I put water in the tray and allow the plants to take up what they require - be careful though, don't over do it, a little and often is much better than a good soaking.
Thank you for the wonderful and helpful video. I live here in Northwest - Seattle and known to get a lot of rain. I planted Dahlia's now for 2 years and my problem is the slugs. My neighbor doesn't have them but I do. I watched a lot of videos and never encounter that they have a problem with slugs. Please advice. Greatly appreciate it. Cheers! Dahlia ( yes my name is Dahlia too =)
Hi, I don't usually keep the donor tubers as their ability to produce flowers is severely hampered by having donated so much of their growth. However, I do put them on the compost heep and they usually do produce a good show ... I've never really thought about root disturbance, so I think it will be quite an insignificant problem, given that the cuttings can be potted on several times.
Thanks a lot for this video. I love gardening & I'll try it this summer. I didn't know they had seeds. I always buy tubers & they rot in the winter time & I buy them every year. I have a question regarding Dahlias. Can someone answer ? I always start them in containers and cover them with wire mash because the squirrels dig them out (in Chicago). Then, I transplant them on the ground. Any advise on keep the squirrels away. I don't want to hurt the. Thanks
You can harvest seeds but be aware that what you harvest will not necessarily be the same flower. This is thanks to bee cross-pollination. I have never had a squirrel steal a tuber and I live in the city where there are many. They do love crocus and daf bulbs though!
Hello, how do you do. Well, i learned a lot of your video and i am stunning how many cuttings we can accually get from ONE plant. I always thought, ok, i have one plant and while growing a will get some nice flowers from the one. know i realized how much money it will safe me, to do some cuttings ..:). Now her is my question, as you show how to take cuttings from young plants in the spring, can i also do the same with fully grown plants in autumn? or doesn´t it work like this? ....I dont hope you will laugh about my unprofessional question .....Thank you for all help and regards from Denmark
My apologies for taking so long to reply to your question, I don't check back regularly enough. Yes you can take cuttings in the autumn, the only problem is that you have to provide heat, light and moisture over the winter months in order for them to flourish. One problem I can foresee is that cuttings in the autumn will mostly have hollow stems that do not root very well ...... I intend to experiment this winter to test out the theory - I already have a large propagator for the heat, so need to buy some suitable lamps and a time clock. I think that so long as the plants have perhaps 16 hours of light, they should be OK. I guess I need to film the experiment too!
vc131a ... I appriciate your answer really much, as i can immagine your might be busy in your garden. well, i am looking forward to your "experiment video" and hopefully we can learn even more. I told some of my neighbours and all are really impressed how you did and we watched it all over again. I have not so much possibilitys with extra lamps and light during wintertime, so i have to wait until spring. Wish you best of luck, lots of health and HAPPY GARDENING ...
This is a fantastic video, thank you for sharing. I have a number of questions plus wonder if I could get permission from you to show the video at our society meeting? Can I post the questions here or can I email you direct please?
Hello Simon, no problem - the video is in the public domain so please feel free to show it at your society meeting. If you post your questions here others may like to see them ..... just hope I know the answers! Barry
vc131a The questions are really simple. a) I am interested in your labelling technique and wonder what size labels you use, are they 4inch, 5inch? b) when the cutting has rooted what size pot are you potting into, they look like 7cm pots? c) you mentioned in the video that when you put the pots on gravel you get gravel stuck to the roots and that you are going to use fabric - would this be capilliary matting? d) do you provide any lighting to assist with the rooting? Finally, would really love to see more videos, especially the plants in the polytunnel and also the planting out and of course everything in flower. As a novice grower I think it is great to see these videos and whilst there are a few videos on here from growers that show they tend to try and shoot the video themselves and then you dont actually see them doing things. You at least have used either a cameraman or at least a tripod so you were able to show how things were done. Really appreciate the time and effort you have put in to share this. Thank you once again.
Simon Nute Hi Simon, OK, so in the same order that you asked them ... The labels I use are 6", so I can write large enough to read without my glasses - try fitting 'Weston Spanish Dancer' on a small label! Yes, the small square pots are 7mm. Yes again, the fabric I mentioned is capillary matting - waiting to empty the greenhouse so I can complete the transition. Not yet felt the need for lighting, everything seems to chug along quite well without, especially since I'm in no hurry. Have already started work on the next video - some other local growers have agreed to me snooping around on their plots to film how they do things and yes, I will include a bit of the poly tunnel too. I'm hoping to get mine planted out this coming weekend (1st June) if it ever stops raining .... I usually use a tripod - I think it makes a big difference to the finished film. Regards, Barry
vc131a Thank you for your time in answering those questions and I really look forward to seeing more videos. I am starting my planting out at the weekend. Kind regards. Simon.
It’s March 2021 and I’ve just planted the dahlia tubers I bought in pots so I’m hoping they get off to an early start. However, I don’t have a greenhouse so is it possible just to keep them in the house near big windows?
You didn't mention how long it takes from starting the cutting to producing flowers.....after the cuttings go into the garden at the 4 month mark does that plant actually produce flowers without a tuber in the first year ? And how do the tubers get produced from the first year's plant?... thanks very much for the informative video, would really love to find information on how the roots turn into tubers and is it possible to turn a tuber w/o eyes/nodes into one that produces flowers? A fan in zone 4a-b canada
I have some plants that were rooted as cuttings in April and they have a single coloured flower bud now, on the 13th June - so I guess as little as 10 or 12 weeks. Normally to produce several flowers from a single plant for a show, you would grow it as a single stemmed plant and then pinch out the tip 10 weeks before you want the flowers. Yes a plant grown from a cutting will produce flowers and tubers in the first year. I don't bother replanting any tubers kept from the previous year, just the rooted cuttings - the tubers go on the compost heap. No, the tuber must have a piece of stem attached that has eyes/nodes in order to produce shoots and hence flowers - 'blind' tubers are no use, so make sure when you dig them up in the autumn that you leave a couple of inches of stem attached. Just think of tubers as thickened roots, they are produced naturally by the plant presumably as a form of food/water storage..... Barry
Thank you SO much for such great information! I managed to successfully take a cutting by watching your instructions and now I have a tiny tuber! Really appreciate you answering my questions, I’ve learned a lot from you! Cheers from Toronto.
