MIDahlias Can an entire plant sport? Or is it based on one stem blooming different? Asking because it seems some have a lot of plants they are calling sports and hoping to get classified. Is it fair to question (to myself) one that has 50 sports?
blown_dry MIDahlias Is it fair to question (to myself) one that has 50 sports? Apologies if you already know this, but some types are very prone to sporting. Any variagated or bi-color flower is almost guaranteed to have a solid sport. If the variety is variegated AND bicolor then it can have a few different versions. Some are so prone to it that I have to try to pay attention because a sport is likely to be listed in a catalog as the original.
Teddahlia Answer: Sports can occur on any portion of the plant or the entire plant. The entire plant sport is found when you grow the tuber the next year. Sports that affect one branch can be “captured” by taking a cutting from the sported branch. How often to dahlia plants sport? I would say if you grow 200 plants of something, you may get s full plant sport every few years. I am leaving out variegation sports that are totally different and need a separate explanation. So how is it a grower has 50 sports? Radiation or chemicals are the answer. Sports are a loss of genetic material caused by damage to the DNA. When you induce sports you probably wipe out many of the good genes required for good growth. Sports are quite often not very vigorous.
MA_Dahlias First bloom for me is Night Silence! Looking great, and today has actually faded a bit to a really beautiful softer shade.
Honnat Teddahlia Nathan Honken Teddahlia It's a little shallow and it hasn't been marketed particularly well (its hard to find). It is a fabulous cut flower. Stick straight long stems on a sturdy plant. Also why it is hard to find - #1: It's yellow. People generally don't buy yellow. #2: It stores worse than I thought. Relatively high rate of rot for me last year. Nevertheless still one of my favorites. Really healthy plants and great growth habits.
Bessie The waterlily dahlias surprised me with their vibrant color. These are currently blooming. The center Dahlia is Peaches 'n Cream. Correction: Dahlia incorrectly labeled in photo as Wildwood Marie is actually Hollyhill Daydream.
Bessie Bessie Mistaken identity.... The tag was buried under mulch. Hollyhill Daydream is the beautiful pink waterlily, that in a previous post I incorrectly identified as Wildwood Marie.
Krista Summer Rain opened today! The range of hues in online photos is so wide, but I really like the shade of this bloom in my garden.
Honnat Krista It always has more pink early season with heat and sunlight hours. As the season progresses, it'll be more muted.
Krista Honnat Thank you for this beautiful tuber and for sharing these bloom-details; I’ve copied this directly into my notes. And I’m looking forward to seeing the colors shift as the season goes on!
Krista First bloom of Hollyhill Letitia [Edit] Daydream - check out her bud-sister stretching to the sky!
NCDahlia Krista Fantastic bloom. I will try to acquire next year. Ted this is a beautiful flower like so many others
Teddahlia This may be an "Oops!" moment as the flower in the picture is most likely Hollyhill Daydream.
calico20hill Krista Now I have to check where I am growing the cutting from Krista, LOL....I don't think I have blooms on them yet. I do have Salish Blooms and seedling blooms.
