JessieC It seems like the bloom is immature. Is that correct?
Yes, most varieties will have green centers when the blooms are immature but it is varieties that have green centers when fully open that are a problem with show people. While open-centered varieties are blooms that have too few florets and expose the pollen center when completely open, green-centered varieties are just the opposite: there are too many florets when fully open so the green, chaffy bracts are still covering the unopened florets in the center.
Since the number of florets is increased when buds form under "long days", a variety predisposed to green centers will have them at the peak of the season. This does not make show growers happy. On the show table, green centers and open centers are equally popular.🙂 On the other hand, varieties with green centers will lose their green centers when buds are formed under the "short days" of Spring or Fall and the resulting blooms can have perfect form. It is usually the "green centered" varieties that give me an extra two weeks of salable blooms in the Fall and Spring when the "normal" show-type dahlia have gone open-centered. So, if the green center is not too obnoxious, those varieties can make excellent cut flowers.
Note: The type of green center I am referring to here is the green center that is displayed on the above, referenced vendor's web page. These green centers usually look like they have a "belly button" in the middle of the green part.