Your video was by far the most informative of so many I have watched to learn how to double my Dalia tuber collection and I now have taught others what I’ve learned from your excellent videos! Thank you
Hi :-) First of all: THANK YOU FOR THIS VIDEO! This is the best description I have seen yet - thank you for that! I too, am in Denmark, and have just returned inside from my new garden project: "Making pot tubers from my favourite dahlias to use for cuttings and propagation in the spring". So here goes nothing.... You say that cuttings with hollow stems only MAY work... I have just taken a lot of cuttings of my dahlias and I found that if I kept to new side shoots I avoided any of these hollow stems. Now - I have a question for you... And I hope you can help me... What do you do with the tuber from which you take cuttings in the spring? Do you plant it, or is it too weak from all the cuttings? Thank you again for your video, and now also for your time! Best from Ida
Hello Ida, Thank you for your comments. In answer to your question, I don't know! I take cuttings from the tuber and then throw it away (actually I put it on the compost heap) because I think it has probably produced all of the possible shoots, so cannot produce more .... but I might be wrong. Several of the tubers I threw onto the compost heap this year produced some wonderful blooms, so either I threw them out too soon, or as you suggest, it might be worth planting the tuber after you have taken the cuttings. I suspect that you might be correct and that any growth will be quite weak, but worth looking at next year .. Regards, Barry
vc131a Thank you for you reply Barry! I have tried to start rooting some of my favourite dahlias now - some seem to like to live, and some of them turn yellow and/or limb.... I will just have to wait and see I suppose. I truly hope something will work, especially because a storm just flattened one of my dahlia patches in the garden. But can I please ask you another question? What excactly IS a pot tuber? Is it just a small tuber, planted in a pot instead of in the garden? and do you keep the growth of any shoots down? I am quite confused - some people say that they always keep 3 of each dahlia type as pot tubers at all times. Is the pot tuber then always in an active state? kept in soil over the winter? Sorry... as I said - I am confused - but also very eager to learn more. Thank you again Best from Ida
Ida Viemose Hello Ida, A lot of growers like to keep a stock of different varieties for the future, they don't actually want them for their flowers this year, but in case they want them in future years they create a 'pot tuber'. Some other growers keep several pot tubers in case they lose some of their main plants to disease etc.. to ensure that they have plants for future years. Pot tubers are also a good compact way of giving away plants to other growers, since they will shoot quite normally next spring. Our club has a tuber sale in January at which normal tubers and pot tubers are sold to members at an auction, so that they can acquire different varieties and to boost club funds. A pot tuber is created by planting a cutting in a plant pot and allowing it to grow. Instead of planting the dahlia out in open ground, it is kept in the pot for the whole summer. The plant will produce poorer top growth and flowers than one planted in open ground, but over the summer season the dahlia will produce a small compact tuber in the pot and the top growth will die down quite normally in the autumn. As the plants die back in the autumn, the top growth is cut down in the normal way. Some growers just leave the tubers in the plant pots and let them dry out, while other growers will take the tubers out of the plant pots and wash and clean them before storing them away in a frost free environment. When awoken in the spring, a tuber that has been grown in a plant pot will still produce good top growth from which cuttings may be taken and it will not take up so much room in the greenhouse. I hope those quick notes are helpful, I'll hopefully show more in a future video... when I get the time! Regards, Barry
vc131a Hi again Barry, Thank you very much for your answer - it really helped. I am going to use your advise in my dahlia garden - and cross my fingers that I have the competencies to do it right :-) I look forwards to any dahlia video you may make - I have studied the cutting video quite carefully :-) Best from Ida
Hi again, Now I have thrown myself into taking cuttings. I am not an expert I must say - quite a few of them die after only a week. But some of them have rooted and now I have just potted the first two on into a common flower compost. I just have a question: do they still have to have bottom heat when they have made roots and are potted on? Also - I just viewed your post script to the autumn cuttings. I tried that last year too (you may recall) - but they did NOT succeed. Then again - they were put into common compost - not seed compost... and they did not receive bottom heat. I am so very impressed with your results - actual tubers after only 4 months! That is amazing. Thank you And I hope that you are well and that your dahlias are too.... Best from Ida in Denmark
Hello ida, No, by the time they have rooted they should be OK without any bottom heat. If you are losing cuttings after only a week are you keeping them moist enough? Spray then once or even twice a day and make sure they are kept quit moist by watering them probably once every two days. it could be that you are assuming that cuttings have died after a week where they have perhaps only flagged - mine look pretty sick for perhaps 10 days, so don't be too quick to give up on them. Barry
vc131a I agree Barry. As I said in an earlier post, and like you, my cuttings naturally flag for a about a week to 10 days like yours, but they pick up eventually with patience. And I have only had 2 cuttings that haven't rooted out of 172 taken. Your advice is correct, keep them sprayed with some bottom heat and they will generally root fine. I'm already at the stage where my first cuttings are outside in my coldframe for a week and are pretty much garden ready now, as many are already in 5in pots and are 12in+ tall . But I just want them to harden up in the cold frame for a week, before they go into the garden in a few days.
