Winter tuber storage

calico20hill · 2023-12-31T00:08:04+00:00

I just did a quick check on my tubers and I am encouraged. No whiff of mold, no wrinkles, and these were small tubers that would not necessarily store well...

calico20hill

Checked another crate that were first year seedlngs and only had a few I had to toss. Things are looking up! Small tubers but still good!

Krista

How often are folks generally checking tubers? I’m just curious how wide the spread is. I’m sure its very individual and depends on all the variables regarding differing storage methods/weather/etc. I’ve been reminding myself to check about once a month but I’m curious what you all aim for, generally?

Photo of Bubbling Over’s pretty pink-flushed tubers:

SteveM

Krista For the average keeping varieties I check at one week and then every month after.

calico20hill

I uually do a mid winter check and then in another 6 weeks I might look through them to pull out ones to start early in the greenhouse.

Krista

Wow thank you so much! This varied more than I even thought it might.

calico20hill What determines which tubers you pull to start early?

SteveM My method is closest with yours, which surprises me so much since we’re such different growers. I checked mine first at two weeks though and after one week would have been better. I found some tubers weren’t as dry as I thought they were when I packed them away. I’ll make my first check at one week from now on.

Juliarugula I’m really impressed at your packaging, how you pull tubers for trades when storing. I’m going to think about this too — currently I just have them stored by variety with inventory noted in a spreadsheet. I planned to pull for trades when it’s time to ship but having boxes ready to go already sounds great! Also, your favorites box; cooool!

Juliarugula

I do a super thorough check mid winter (just finished) and usually very early spring (Marchish) and do a lot of rummaging around the rest of winter. I participate in a couple of local swaps, and I probably end up going through 70-80 percent of my boxes when pulling tubers for people, so I check as I go. And then sometimes I’ll think of something that will make me want to check a few…

I also keep a box or two of the best looking couple of tubers of all of my very very favorites varieties. I check those once a month, along with any I bought or traded in the fall.

Flowernut

Krista My method is very similar to SteveM, also. After the first week I noticed some moisture in the baggies and removed the tubers to dry a little more. So far checking every 3-4 weeks has been fine.

Juliarugula

Krista I planned to pull for trades when it’s time to ship but having boxes ready to go already sounds great!

Well, mine were for local trades, so we were exchanging in person shortly after I pulled them. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be so organized as to be pulling tubers for shipping in future months! 😜

Krista

Flowernut Thank you, it’s great to hear that this method seems to work just fine for even more folks!

AndreaB

Thanks for the reminder, Krista. This is on my to-do list!
I decided to be more hands-off this year. I felt like I fiddled with them too much last year,
so I’m hoping to save a little time.
I’ll check in the next week or two, and at the same time gather the tubers I want to start early.
That way they’ll be ready-to-go and I can just grab them in a month or so to begin the cutting process.

Krista

Juliarugula This sounds so much more achievable, its reassuring to know I’m not a total and complete good-for-nothing in comparison! 😍

MissyWeitzel

I have kind of a strange question about the time between the early stage of storage and planting time.

I was at a dahlia function recently and a long time dahlia grower was talking about his method of storing tubers in vermiculite. I can't remember his exact verbiage, but basically he said that after the first 2 weeks of cool storage in vermiculite the tubers are dormant and the outer layer is toughened up and he could actually then just take them out of the vermiculite and they would keep just fine until spring.

That's crazy, right? I know the first few weeks are often when tubers that are gonna rot do, but does the actual storage conditions not matter as much after that period? It seems like my tubers would shrivel up if they weren't kept in a cool and humid environment the entire winter. I feel weird to be asking these basic questions but what he said has been flopping around in my head and I'm questioning everything I thought I knew or wondering if maybe i completely misheard what he said...

Cosey

MissyWeitzel

I doubt he took them out and removed them from storage conditions. I also wonder if this grower executed this as a general practice but shared the info as a humble brag.

The first few weeks of storage are crucial to how well they store the rest of winter. If the cuts heal properly and the variety is a good storer to begin with, the tuber won't lose much water. At low temps they settle into a state of holding. The lower the temp, the longer they store. A tuber stored at 55* will store 'well' for 75 days, but the same tuber stored at 40* will store for 5 months.

This grower could also be treating tubers for fungus which will help the claim.

I think a lot of details were omitted, but I have several varieties that store perfectly after proper healing under ideal temps and humidity in my cooler with no packing material.

Teddahlia

I believe the old timer was basically correct. Once a tuber goes dormant it takes a lot to get it growing and sprouting. I remember visiting Sea-Tac and Lou had all his sale tubers in open bins with no vermiculite. He used to take tubers to the local flower and garden shows and sell them. Dormant tubers do not need really cold temps to store once they are dormant. I doubt he had temps below 55F for most of the time. Swan island in the ancient times rented a controlled atmosphere apple storage locker and stored a big batch of tubers for a second year. It was said that they grew especially well and seemed to be more disease free than the one year tubers. By the way, humidity is very high during the winter and spring in the PNW and the tubers generally do not shrivel even out of the storage medium after they have gone dormant. In the mid west humidity is much lower and there could be some shriveling. Another thought: Easy storing varieties can take a lot of abuse. One needs to know what varieties are easy and which are hard to store and treat them accordingly. I have noticed over the years that people blame themselves for varieties that rot in storage when it can be nearly impossible to store some varieties. I am the first to admit that I have not been successful in storing HH Purely Purple tubers for many years now. Pot tubers work most of the time but tubers always rot.

calico20hill

Big issues with tubers , particularly seedlings ones, that did not store well for me, but then there are the others...Hollyhill Wedding Day, a couple of other Hollyhills, Snoho Doris, Etc, that look as good as they day I put them into storage. Now that is the kind of tubers I want on my seedlings!

Cosey

For some East Coast perspective, the humidity in my house this morning after NOT running a humidifier was 21%. Humans dehydrate at this level. 🥴

Teddahlia

One of our biggest regrets over the years is that we have bred numerous varieties that have wonderful flowers and shit tubers. It is way too tempting to keep and name crappy tuber makers. On the "glass is half full" side of this issue is that many of these flowers are some of the very best and the world is a better place that we have had them at all. I love the way Hollyhill Sophia looks in the garden with 6 foot tall plants covered with brightest shade of California poppy orange waterlies you have ever seen. And lurking under those plants are only hair roots. And we have not grown it for about 3 years now as we even lost the pot tubers. Hollyhill Seeing Red won an international medal and the booby prize for no tubers. The temptation to share these beauties is overwhelming. Dick Parshall had an solution that really was a "nothing burger". He named the variety and gave it(never sold it) to a couple of friends who were excellent gardeners. He never even tried to continue growing it himself. I was on garden tour at one of his friends and from the proverbial "fifty feet away" spotted this gorgeous miniature flower with exquisite form and color on 5 foot vigorous plants. I inquired as to the name and found out that it was one of those that Dick Parshall gave away. 🌺👨🌾

calico20hill

This is one of those painful lessons to learn personally but also one we NEED to learn. I am definitely "sadder but wiser" now.

Krista

Jowey Dahlias reported on IG this morning the loss of many of their tubers due to flooding in the greenhouse where they store their tubers in the ground. I don’t know anyone who stores tubers buried in beds inside a greenhouse and I’m curious if this is more common than I know about. Does anyone here use this method?

Emilyp

Krista I saw that post, how sad for him! I really hope they are salvageable.

Krista

Emilyp Very tragic, and yes, I’m hoping none were breeding stock and most of what he lost can be retrieved from friendly dahlia growers ❤️

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