Late Summer Dahlias

Sharing some Dahlias

Hope everyone is enjoying the transition from Summer to Autumn.  I am a Summer girl, and I really hate to see the days growing shorter, but I DO love the seasonal changes, too! 

This is the prime time for my Dahlias.  Every year, I plant the tubers in May, usually on Mother's Day.  And I patiently wait for mid-to-late August for the flowers to begin blooming.

These are not planted to be "landscape" plants, admired for the beauty they'd give to the overall look of the garden, but instead, I have a designated "cutting garden".  Unfortunately, until the flowers appear, it looks like a dirt garden.  But, it receives the prime amount of sunlight, and since we're not too close to the road, not really noticeable to the general public.

So, here's the show:

"Wannabee"

And the Bees really love them!

Touche'

These next two shots are the dahlia "Jaden Charles", and it is quite stunning as it's petals unfurl. . .Most of these shots were taken with my phone, so not necessarily the best quality. . .

Jaden Charles fully opened

The lovely thing about dahlias is that the tubers multiply, so when they're dug up and stored for next year's planting, you can end up with multiple plants!  However, I am not the best at labeling, thinking I'll "remember" what they are next year. . .uh, yeah. . .

Hence, there are a few that I'm not able to properly identify.  They're just "pretty flowers"!

The blooms on the one above and the one below are HUGE!!! About 8 - 10" across, and ONE blossom in a vase is good for a bouquet. 

Citron de Cap

Peaches and Cream

I love every color these amazing flowers come in.  And every size and type as well.

Bashful

Chloe Janae

Imperial Wine

Jason Matthews

Rebecca Lynn

This last flower is one of the newest planted this year, and is named "X-Factor".  Appropriate name, because it is GORGEOUS!

X-Factor

This was the first blossom on the plant, and got a little damaged in one of the storms we had, but the plant is now covered in buds, so I'm hoping to have a nice bouquet of these in the next week.

The plants I have right now should still produce flowers right through October.  Since we're so close to the lake, we generally don't get frost as early as if we were further inland.  At least, we're USUALLY safe. . .The rule of thumb is to dig and store the tubers after there's been a "killing" frost, but before the ground is hard.  For us, that could easily be up until mid-November.  

I am eagerly looking forward to the many  new dahlias for 2017, and plan to order early to be sure I get them!  

Almost as pretty as the sunsets this time of year:

Thank you for visiting my blog, and I hope everyone is enjoying the cooler weather and the gorgeous colors that Autumn brings.  

Linking up to these awesome parties:

Pink Saturday
Make It Pretty Monday

Cynthia