Mutant Dahlias?

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Bob there must be something in the soil if both plants were sited in the same spot.Hel.xxx.

 

Hi Bob. I've never seen that before, very strange. If it happened just the once, then you'd say it was just 'one of those things'. Hard to imagine that there's something in the soil causing it, but it seems more than a coincidence. Hmm....
Cheers...freddy.

 

Mutant plants do occur Bob. When several stems are fused together its given the name of 'fasciation', which probably covers the odd buds as well. see http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles0700/fasciation.asp

At one time I had a Fuschia with one part - half petal, red with a smooth edge, and half leaf, green with a serated edge.

 

Here is a picture I took last year of a fasciated Verbascum. There is a massive broad stem with the flowers growing directly out of it. At the sides you can see the normal plant.



I tried to show this picture with my earlier post but Photobucket wouldn't show the tags. It still is not doing so, but you can get them on a different page if you 'edit' and then 'cancel' the picture. Has anyone else had that problem?

 

I seem to remember getting a few of those back to back buds when I used to grow dahlias Bob.

Your doing very well to get them flowering this early, it used to be late July before I got much in the way of flowers.