My Favorite Autumn Dahlias
I always begin an autumn bouquet with the same few dahlias- never fails. Here are my top 4 autumn favorites:
Miss Amara- Why is she my go to? Because this dahlia goes with everything! Even in her different colorings, she still works with everything. And she blends all the other colors together. Therefore making a seamless color palette for your bouquet. If you struggle to put together color palettes, get Miss Amara- she’ll make everything right!
Valley Rust Bucket- Every time I see this dahlia, I think of mini pumpkins. She’s definitely the accent bloom in a fall bouquet- the one that should sit a bit higher than everyone else so you don’t lose her to some showoff fluffy dinnerplate. She’s small but mighty and too good to not have in your collection!
Small Burgundy- One of these days I’m going to figure out the exact name of this variety. I think most of them are black satin at this point. There were a few others mixed in but I think they have phased out over time. Burgundy is a hard color to find in florals but I feel that burgundy dahlias are one of the truest burgundy flowers out there! Burgundy screams fall and add a bit of drama to any bouquet.
Sylvia- It’s fall, you gotta have some orange. I like Sylvia because she’s orange but not such an in your face color as other oranges- very pleasant. I don’t want orange screaming in my face. It needs to just subtly be there. Sylvia is very heat tolerant too!
Grab a few new additions to your Fall bouquets- these 4 go with just about anything else you have in your garden in Fall!
Orange Globe: Why do they call this orange?
Why do they call this orange? That’s always the first question when people see an Orange Globe dahlia. It’s definitely not what you would think of as orange.
It’s like calling purple flowers blue! Anyways…..
No matter what you call it, Orange Globe is beautiful! I love it because it’s a nice big dahlia- really has some presence to it! The color is perfect for fall- goes with so many other varieties and pretty much anything you would have blooming in your garden August through October! It’s heat tolerant, easy to grow and a must have!
All in the Family Dahlias
I like to call this group- The Sibling Dahlias. Sometimes I even plant them all together just so I can tell people about them when they come to visit the farm. Cornel is the original, bred a long time ago by Cor Geerlings (Geerlings Dahlia) in the Netherlands. The variety often sports so several other dahlias have come from this line. I grow these three on a consistent basis, although I have tried the others.
Cornel is the perfect red, deep and crimson. I don’t grow a lot of red dahlias but I’ll always grow this one.
Cornel Bronze- sometimes it amazes me how popular this dahlia still is after how long it’s been around. But then it blooms and I remember just how great it is- perfect for just about any situation. The best autumnal tone!
Caitlyn’s Joy- This one is a color changer- darker pinky/purple in heat and fades to more of a muted mauve tone when it cools. Perfect for blending colors together.
My Florists’ Favorite Dahlias
Most of my dahlias are sold to florists so I can always tell what’s popular by how quickly a variety sells out. And finally after 13+ years of growing— it was a yellow this year!! I love yellow flowers and have been hoping for yellow to finally have it’s day.
20th Ave Gwen- She stole the show this year! We grew a lot but still ran out most weeks. She can change color some depending on temperature but is always primarily a yellow.
20th Ave Memory- it took a long time but I finally found the perfect blush. Where was this when blush and white weddings were all the rage? Pinker in high heat and blushy in cooler weather.
Cafe Au Lait- You didn’t think I was going to skip this one did you? It’s the one dahlia that every florist knows by name. And it actually does quite well in a hot climate. Most of the time, it’s creamy and blushy but you do get the occasionally brighter pink bloom- this is normal for cafe.
Ryecroft Jan- This is my go to when I get a request for a modern white ball dahlia. Very strong stems and holds it’s center well even in high heat- definitely a must have for florist sales.
My Top 5 Heat Tolerant Dahlias
What is heat tolerance in a dahlia? Well in my world, this is what I judge by: holds it’s center closed in high temps/stress, strong stems, gives a minimum of 5 blooms per plant per season, plant is unbothered by drought, too much heat or water.
These are my top 5 that I rely on constantly year after year.
Peaches N Cream- You knew I was going to say this didn’t you? But in all seriousness- it just keeps blooming. Strong plant that puts up with whatever our crazy climate throws at it!
Blizzard- Every dahlia garden needs a good white. And well— these babies made it through a hurricane, enough said I think.
Wine Eyed Jill- if you can embrace her ever changing color (I love it!), this one is a sure thing. And if you live somewhere that dahlias bloom in the cool months of the year- that’s when she has the best color. It’ll blow your mind!
Linda’s Baby- the perfect shade of coral. Blooms early and often, usually still going when we frost!
Sweet Fabienne- it’s hard to get pinks right when it comes to dahlias. They often have a lilac cast to them. This one is a pretty true pink in real life. She’s of course hard to photograph - the first picture is the most accurate color wise.
