Dahlia Tubers- the Short and Sweet of It

/ Earth and Oils

Why is it, the older I get, the faster time goes? I didn’t even get to post at all in the month of November, and I feel like it was just yesterday that I actually dug up my dahlia tubers and gladiola bulbs. I have been meaning to write this blog post for a month now, and I apologize for the un-timeliness of it. I like to post when its relevant, but sometimes, it doesn’t turn out that way, and again, I apologize.

So, this is going to be a short and sweet article on digging up and storing dahlia tubers, and if you should or shouldn’t separate them right after you dig them up.  I got the advice from research, family and friends. The general consensus is that most people wait until spring to separate their tubers. 

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I was very excited to get so many tubers from my first ever Dahlia! 

Why?

  • When stored away for the winter, dahlia tubers grow eyes, or buds, from the crown. You want viable eyes to ensure healthy growing tubers for the next growing season.

There is also nothing wrong with separating tubers now, it will not harm them. There is debate as to if you will get any viable eyes if you separate before winter, but I believe it to be based on an individual basis. Every gardener’s tubers are different, and given the difference in many factors, including storage, temperature, etc., you may or may not get eyes at all.

Go with what you feel is right for you. You really can’t go wrong. Gardening is all just Trial and Error.

Oh, wait, I forgot– how do I store tubers?

  • Dahlia tubers need a cool, dry place to sleep for the winter. I have placed mine in a small cardboard box and tucked it away in a very dark corner of my basement. Basements are the best place to store away tubers and bulbs of all kinds.

I know this article will still help some people, as they are not in lake effect snow- prone areas of the world, so you still have some time to pack things up and get them ready for winter. For the rest of us, this can be a reference for the newbie Dahlia grower who needs a quick reference to ensuring a great growing season the next year!

8 thoughts on “Dahlia Tubers- the Short and Sweet of It”

  1. Here where the winters are so mild, wee do not often dig dahlias. I only dig mine when the get crowded, or to get copies to give to neighbors. The weird thing is that they seem to do better after getting dug. My dahlias do not bloom until late in summer, but those that have been dug and replanted grow like weeds and bloom on time.

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    • Thank you, that is so good to know! This is my first time actually digging them up. Sometimes I wish I didnt have to dig them, but I learned a hard lesson many years ago when I didnt know you had to in my area of the world!

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  3. Hi Wendy! I’m back blogging again and yours was the very first that I visited! So glad that you were successful with your Dahlias this year. Hope you get loads of extra tubers when you divide in the spring – you will soon have a field of them!
    Just wanted to say that if you choose to follow my blog (of course absolutely no obligation!) you will have to sign up again. I was trying to fiddle around with everything this summer and ended up messing everything up! I am not very computer literate :-(((. Let me know if anything is weird!

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    • Aww, thank you, and welcome back! I was very happy with tubers I got this year, and I am now looking at a few more kinds to add to the mix!
      I will definitely make sure to follow you! I totally understand about not being computer savvy– I work on one all day and I still don’t know how to do most things– especially on WordPress!! LOL

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