JAG sixtyfive Hmm... Mine seem fine until after approx 10 days. I think I have taken around 110 cuttings... 25 are now potted on and seem to be thriving, 30ish are still too "young" for me to know their fate and the rest have rotted... Looking at your compost mixture, Barry, I can now see that mine is visually "lighter" in color.. Maybe I have too little peat and too much vermiculite and sand... Hmm... My bottom heat is made from some reptile/propagation heating mats I bought on ebay, and a thermostat (also from ebay). Above them I have put a grow light that looks very much like yours Barry. Maaaabe they also need more true sun? I have mine in my living room, because my greenhouse is full of holes and therefore not very warm.... Do you have anymore insight? And then just another question.... My intuition tells me that bottom heat will also help a full tuber to root and send up shoots faster than if it is left alone... Do you agree? Or may I be killing my favourites as we speak? Thank you!
Hello Ida, Sorry to hear that you are having difficulties. I lost a lot of tubers over the winter for some reason, despite having dried and stored them properly. Even some that I bought at an auction in January failed to root, so I guess it was not only me.... My rooting mixture is 33% vermiculite, 33% sharp sand and 33% fine seed compost, so nothing special. The cuttiings certainly need good light while they are growing, otherwise they become tall and spindley. I do know someone who grows all of his cuttings in a cellar with only grow lights, because he does not have room anywhere else. Yes, I too put the tubers on heated trays while they are shooting, it does help them to send up shoots quicker. I have now finished taking cuttings and the tubers are in my polytunnel where it is cool. They are still growing well so maybe I shall plant some of them and allow them to flower this year instead of putting them on the compost heap. Barry
Ida Viemose I'm really sorry that my reply was so late to be of use to you. Did you manage to sort out your problems? I took around 200 or so cuttings, and I think that I only had around 3 or 4 losses. So I was wondering if things sorted themselves out with you, and what you thought you may have done differently next year?
hi would there be any chance of making a video this year to see what your plot looks like in full flower it would have nice to see all the plots in flower that you had videoed lovely videos keep up the good work cheers michael
I've always gardened high in the Rocky Mountains, we're talking Jasper Alberta, a charitable Zone 3 or more realistic Zone 2a. So of course my Dahlias were lifted. I moved to Vancouver Island, Zone 7, and left my Dahlias in for several winters. Last winter all of my shoulder high, full, beauties that were given to me, rotted. So, the ones that wintered well are under the eaves. The others, out in the open. Could this be root rot due to the amount of rain we get? By the way, thank you for your prompt response to my former question.
Was in your area last September BC, Alberta, Washington State & Oregon - Beautiful ! In past years I have been lucky having left tubers in the ground over the winter. Now that the winters have become less predictable (12-13 was very cold and 13-14 was very wet here in the UK) I've made sure that all tubers are lifted, washed, dried and stored safely away from frost - a pain of a job. I have lost some stored tubers to rot despite careful storage, so you don't always win. It certainly knows how to rain in Vancouver, so I suspect you might be correct in your diagnosis. I lost some treasured hardy Poppies last winter to what I assumed to be a 'wet' problem. On the bright side, you now have the chance to get some more new Dahlia varieties ;-)) Barry
The most in-depth video how to propagate dahlia cuttings! Thank you so much! What an incredible shop you have!
Great video, very clearly explained, I like the sound of your parents, pinching and licking the cuttings, how lovely to have such memories. Thank you.
Those who have given this video a ‘Thumbs Down’ must be garden centres and Dutch nurseries.
Super helpful vid - thank you. I love my dahlias and I’m going to make more of my own thanks to this :)
I'm much newer than yourself to Dahlias but I found your video very helpful. You've explained things carefully and taken a lot of trouble to produce it. You're a natural teacher. Many thanks.
Every day is a school day -as they say! I watched on You Tube in how one separate's Dahlia tubers, then tonight I view your blog in which taking cuttings from Dahlia can create more plants which I would not think that was possible! Many thanks!
Brilliant video! Very clear, no waffling. Thank you.
I love those vented, stackable, propagating bins. I don't think we have those here in the USA. I enjoyed your video. Thank you!
Love those trays as well. Don't see them in Canada either!
Do you know where we can locate them?
I am now about the begin this process. I was too afraid before. But you have taught how to do it clearly! Thank you!
Thanks for the video. I didn't know you could propogate dahlias this way. As soon as my dahlias grow tall enough I'm going to try this
How'd it go?
I have ordered some dahlias for planting this summer. I will take cuttings according to your instructions and see how successful I am! Thank you for your kind instructions. Your videos are very instructional and educating.
I am so delighted at the detail and simplicity of your video. This is something I would be willing to try at my place. We live in a cooler climate and when flowers come up, they are appreciated by all. I purchased some tubers and now have more confidence in trying to do some cuttings with them. Thank you so very much for your time and efforts in sharing your passion.
I really enjoyed that. Love the rooting & potting medium you're using. Was wondering all along, if tubers would form from cuttings, so thanks for mentioning that they do! It's hard for me to imagine this process, so thanks for filling in that blank. I hadn't realized one could strike cuttings from Dahlias. I'd thought one must begin with tubers, for every plant.
Now I've just got to learn how these little cuttings manage to do this miraculous thing. Of course the Dahlia flowers are the real miracles. Thanks again.
