Don’t Rush It, You’ve Got Plenty of Time

I’m writing this post as much for me as for you, my dahlia lovers. Don’t rush it. I’ve heard too many tales of woe recently. Tales of underestimating the weather, rushing seedlings out without fully acclimating them and foregoing growing a strong root system, and forgetting to water.

Life is extra chaotic right now, the weather has been VERY extra this year so it’s definitely a time to slow down and be patient.

I’m very guilty of pushing, pushing, pushing this time of year. Once Mother’s Day passes- it’s go time on the farm. A lot of the spring crops are finished and that means we can start ripping and planting dahlias. But this year has been different. We had a delayed start to our Spring crops so some are still going-which means I have to wait. But as I take a moment to calm my impatient brain, I’m seeing the advantage. Waiting means time to grow larger root systems on my cuttings. I don’t feel like the whole field needs to be flipped at once. We can rip crops out as they finish and replant. This gives us time to do it right and pay attention to the plants as they are settling in to their new home.

Now, you may be thinking: “What does that mean on a practical level?”

For us, it means potting up some of our dahlia cuttings to a larger size since they are going to have to wait to be planted. Making sure all our tubers are eyed up with sprouts. Getting all our irrigation and support systems prepped ahead of time.

We are also preparing beds for high heat planting. We’ve had very little rain this Spring so dry and hot has been the name of the game. High heat planting is a little different. For example, when we plant tubers in high heat - over 85 degrees with no rain in sight- we soak the bed down after planting. This goes against the conventional recommendations for planting dahlias but we find that water helps cool the soil. We aren’t watering the bed everyday but maybe twice a week if we have no rain and our temps are getting over 90. This keeps our tubers from cooking in the dirt.

We are also hand watering our rooted cuttings after planting and every day for 2 weeks after. This ensures they get a good start. Yes, we have irrigation on the beds but their roots don’t reach out to where the water is until they’ve settled in so hand watering ensures the cuttings begin pushing roots into the surrounding soil.

I’ve been sitting on the sidelines during this planting season but it’s given me a new perspective. Not being able to move compost or bend down and plant (due to my sprained knee and ankle) has allowed me to see the bigger picture. It’s given me time to think through our processes. Usually I would just get out there and drive it hard to get everything in the ground. But what I’m seeing is that taking the time to slow down and evaluate is giving me much higher success rates— Who knew, right?
But I know there are some of you like me, who just bulldoze our way through life sometimes. So take a beat, step back, evaluate what’s really working. I promise it’s worth it and this fall the rewards will come back over and over and over again!