One unintended benefit of writing a newsletter that goes out across the country is that I can tell by the number and the content of the emails I get what kind of year it’s been for growing dahlias.

And this year- it’s been rough! I don’t always follow the weather across the country but I do know that the extreme heat/drought in July that a large majority of us experienced was brutal and caused a lot of loss.

At the end of July I walked around my field with a clipboard. I took notes on every variety- I figured it would be a good time to see who’s really heat tolerant. But what I kept seeing over and over again- was the phrase: “xyz caused by extreme heat”- insert spider mites, powdery mildew, etc- whatever was the case for you.

At first I was really bummed and very frustrated. I knew my dahlias were almost a month behind where they should have been. But then I realized something….

We had been consistent. We fertilized when we should have, we controlled pests when they attacked, we removed old leaves to allow air flow, we netted on time. To be honest, we got it really right this year.

But the weather had other plans- And nothing we could have done would have changed that. We did everything we could have and should have but at the end of the day- the weather is out of our control.

So I took a few days and accepted it. I adjusted my mindset and realized that we are going to have a killer season once we get to mid- September. The dahlias are just going to be a little later this year. But on the plus side- October weddings are going to be gorgeous!!

What if you are new to growing and didn’t know to fertilize, control pests, etc? Well- it’s not too late. Fertlize them soon. Look around on this blog- there’s lots of info about bug control, fertilization and general dahlia growing knowledge. It will still make a difference for this season.

So if you are frustrated - hang in there. It’s going to get better. The weather is already getting better. Fertilize, water, control your pests and be patient a little longer. The blooms are coming!!

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**You may have noticed I said “we” a lot in this post. I couldn’t have done it this year without my incredible team. There is absolutely no way the dahlias would still be alive without them. They are amazing- Sophie, Nonah, and Josie- You ladies are the best!!