Barry, I can not tell you how grateful I am for you taking the time to make this video. It has demystified the process and, I am sure, saved me at least two seasons of trial and error! I discovered Dahlias three years ago and now my fascination and adoration as become borderline obsession! So much so that I have built a growlight shelf system in my basement and a "guerilla greenhouse" on my back city patio. I am growing on tubers in the basement for cuttings then plan to transfer to the greenhouse in March before finally planting. I have certainly overgrown capacity of my small city (Cambridge, MA) beds and have now wrangled my sisters backyard about 45 minutes outside of the city. At this point, I am definitely suffering from "watched pot" syndrome - almost willing the shoots to come up. At this point I have just taken my first small cuttings (perhaps over ambitiously as they are small). We shall see.
My one remaining question is just how wet and compact to keep the medium / compost around the tubers. In your video it looks quite moist but I have always heard that when you plant tubers, do not water until shoots appear. In a tray with multiple tubers where shoots come up at different times, it hard to know how much to water! Is it compost or grow medium (peat/sand/vermiculite)?
Finally, I hope you ignore criticisms of the video being too long. I share your view that one should not dumb things down to accommodate for diminished attention spans. All boats should rise with the tide.
Sir, I just wanted to thank you for taking the time to make your video. I am just starting out (love Dahlias as my Mum grew them when I was a little girl) and I found your advice extremely helpful. You explain everything so well. Thanks for being such a good teacher!
Gardening is so addictive. I can't imagine not growing plants.
true.., i am an addict gardener 😂😂😂
I didn't know you could do this. Feb 15th just bringing up the tubers from cold storage. So glad I found yr vid. Thank you🇨🇦
I started my dahlias from seed this year. I went by recommended seed sowing time, but mine are gigantic and taking up all the space in my grow setup. I'll definitely start them later next year!
I think you will find that plants raised from seed will mostly not come true to the original variety - they will be a mixture of what ever varieties the pollenator visited ...
@@vc131a they were from a packet, not personally saved seeds. Yeah, I have no idea what I'll get. I also don't know why I said I would start them later next year when I will have tubers to replant 😆
Very informative video on propagating Dahlias from cuttings. Made it look so easy-peasy. Am waiting to try out this method from today itself. Thank you and keep updating us about your new Dahlias.
So much information so well presented! I just rooted a dozen cuttings from three dahlia varieties.
However, a confession. I propagate plants mostly for the challenge of it...the flowers are just the icing on the cake.
Fortunately here in Alberta, Canada we have very dry air...little issue with disease, fungi, etc. also lots of hour of growing sunshine.
Tom Aaron Tom, Glad you found it helpful. I too grow Dahlias for the challenge of propagating them while most members of our Dahlia Society are heavily into showing. I have to admit that we also like them as cut flowers for the house too. I've recently got into self saved seeds too - far better germination than most commercially available seed and some very interesting varieties too. This year for the first time, I have saved some Dahlia seed too. Will maybe have a go at cross pollinating Dahlias to create 'new' varieties, but need to think about that one! Regards, Barry
An excellent video - thank you, I have learned everything I wanted to know. I felt like I was in my own greenhouse - I use a saucepan, same hormone powder and the same potting tray! I now know why my nodal cuttings were failing.....my mix was way too dense. I thoroughly enjoyed you’re video - great stuff 😊
Glad it was helpful!
This was a very well done video. I really enjoyed it. Good job, sir!!
Thank you so very much for this video! I'm very excited to try this in the spring!
Thanks a lot for showing your experience from zero to the bigger part, I love the way you started cutting and then transformed to a ceiling trays and then to the big pots and sent to the big parts that’s so great thank you so very much for safe sharing your experience
Most informative video on propagating Dahlias from cuttings on TH-cam, HANDS DOWN!!! A++++
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I've only just started with Dahlias. I have watched many videos on them and I consider yours the best. VERY informative, easy to understand, great graphics and last but not least, I can easily see, you have a passion for these gorgeous plants. Thank you for taking time to make these videos for all your students!
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Loved this video! I wish I was your neighbor or daughter and could come over for tea and talk about plants❤️
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This is a great video, now I can try my hand at doing this rather then spending tons on new tuber sets.It is nice to see some who is passionate about gardening..I find it to be the most relaxing and rewarding, I need my garden space!
Great! I've tried dahlias for three years with horrible luck. You give me hope.
Wonderful explanation in detail about Dahlia cuttings! Thank you so much for making taking cuttings more understandable. I hope you will continue to give more detailed information on all your gardening techniques.
very interesting valuable advice for new growers.
thanks for sharing.
Thank You so much for creating this video. My husband and I are experimenting with taking cuttings from several kinds of flowers. I've been growing dahlias for many years so it was refreshing to see how to take dahlia cuttings look so easy. Best wishes & happy gardening.
Hi Kathi, Pleased to hear that you found it useful - I started some of my tubers off on Monday 23rd, so the cycle has started all over again! Good luck with your experiment ... Barry
29:59 Thankyou so much for your amazing tips for Dahlias, just a tip for the hollow stem cuttings, slice down the middle stem to split in two, better chance of rooting x2 ….
Hi Barry
Just wondered how your Dahlias went this year? Mine were very good. I think I took about 200 cuttings in total, had some for my garden of course, but also sold about 150 young plants at Car boot sales, they sold really well. I think the most successful varieties this year have been Trooper Dan, a giant Dec, that I managed to get about 12in across and have been stunning! And George Marston, a small ball burgundy, which is so statuesque and a beautifulo addition which really stands out. Already planning for next year now. So how are yours going?
Wow, this is a serious production, thanks for sharing.
Kia ora, from N.Z. Thank you for your most informative video. Just love Dahlias, so many varieties and beautiful.
Thanks, great content! Now I know why my Dahilas are not doing well. Planted them only in coconut coir - darn. Hopefully I'll be able to replant in new soil modifications.
