When is the best time to dig up split and replant Dahlia tubers?
I used to dig up tubers and replant in the spring but an elderly lady who was an excellent gardener told me to leave them in the ground and I have to say I have had the the most wonderful display for some years. However they are now taking over rose bushes nearby.Thank you.
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I would suggest you leave them in the ground over winter then dig them up around the end of March/early April and carefully cut through the ‘neck’, the part where the stems all grow from, to give you two, three, or if you’re really lucky, four new plants. The advantage of digging them up in the spring is that you may be able to see the new shoots and can cut between them.
Leaving them in the ground seems to work best, if they are dug up and stored somewhere there is a good chance they will either rot or be eaten by mice or insects. Dig them up in spring and replant them away from other plants so they have room to grow. I have beautiful Dahlias of various shapes, colours and sizes in my garden which all originate from a single pack of seeds that I got from Wilko for less than a pound several years ago. They have developed tubers and come back bigger and better every year.
the first thing we need to establish is where abouts you live as i would not like to suggest leaving dahlias in over winter if you lived in scotland, where the frost is fairly certain to get at the tubers.
if you live in the midlands and south you will be reasonably safe to leave over winter, although it wont do any harm to cut the stems down to ground level and then give them a good covering of mulch and straw to help protect them. it also gives you an indication as to their whereabouts. split them in april if you want to and put them back in.
ask your self this.
did mother nature didg them out of the ground every year?
no then why should you do it.
I have left mine in since we broght some next yea will be the 4th year