Dahalia / Gladioli / Begonia Tubers / Bulbs?

Hi all. 1st post here. I would class myself as an enthusiastic amatuer so all advice welcome.

YEsterday I lifted my Dahalia, Begonias & Gladioli (1st time growing of each) Dahalia (Arabian Night) & Begonia were very sucessful, the Gladioli less so.

Question is, having lifted the tubers/bulbs they look somewhat different to when I put them in last year

Do I just dry them off and put back next year ?



2 tubers have dropped off (You can see them on the right) but have some fiberous top soI assume these should sprouta new plant next year ?

Similar with the Gladioli, they appear to have grown bulblets (???) even though they hardly flowered at all.



As has the Begonias



So, pray tell, what do I do with these ?



Thanks in advance,

 

Keep them dry and store upside down, then start them off next spring, I leave my dalias in all year round though, and they just get bigger and better.

 

You don't need to lift gladioli either

 

Not got my geography worked out yet, so not sure where Stourbridge is Fastboy.
The hardyness of these sort of plants tend to depend on how hard the winter is, and where they are planted.
The dhalias need to dry off for a bit and then they can be stored frost free and cool in moist peat, not wet.
The gladi and begonia both need drying right off and storing frost free with some air flow, I hang my begonia tubers in an onion bag under the staging in the greenhouse.

Dhalia tubers that drop off rarely grow new plants the following year, they lack the base of the stem that is required for new shoots next year.

 

I have just lifted my Dahlias too. Arabian night is lovely and has increased enormously. I know people do leave them in, but I would prefer to lift them as it is safer.

Pete and Tropical Oasis are right, dry them upside down to prevent water running down the hollow stems and rotting the crown (the woody bit). Or you could push a sharp skewer down the hollow stem and make a hole in the bottom. Just another way of drying out the bottom bit to prevent rot.

One advantage of lifting them is that you can divide them, and remove any diseased damaged or rotten tubers. Most of mine have been split into two or three and some into 5 pieces. Some actually fell apart when I lifted them. But with most I cut through the crown with an old bread knife, making sure that each piece had several stems and quite a few tubers attached. If single tubers fall off, its always worth keeping them and trying to grow from them. But as Pete says even though they will grow roots, most of them will do nothing unless they they have a bit of the crown.

You need to store them frost free, but don't let them totally dry up. I keep mine in old spent compost, which is just fractionally damp.

I spoke to the Dahlia Society at the last local flower show, and they said that in the spring lay them out on compost with the tubers just half buried and the crown uppermost. When the new shoots are a couple of inches high, you can then pot them up or plant them if it is warm enough. At this point you can bury them as deep as you like.

 

To follow on from that Peter, I used to take cuttings, at the stage when the shoots were a couple of inches high, its a good way of increasing the ones that you like.

 

Thanks all,

The 2 that have come away both have some crown so I will try them next year. I have ordered some more Arabian Night so I might try and chop this one into 2 and see what happens.

 

Yes Pete, I do remember the chaps from the National Dahlia Soc saying that you can split them up, and then they all said that their prefered method was to take cuttings. I presume you can get a lot more that way.

I distinctly remember them saying about only half burying the tubers in spring. I am sure it must be that the sun on the tuber helps to promote the initial growth. But I can't find it on their site. http://www.dahlia-nds.co.uk/web2d.htm#_Toc89429667

I am sure Fastboy that you will soon have more than you can use. Best of luck.

 

Peter, I only have the one, Bishop of somewhere in Wales, these days (Sorry david) cant spell llllandafff.
But I did grow quite a few at one time, I even grew them from seed most years and keeping the best tubers overwinter.
In spring I put the tubers in seedtrays and just covered them with compost, they shoot quite fast given bottom heat. The crowns are left exposed.
The shoots that appear can be removed with a sharp knife as close to the tuber as possible.
Hollow ones dont root and these are usually the strongest growers, so these are left, to grow on, when the tuber is planted out after the last frost.

 

That`s Llandaff, Pete.

 

I knew it had a lot of Ls and Fs. :D

 

Pete - how long does it take to go from seed to a plant that flowers?

 

This is facinating stuff guys!
My dahlia is at my mums at the moment while i desimate our gardens into revival, so shes handled the tubers this year, but i did wander how it was done myself!

 

They flower the same year Peter.
Depending on type, the smaller ones flower a bit earlier but even the large 6ft tall cactus ones give a good show from August onwards as I remember.
At the time the shorter Colarette types were all the rage.
Early sowing is a big advantage, but with your light box set up, it would be a doddle.

 

I had a feeling that they did Pete, but it is extraordinary really when you think that some bulbs take two, three or more years to flower fron seed - but Dahlias can flower and produce big tubers all within a year.