Really good video. I just brought home my first Dahlia. Very crowded pot. Blooms dying. Cactus style? I went to transplant it in the garden. Stems cracked and snapped easily (accidentally). I tried to divide it and cut the tuber too short on one side. A lot of the soil fell away, but I didn't see any tubers, and I wasn't looking for eyes. Maybe they were hidden in some of the soil. Really worried that it won't live through the night. I removed all the flowers and most of the larger leaves. If it lives through the night, maybe I can do some cuttings?
Fantastic video, so many little details I found so helpful. Liked and subscribed.
Thank you for this wonderful video extremely informative!!👩🌾
Excellent video, very instructive, I can't wait to get into the greenhouse!
Very informative easy to watch video
Well done
Love your videos! And decades of expertise... clearly you were in a greenhouse -somewhere in England I imagine ?which is a very high zone compared to us Canadians and our wicked winters.... by the time dahlias bloom at the end of summer here (zone 4) we would have to have a heated greenhouse to start the next generation from cuttings, yes? They take 3mos. And we run out of warmth and sunlight...could you tell us -by your estimation -how long it takes for a cutting to start developing tubers ? And are plants growing just w roots smaller ? Thank you! Your CDN fans...
Just subscribed after coming across the video how to take cuttings look forward to seeing more videos from you cheers
Enjoyed your Dalya video.
I like your easy go way. Thanks for sharing!!
Ive just started with dhalias and i was amazed watching others how much the tubers multiply but you can take cuttings too??! Well... I may run out of garden space in the next few year for all the dhalias I could have hahaha 😂
Thank you for making this video as I was told you couldn’t take cutting from these plants ....and buy them fresh each year as the ones in tubs they never grow , yet the ones planted in my garden come back every year ( 5 years now) and I never take them up each year and dry them out ...frightened to dig them up and dry them out at the end of the year, in case they don’t grow back next year as they are so beautiful
Excellent video! Very much enjoyed.
I love your Dahlia videos!
Hi, great video. Whats the depth of the medium the dahlia Tubers are initially planted in? Whats the height the tubers should be buried to for best cutting? Thanks
Like your video. Definitely worth trying.just want to ask when is the best time to propagate and many thanks.
A really good and informative video, thanks very much.
Thank u so much for your instructive videos. The love you put into your garden definitely comes back to you. I have a variety I have seen driving around town and would gladly pay the browser for some cuttings. I live in the fourth coast of British Columbia and would like to inquire from growers if I may have or purchase cuttings from their amazing plants. I would love to send you a photo of a gorgeous dahlia but do not know if I can over TH-cam but it is something I will investigate thank u for your information presented in very insightful way. Bravo.
Great video great information, will get a double Vitopod this month. Looks an interesting bit of kit.
Good morning to you,lve just started growing Dahlias for the first time and are doing very well indeed !!!!! Blackfly seem to love this beautiful plant,can you advise me on what to do,thank you very much.Joyce from South West Torbay 🌱🌱🌼🌱🌻🌱🌱🌞
I think that not only being space efficient the square pots do not encourage spiral roots as much as round pots. Take for excellent info in vid.
Very helpful video and very well presented but I am concerned peat was recommended not an environmentally responsible choice. I presume a Peat Free compost would do the same job.
just wondering what growing zone you are at? this way i will be able to judge when i should start growing on my own dahlia tubers to grow enough to take cuttings from. here i am a zone 4 it very wintery here at the moment. and last frost is sometime late may. thank you for sharing your video and sharing your knowledge.
Excellent video, very helpful. Thank you.
Thank you!!! So informative! Greetings from Greece!!!!
Love this video! I can't wait to try!
Great video, cheers.
ive just took cutting and added them to water its been weeks and they have not sent out any roots yet so going to try your way
Hi Barry, Many thanks for very informative video, once you have planted the cuttings and put the tray in propagator, how often you should water them, as they may take about three weeks to root. Thank you. Ajay
I check the cuttings every day, usually misting them daily and watering probably every other day but more frequently if required. Check by putting your finger in the rooting compost. HTH Barry
Love your video, I use a PAINT MARKER works super great no fading at all !
what a fantastic video! Thank you for making this. I'm in USA zone 7A and just planted outside all my bulbs that I started inside under grow lights. Can I take my cuttings now end of May and plant them in a medium and leave them outside since it will be so warm? i will of course monitor and water all of them. Does that idea sound feasible?? warmest regards.
Normally you would take cuttings prior to planting out the tubers - I start mine off in a glass house in January and the plant out the resulting plants in July when all chance of frosts has passed. If you take cuttings after planting them out, you will limit the number of flowers on each plant, also the resulting plants will not be suitable for planting outside (not big enough) until next year. HTH Barry
thanks for this video. learning a lot. love dahlias
are we trying to switch over to coconut coir instead of peat? thank you for sharing your knowledge
Beautiful Sir Ralph Ramsey at the start. Is it difficult to take cuttings and get them to that standard ?
Easy peasy ....... ask your brother, he grew that one and won with it ...;-)
And i understand from yr video if i top off a stem more growth and flowers will form. Thank you.
But, can i propogate the top cutting as I top the plant off?
defiantly going to try this, thanks!
Will these cuttings flower this year? Or will their tubers need to mature through the next season? Thank you for your videos, I have enjoyed them greatly!
Hi Renee, Yes you should be picking flowers by mid August. Regards, Barry
I really enjoy this video. The one with the pebbles under when you water the plants, how do you drain the excess water in the tray. Or do you leave it in there like self-watering?
Mostly I water the plants from below, so instead of watering from above, I put water in the tray and allow the plants to take up what they require - be careful though, don't over do it, a little and often is much better than a good soaking.
