Dahlias from seed - My How-To-Guide

You may have seen dahlia seeds available in the garden centres and online and wondered how to grow them, so ive put together what I know about the subject. Im no expert, just a very keen flower grower who has had quite a bit of success growing dahlias from seed so far

Seed or Tuber?

Theres only 2 ways of getting a direct clone of a dahlia plant - from a tuber or a cutting. Typically a grower will grow a plant from one tuber each year ( which then multiplies in the ground over that season) then they will split the tuber and produce more of the same plant, and so on and so on...

So why grow dahlia from seed? Basially its how new dahlias are invented! And it is the fun bit - you dont know EXACTLY What you're going to get and thats when things can get very interesting!

The sciency bit - When a dahlia plant produces a flower, it is then pollinated by say, a bee. The plant is sent a signal that the flower has been pollinated and (as in all of nature) it produces a seed to ensure the continuation of the species. Thats where the fun bit starts - you have no idea as to which dahlias the bee has visited previously (unless youre a hybridizing expert and hand-pollinate - but were not covering that today!) therefore, the resulting seedling will be a mix of whatever dahlias the bee has visitedmixed with some parts of the parent plant.  Still following?

Heres where it gets even crazier - each seed head can contain up to 100 seeds - AND they will ALL produce different looking off spring - I know! Mind blowing isnt it.

Dahlia BB Animal in all her glory

For example, I grew 'BB Animal' here at Bee and Bloom and it is the most amazing large ball type flower with orange petals which have pink on the back of them, very unique and an absolute keeper. The plant was huge and it produced some whopping seed pods in autumn.

So what will a resulting plant, grown from 'BB Animal' seed look like? - well, we dont know! It may have some characteristics of the parent - it could have the same huge plant size, same colouration, same form or all of these characteristics, OR it could be a crazy looking offspring with an open centre and be single not double. That is the lottery of growing dahlia from seed and also the absolute joy of it too. Be warned however. It is Addictive!

If you would like to try and grow your own from BB Animal I have seed available in my shop coming very soon

​My How-To-Guide for growing dahlia from seed

So you've got your seed and youre ready to start making some magic!

Here are two techniques that I have used and are both effective so you can choose whichever suits you

Dahlia Jowey Martina

Note - I find it best to not put all my eggs in one basket ie - dont sow all of your precious seeds at once, find a way of germinating them that works for you and your environment, and when it works, sow some more. Sowing all the seeds and losing them all is not fun!

So you can do it the old fashioned way - simply put your seed into some seed mix, cover lightly - dont bury them, spray with water or place in a container of water and let it soak up. Chucking water on from above can dislodge the seed and we dont want that. Pop in a warm sunny place and BE PATIENT! It can take weeks to germinate, some varieties take much much longer that others (believe me im an impatient gardener and I struggle with this) If you have a heat pad or mat you can also use this to speed things up a bit.

When your seedling is large enought to handle, pot into a bigger pot and keep inside or somewhere frost-free until October then plant out in the garden or a large pot, and keep watered and fed as you would any other precious plant. Its best to plant with a stake or some kind of support when planting as adding this later on is tricky.

There is another way...

The above not working for you? There is another way (and this technique works with all tricky to start seed).  You will need a zip lock bag and some kitchen towel (or loo roll!).

Start with a dry piece of kitchen towel/loo roll and pop your seeds on spaced apart, covering carefully with another sheet on top. spray with water or just drop water on with your fingers - to dampen the paper

Place the dampened sheet into the zip lock bag and seal, then place somewhere light and warm (and obsessively check for signs of life 10 times a day - just me?!)

You're looking for roots forming and the leaves starting. They may take a while but using this method means you can keep and eye on the progress as you can actually see the seed itself.

When your seeds have grown roots and are looking promising remove the paper from the bag and VERY carefully put the sprouted seeds into a small pot of potting mix and water. Again, keep in a light warm place and pot on when big enough to handle. Follow the last steps from the first method above

The plant will grow and flower in the first season, it will form a tuber and you can then decide to keep it in situ or lift and store for next year.

Fun Fact - it takes at least 3 years for dahlia characteristics to fully develop - Therefore, in year 1, the flower could be a little crazy looking or a bit underwhelming - dont give up! If theres anything that you like about the flower at all, shape, form, colour or vigorous growth - keep it! Ill show you one of my most prized tubers 'BB Christine' I grew from seed - I nearly got rid of it!! Im so glad that I didnt

Dahlia Christine in Year 1 (Left) and Year 3 (Right)

I hope this was helpful

Any questions please shout out below and good luck!

Alison x