Coming to terms with loss....

The idea of loss in growing is something I’ve wanted to discuss for a long time now- but it’s not the most alluring topic. However, accepting that we will lose plants when growing is important.

I think most of us would agree that it’s generally been a harder than average year for growing dahlias. In fact, if this is your first year— hang in there, It’s not always this way! If you are still interested in growing dahlias after this rough year, then I’d say that I think you have what it takes to be a great dahlia grower. I feel like this year is an ideal time to talk about loss.

So let’s define what I mean when I say “loss”. I’m referring to plants dying due to rot, disease, pest pressure, lack of attention, adverse weather conditions, or just failure to thrive. Commercial growers are familiar with this idea. We figure it into our crop projections. We know that we will lose a certain percentage of our crop because there are so many factors out of our control.

I assume that I’m going to lose 20% of my dahlia crop in my financial crop projections. I do include not being able to sell a % of the crop due to things like over production at certain times (when the dahlias are in flush but your demand doesn’t quite meet the supply) or blooms coming on at the wrong time in your sales cycle.

But most of the loss comes from things like tuber rot, possible disease (we cull at the better safe than sorry stage), or pest damage.

Loss is normal. Say it again- Loss. is. normal. Now I know it’s harder to accept when you aren’t growing 1000’s. I’ll admit that I don’t sweat it anymore (well not that much). When you grow 1000’s, losing a few hundred is normal. But when you buy 5 for your garden, it hurts losing even one. But it’s still normal.

We aren’t perfect beings and neither are our plants— They are grown by us, ya know! We as humans make mistakes. As dahlias get more and more popular, unfortunately the rate of mistakes will arise. And by mistakes I mean mislabeled tubers, possible virus in the tubers or rooted cuttings. It’s going to happen.

So what can you do about it? I’ve given it a lot of thought this summer. First off, I’ve decided to adopt an attitude of grace. It’s important to remember that we are human. We are not perfect. We make mistakes — Just like that dahlia grower who sold you the wrong tuber. Tuber sellers aren’t out to send you the wrong thing- but remember they pretty much all look alike once frost comes! It’s hard to keep track of several hundred varieties.

Every year, I trial around 100 varieties. (Yes, I’m as addicted as you are!) This means that I order from a lot of different sources, I try out new ones all the time. So I know this increases my chances of getting a mislabel, poor quality, etc.

So the second thing I’ve done is to increase my level of education. This is where it’s important to learn the symptoms of possible virus in a tuber. It’s important to evaluate and inspect each tuber that arrives. And to inspect them in a timely manner— don’t let that box sit in the corner for weeks. Being a highly educated consumer allows you to catch mistakes earlier and to protect your field from becoming virus infested.

Third, keep up with how tubers from certain sellers perform. It can be hard to figure out reputable dealers at first- this takes time. But one thing you can do is make friends with other dahlia growers— We love to talk dahlias and most are willing to share who offers great quality.

Fourth- It comes back to grace here— except that even the most reputable dealer out there is going to screw up at some point. Give them a chance to make it right before you go blabbing it to the world- just a common courtesy.

Fifth— Grace again here- but this time give it to yourself and accept that somethings are out of your control. You can have the healthiest tuber out there and then the weather comes along and hands you conditions that no tuber should have to grow in. (This has been the case a lot this season!) It sucks to lose an expensive variety but it happens and it will happen again in the future. Loss is normal. But so is success- Remember you may have lost 1 out of that 10 but 9 are still blooming their heads off!!

Remember it’s more about learning a new skill- how to grow an amazing dahlia. Learning this skill requires that you accept the idea of loss. Once you’ve accepted it as normal, it becomes less of an ordeal and you can focus on the gorgeous beauty of a garden full of dahlias!