Awesome!! What kind of humidity dome with the lime green vent is?
Thank you for the wonderful and helpful video. I live here in Northwest - Seattle and known to get a lot of rain. I planted Dahlia's now for 2 years and my problem is the slugs. My neighbor doesn't have them but I do. I watched a lot of videos and never encounter that they have a problem with slugs. Please advice. Greatly appreciate it.
Cheers!
Dahlia ( yes my name is Dahlia too =)
Greetings... panhandle idaho here. Did you have success over wintering your dahlia cuttings?
really good video cant wait to have a go next year.cheers.
Close ups of the actual cut would be great!
When you come to planting out your plants from cuttings, how deep should you plant them?
Should you plant them as deep as you would tuber dahlias?
thanks for the video. Once you've finished taking the cuttings can you go ahead and plant the donor tuber or will root disturbance be a problem?
Hi, I don't usually keep the donor tubers as their ability to produce flowers is severely hampered by having donated so much of their growth. However, I do put them on the compost heep and they usually do produce a good show ... I've never really thought about root disturbance, so I think it will be quite an insignificant problem, given that the cuttings can be potted on several times.
How long do cuttings take to root? Will they form rhizomes and if so after how long?
Can you take cuttings once the plant is grown and flowering to root them, or is it too late then?
Thanks a lot for this video. I love gardening & I'll try it this summer. I didn't know they had seeds. I always buy tubers & they rot in the winter time & I buy them every year. I have a question regarding Dahlias. Can someone answer ? I always start them in containers and cover them with wire mash because the squirrels dig them out (in Chicago). Then, I transplant them on the ground. Any advise on keep the squirrels away. I don't want to hurt the. Thanks
No easy answers I'm afraid .... never had a problem with them digging up dahlia tubers, but boy-oh-boy do they like to ruin daffodil bulbs!!
You can harvest seeds but be aware that what you harvest will not necessarily be the same flower. This is thanks to bee cross-pollination.
I have never had a squirrel steal a tuber and I live in the city where there are many. They do love crocus and daf bulbs though!
Very good! I had this rooting powder for years. Now I know what the lid is for 🤣🤣🤣🤪
great ...thanks fo sharing your growing wisdom
Excellent instruction, Thanks
Hello, how do you do. Well, i learned a lot of your video and i am stunning how many cuttings we can accually get from ONE plant. I always thought, ok, i have one plant and while growing a will get some nice flowers from the one. know i realized how much money it will safe me, to do some cuttings ..:). Now her is my question, as you show how to take cuttings from young plants in the spring, can i also do the same with fully grown plants in autumn? or doesn´t it work like this? ....I dont hope you will laugh about my unprofessional question .....Thank you for all help and regards from Denmark
My apologies for taking so long to reply to your question, I don't check back regularly enough. Yes you can take cuttings in the autumn, the only problem is that you have to provide heat, light and moisture over the winter months in order for them to flourish. One problem I can foresee is that cuttings in the autumn will mostly have hollow stems that do not root very well ...... I intend to experiment this winter to test out the theory - I already have a large propagator for the heat, so need to buy some suitable lamps and a time clock. I think that so long as the plants have perhaps 16 hours of light, they should be OK. I guess I need to film the experiment too!
vc131a ... I appriciate your answer really much, as i can immagine your might be busy in your garden. well, i am looking forward to your "experiment video" and hopefully we can learn even more. I told some of my neighbours and all are really impressed how you did and we watched it all over again. I have not so much possibilitys with extra lamps and light during wintertime, so i have to wait until spring. Wish you best of luck, lots of health and HAPPY GARDENING ...
Using chicken compost will it burn the tube cutting? Or, worm castings maybe better. I have both
Great video, great advice, great teaching video.
This is a fantastic video, thank you for sharing. I have a number of questions plus wonder if I could get permission from you to show the video at our society meeting? Can I post the questions here or can I email you direct please?
Hello Simon, no problem - the video is in the public domain so please feel free to show it at your society meeting. If you post your questions here others may like to see them ..... just hope I know the answers! Barry
vc131a The questions are really simple.
a) I am interested in your labelling technique and wonder what size labels you use, are they 4inch, 5inch?
b) when the cutting has rooted what size pot are you potting into, they look like 7cm pots?
c) you mentioned in the video that when you put the pots on gravel you get gravel stuck to the roots and that you are going to use fabric - would this be capilliary matting?
d) do you provide any lighting to assist with the rooting?
Finally, would really love to see more videos, especially the plants in the polytunnel and also the planting out and of course everything in flower. As a novice grower I think it is great to see these videos and whilst there are a few videos on here from growers that show they tend to try and shoot the video themselves and then you dont actually see them doing things. You at least have used either a cameraman or at least a tripod so you were able to show how things were done.
Really appreciate the time and effort you have put in to share this. Thank you once again.
Simon Nute Hi Simon, OK, so in the same order that you asked them ... The labels I use are 6", so I can write large enough to read without my glasses - try fitting 'Weston Spanish Dancer' on a small label! Yes, the small square pots are 7mm. Yes again, the fabric I mentioned is capillary matting - waiting to empty the greenhouse so I can complete the transition. Not yet felt the need for lighting, everything seems to chug along quite well without, especially since I'm in no hurry.
Have already started work on the next video - some other local growers have agreed to me snooping around on their plots to film how they do things and yes, I will include a bit of the poly tunnel too. I'm hoping to get mine planted out this coming weekend (1st June) if it ever stops raining ....
I usually use a tripod - I think it makes a big difference to the finished film. Regards, Barry
vc131a Thank you for your time in answering those questions and I really look forward to seeing more videos. I am starting my planting out at the weekend.
