Dahlias From Seed - Dont Come True - What Does This Mean?

I have fallen in love with Dahlias this year and have slowly been building my stock to maybe divide the tubers after the first frost or take cuttings in the spring next year.

But for a few my plants I was thinking of letting them go to seed and after a lot of reading / research, I know that Dahlias dont come true from seed but I am not sure what this fully means?

Does it mean that the seed could produce any type / size / colour of Dahlia if grown from seed or does it mean that the seed will produce a plant about the same size as the mother plant, the flowers will also be about the same size, but the colour of the flowers is anyone business?

Would really like some help in this please as I want to learn which way to go in building my stock for next year.

Thanks

 

Hi intel,

It means that there is a possibility that they will not be an exact clone of the parent plant.

Rusty

 

Seed is very hit and miss. Enthusiasts plant out 100 and maybe keep one at the end of the season ... so probably not the best way to bulk-up as you will be dissappointed with the majority of the offspring.

If you lift the tubers after the first really good frost blackens all the foliage (lets hope they are nice and big, and juicy, after a seasons growing) and store them frost-free, then in the early Spring you pot them up, give them a bit of heat and light, and they will start to sprout.

When they have about 3 or 4 pairs of leaves take a cutting above the bottom leaf pair (some people say to take it right from the base, but I think leaving a leaf pair means that the buds at that junction then make two stems ), trim the cutting with a sharp knife just below lowest leaf joint, remove bottom leaf pair, and pot in 50:50 multi purpose compost and perlite. Put a plastic bag over the top and put on an East or West facing windowsill - not too much direct sun. You should get anywhere between 3 and 10 cuttings per decent sized tuber, and with luck most will root.

You might be able to buy "rooted cuttings" in the Spring - i.e. a lot cheaper than buying plants. Or you could risk it and buy tubers in the garden centre when they sell off the stock at 50% off - you need to be there soon after the sale starts though, they are starting to dry out by then, and try to choose ones that are reasonable plump. You might not get much in the way of cuttings off them in that first year - I normally get only 1 or 2 from brand new (i.e. small) tubers

 

I have seen a few videos on youtube from thedahliaguy and DaveGillamDahlias
and the thedahliaguy was saying that after the first frost, he lifts them, drys them out for a week or so and then divides them before storing for the winter.

Whilst DaveGillamDahlias drys and stores them and then takes cuttings in the spring but there was no mention of dividing the tubers in his videos, I guess these are just different ways of making extra stock...............if you don't divide the tuber does
that mean you will get a larger plant and because of the many eyes on the tubers
there will be lots new growth?

 

Hi Intel

I wait until late spring when the new shoots are growing and split it then or take cuttings if you have a favourite one and you want lots of plants of that colour, each tuber with a new shoot on and dust the cut with "flowers of Sulphur" to stop rotting.

I normally wait till 1st frost if not 1st week of November before I lift and store for the winter, cut all the top growth of leaving about 4 inches of stem dig them all up and label as you go what height colour etc then dry them out in the greenhouse upside down then after two weeks they are stored in my frost free garage.

Just check them now and again any rotten bits just cut off , in last week of March put them in to trays containing damp compost and just cover slightly with the compost give them a good water , keep a eye for slugs. place in the greenhouse

I either take cuttings or plant out when the last frost are over.

Spruce

 

Dividing the tubers will probably only give you 2-for-1, whereas cuttings will give you 5 or 10-to-1. I think you will get stronger plants too, but obviously there comes a point where the tuber if bigger and it is worth splitting.

Note that they are not like potatoes - a single tuber on its own will not grow, it has to be attached to some stem that has an eye.

 

That's a good point and from all the replays above I wont be dividing mine (or at
least wont be until they are lot bigger).

I think that "thedahliaguy" on youtube enjoys dividing his, as he is selling
them and he needs as much stock as possible.

 

depends which one you have ordered , they will be fine and a easy way to grow lots of them then choose the ones you like and propegate what you like

Spruce

 

I don't think it matters, these will keep flowering till the first frost, around our way in Kent that's normally about the last week of October / early November....just keep dead-heading them to stop them going to seed and their be fine.

I normally cut the flower and the stem back to where it joins the main stalk, and your find that new buds will appear, obviously don't cut stems that have buds on them.

 

I have grown Bishop's Children from seed. They grow fine - but they vary. About half were dark leaved, which is perhaps the main attraction. And the flower colours varied too. I think the secret is to select one that is really nice - I certainly had one really nice one out of about 10 that grew to flowering size - and then clone it as described above.

The general genetic principle is that species, ie a group of plants that grow in the wild, will have done so for thousands of years and have become a very pure strain. They will generally come true from seed. ie the offspring will be identical to the parents both in appearance and also in their DNA.

But cultivars, which are produced by selection and cross breeding by man, are not pure bred and usually don't come true. They usually won't look identical to their parents, but even if the do look identical their DNA will be different, which means that their children are likely to be different.

Species will come true from seed. But you generally never see species Dahlias - all the Dahlias that you see on sale are the results of cross breeding, and they will never come true though many may look similar to their parents, just as human children are similar but never identical to their parents..

 

I have had quite good results with Bishop's Children as well - easy to germinate but manna for slugs!

 

I know I mention this every so often but I know the granddaughter of thenguy that bred Bishop of Llandaff

Yes mix of colours with these from seeds

Spruce