Kind regards.
Simon.
Very good stuff Barry do you have dahlia stock normal available please ?
Hi Craig, Only grow Dahlias as a hobby, no time for producing in saleable quantities unfortunately. Regards, Barry
It’s March 2021 and I’ve just planted the dahlia tubers I bought in pots so I’m hoping they get off to an early start. However, I don’t have a greenhouse so is it possible just to keep them in the house near big windows?
Yup that's where mine are and after 2 weeks they are shooting up nicely. I'll take some cuttings next week
You didn't mention how long it takes from starting the cutting to producing flowers.....after the cuttings go into the garden at the 4 month mark does that plant actually produce flowers without a tuber in the first year ? And how do the tubers get produced from the first year's plant?... thanks very much for the informative video, would really love to find information on how the roots turn into tubers and is it possible to turn a tuber w/o eyes/nodes into one that produces flowers? A fan in zone 4a-b canada
I have some plants that were rooted as cuttings in April and they have a single coloured flower bud now, on the 13th June - so I guess as little as 10 or 12 weeks. Normally to produce several flowers from a single plant for a show, you would grow it as a single stemmed plant and then pinch out the tip 10 weeks before you want the flowers.
Yes a plant grown from a cutting will produce flowers and tubers in the first year. I don't bother replanting any tubers kept from the previous year, just the rooted cuttings - the tubers go on the compost heap.
No, the tuber must have a piece of stem attached that has eyes/nodes in order to produce shoots and hence flowers - 'blind' tubers are no use, so make sure when you dig them up in the autumn that you leave a couple of inches of stem attached.
Just think of tubers as thickened roots, they are produced naturally by the plant presumably as a form of food/water storage..... Barry
Thank you SO much for such great information! I managed to successfully take a cutting by watching your instructions and now I have a tiny tuber! Really appreciate you answering my questions, I’ve learned a lot from you! Cheers from Toronto.
Your video was by far the most informative of so many I have watched to learn how to double my Dalia tuber collection and I now have taught others what I’ve learned from your excellent videos! Thank you
Hi :-)
First of all: THANK YOU FOR THIS VIDEO! This is the best description I have seen yet - thank you for that!
I too, am in Denmark, and have just returned inside from my new garden project: "Making pot tubers from my favourite dahlias to use for cuttings and propagation in the spring". So here goes nothing....
You say that cuttings with hollow stems only MAY work... I have just taken a lot of cuttings of my dahlias and I found that if I kept to new side shoots I avoided any of these hollow stems.
Now - I have a question for you... And I hope you can help me... What do you do with the tuber from which you take cuttings in the spring? Do you plant it, or is it too weak from all the cuttings?
Thank you again for your video, and now also for your time!
Best from Ida
Hello Ida, Thank you for your comments. In answer to your question, I don't know! I take cuttings from the tuber and then throw it away (actually I put it on the compost heap) because I think it has probably produced all of the possible shoots, so cannot produce more .... but I might be wrong. Several of the tubers I threw onto the compost heap this year produced some wonderful blooms, so either I threw them out too soon, or as you suggest, it might be worth planting the tuber after you have taken the cuttings. I suspect that you might be correct and that any growth will be quite weak, but worth looking at next year .. Regards, Barry
vc131a
Thank you for you reply Barry!
I have tried to start rooting some of my favourite dahlias now - some seem to like to live, and some of them turn yellow and/or limb.... I will just have to wait and see I suppose.
I truly hope something will work, especially because a storm just flattened one of my dahlia patches in the garden.
But can I please ask you another question?
What excactly IS a pot tuber? Is it just a small tuber, planted in a pot instead of in the garden? and do you keep the growth of any shoots down? I am quite confused - some people say that they always keep 3 of each dahlia type as pot tubers at all times. Is the pot tuber then always in an active state? kept in soil over the winter?
Sorry... as I said - I am confused - but also very eager to learn more.
Thank you again
Best from Ida
Ida Viemose
Hello Ida, A lot of growers like to keep a stock of different varieties for the future, they don't actually want them for their flowers this year, but in case they want them in future years they create a 'pot tuber'. Some other growers keep several pot tubers in case they lose some of their main plants to disease etc.. to ensure that they have plants for future years. Pot tubers are also a good compact way of giving away plants to other growers, since they will shoot quite normally next spring. Our club has a tuber sale in January at which normal tubers and pot tubers are sold to members at an auction, so that they can acquire different varieties and to boost club funds.
A pot tuber is created by planting a cutting in a plant pot and allowing it to grow. Instead of planting the dahlia out in open ground, it is kept in the pot for the whole summer. The plant will produce poorer top growth and flowers than one planted in open ground, but over the summer season the dahlia will produce a small compact tuber in the pot and the top growth will die down quite normally in the autumn.
As the plants die back in the autumn, the top growth is cut down in the normal way. Some growers just leave the tubers in the plant pots and let them dry out, while other growers will take the tubers out of the plant pots and wash and clean them before storing them away in a frost free environment.
When awoken in the spring, a tuber that has been grown in a plant pot will still produce good top growth from which cuttings may be taken and it will not take up so much room in the greenhouse.
I hope those quick notes are helpful, I'll hopefully show more in a future video... when I get the time! Regards, Barry
vc131a
Hi again Barry,
Thank you very much for your answer - it really helped. I am going to use your advise in my dahlia garden - and cross my fingers that I have the competencies to do it right :-)
I look forwards to any dahlia video you may make - I have studied the cutting video quite carefully :-)
Best from Ida
would love some info on the large propigator
Hi again,
Now I have thrown myself into taking cuttings. I am not an expert I must say - quite a few of them die after only a week. But some of them have rooted and now I have just potted the first two on into a common flower compost. I just have a question: do they still have to have bottom heat when they have made roots and are potted on?
Also - I just viewed your post script to the autumn cuttings. I tried that last year too (you may recall) - but they did NOT succeed. Then again - they were put into common compost - not seed compost... and they did not receive bottom heat. I am so very impressed with your results - actual tubers after only 4 months! That is amazing.
Thank you
And I hope that you are well and that your dahlias are too....
Best from Ida in Denmark
Hello ida, No, by the time they have rooted they should be OK without any bottom heat. If you are losing cuttings after only a week are you keeping them moist enough? Spray then once or even twice a day and make sure they are kept quit moist by watering them probably once every two days. it could be that you are assuming that cuttings have died after a week where they have perhaps only flagged - mine look pretty sick for perhaps 10 days, so don't be too quick to give up on them. Barry
vc131a I agree Barry. As I said in an earlier post, and like you, my cuttings naturally flag for a about a week to 10 days like yours, but they pick up eventually with patience. And I have only had 2 cuttings that haven't rooted out of 172 taken. Your advice is correct, keep them sprayed with some bottom heat and they will generally root fine. I'm already at the stage where my first cuttings are outside in my coldframe for a week and are pretty much garden ready now, as many are already in 5in pots and are 12in+ tall . But I just want them to harden up in the cold frame for a week, before they go into the garden in a few days.
JAG sixtyfive
Hmm... Mine seem fine until after approx 10 days. I think I have taken around 110 cuttings... 25 are now potted on and seem to be thriving, 30ish are still too "young" for me to know their fate and the rest have rotted...
Looking at your compost mixture, Barry, I can now see that mine is visually "lighter" in color.. Maybe I have too little peat and too much vermiculite and sand... Hmm...
My bottom heat is made from some reptile/propagation heating mats I bought on ebay, and a thermostat (also from ebay). Above them I have put a grow light that looks very much like yours Barry.
Maaaabe they also need more true sun? I have mine in my living room, because my greenhouse is full of holes and therefore not very warm....
Do you have anymore insight?
And then just another question.... My intuition tells me that bottom heat will also help a full tuber to root and send up shoots faster than if it is left alone... Do you agree? Or may I be killing my favourites as we speak?
Thank you!
Hello Ida,
Sorry to hear that you are having difficulties. I lost a lot of tubers over the winter for some reason, despite having dried and stored them properly. Even some that I bought at an auction in January failed to root, so I guess it was not only me....
My rooting mixture is 33% vermiculite, 33% sharp sand and 33% fine seed compost, so nothing special.
The cuttiings certainly need good light while they are growing, otherwise they become tall and spindley. I do know someone who grows all of his cuttings in a cellar with only grow lights, because he does not have room anywhere else.
Yes, I too put the tubers on heated trays while they are shooting, it does help them to send up shoots quicker. I have now finished taking cuttings and the tubers are in my polytunnel where it is cool. They are still growing well so maybe I shall plant some of them and allow them to flower this year instead of putting them on the compost heap. Barry
Ida Viemose I'm really sorry that my reply was so late to be of use to you. Did you manage to sort out your problems? I took around 200 or so cuttings, and I think that I only had around 3 or 4 losses. So I was wondering if things sorted themselves out with you, and what you thought you may have done differently next year?
Loved the advice. Just a pity you are not doing your bit for the environment by using peat and not using recycled compost.
You do realise this was uploaded 7 years ago
I suppose this was filmed 7 years ago. Attitudes and availability has changed since then, so maybe @vc131a is doing things differently now?!
Enjoyed your video. Where can I purchase a propagation chamber like yours please?
Try this link - www.greenhousesensation.co.uk/vitopod-heated-propagators.html - not cheap but very, very good. HTH Barry
vc131a thank you very much
Hi Sir!
It’s August now,in Netherlands,can I take Dhalia cutting for new plants 🌱?
Kind regards!
Thanks!! Will a tuber eventually form???
hi would there be any chance of making a video this year to see what your plot looks like in full flower it would have nice to see all the plots in flower that you had videoed lovely videos keep up the good work cheers michael
Hi Michael, Yes but probably not this year - work keeps getting in the way of everything else!
I've always gardened high in the Rocky Mountains, we're talking Jasper Alberta, a charitable Zone 3 or more realistic Zone 2a. So of course my Dahlias were lifted. I moved to Vancouver Island, Zone 7, and left my Dahlias in for several winters. Last winter all of my shoulder high, full, beauties that were given to me, rotted. So, the ones that wintered well are under the eaves. The others, out in the open. Could this be root rot due to the amount of rain we get? By the way, thank you for your prompt response to my former question.
Was in your area last September BC, Alberta, Washington State & Oregon - Beautiful ! In past years I have been lucky having left tubers in the ground over the winter. Now that the winters have become less predictable (12-13 was very cold and 13-14 was very wet here in the UK) I've made sure that all tubers are lifted, washed, dried and stored safely away from frost - a pain of a job. I have lost some stored tubers to rot despite careful storage, so you don't always win. It certainly knows how to rain in Vancouver, so I suspect you might be correct in your diagnosis. I lost some treasured hardy Poppies last winter to what I assumed to be a 'wet' problem. On the bright side, you now have the chance to get some more new Dahlia varieties ;-)) Barry
Oh and could you tell me the best time to take cuttings thank you once again Joyce happy gardening 🌞🌞🌞🌞🌞🌞
I generally start planting tubers ready for cuttings on February 14th - an easy date to remeber!