Meeting: 8 PM ,  September, 23, 2008.

Refreshments :  Roy Campbell, Casay Jansen, Larry Moore

Program: Reliving our show

Question and answer period.

Presidents Message

not available- gone boating

Parlor Show

This meeting we will try to make staging of your blooms and entry into a show a bit clearer for our new exhibitors. Please bring 1 or two blooms in a vase with some water. I will bring some containers and foam to stage them in. We will explain what happens to your entries.

 

Summer is going by and our dahlias are blooming' or at least getting close to it. From the members attending Dahlia Shows from other clubs, we hear flowers are late this year. The Howard's have, at this time gone to two shows, and got their share of entries on the head table. Also, the Stachs  had several of their entries on the head table in the Mt Vernon show.  Congratulations to you all.

Our club show will be Sept. 13 and 14, 2008. I'd like to see all our members at our show. These are the days where we show case the club to the Fraser Valley residents.  Bring some of your best blooms and enter in the show .We have a special class for first time exhibitors. A rosette and an award in this class is offered. You can enter in any class of the show beside this class. If you do not have any show containers the club will have staging materials and containers at the show.

We need help from members on the Friday night prior to the show, to set up and skirt the tables. Time7 till 9 o clock PM. After the show setup is complete, entries can be made till 9 PM and again Saturday morning, 7 AM until 10 AM.

We also need help with the hospitality section of the show.  No experience necessary. If interested in what the judges are looking for come and be a clerk or hang ribbons, it is fun. We train as we go along.

Elections are coming up in September .Become involved in your club see how it is run and become part of the decision making.  Doug Yongson is looking for your participation.  He is our Election Officer

Sponsors for our show: Any one home likes to make a donation to our show award list , please send it to Larry Moore,  46673 Macken Ave. Chilliwack, B.C. V2P 3B9

Water By Wayne Holland Copied from Hydahlia website with permission 

On a bright and early summer's morning, with not too much dew present, have you ever noticed the beaded necklace of water drops surrounding each leaf of a young, rapidly growing Dahlia plant?

Obviously a system is active that causes a lot of water to be transported up to the leaves where evaporation will ordinarily remove it during the daytime. This evaporation is the final stage of the water movement system called Transpiration.

Why so much water? Why the waste? Why not just enough? The explanation lies in the rapid growth potential of the Dahlia which requires a certain mineral or fertilizer amount that is present in only small concentration, therefore much water must be processed to get the necessary dissolved nutrients. Don't be tempted to add extra fertilizer to 'help out'. If the solution is too concentrated it will burn the delicate root and leaf tissues.

Considerable water is also required for the manufacture of the large amount of cellulose needed for the structure of the stems and other cell parts. Photosynthesis creates sugars from water and carbon dioxide and then later reactions convert the sugar into cellulose and also into the starch that is stored in the tubers. A little more water is required simply to keep each cell full and turgid so as to support the leaf and stem structures. We have all seen a droopy Dahlia or two that has either not got enough water available or has not developed an adequate root system to supply the plant.

This last symptom is often caused by planting large tubers, so that the Dahlia, being well supplied with food, does not send out sufficient nutrient seeking roots and subsequently cannot get the water that a large plant requires. Nothing much can be expected from such a plant. Small tubers or plants from cuttings are hardly likely to show this flaw and many people will either not plant a large tuber at all or else they will cut much of it away.

The water requirements of the Dahlia are therefore rather large at times. The demand will depend on the total leaf area and also upon the requirements for growth, and once mature, especially growth of blooms.

I have tried to grow Dahlias in tubs, but the chore of watering a mature, blooming plant is much too demanding for me.

My compliments to those who are committed enough to do it. Maybe a drip irrigation system could ......?...... Hum, something to think about!

Later in the season the growth of tubers requires water also, but not in the massive amounts needed by rapid cellular growth.

In the wild, Dahlias have a dormant season in their mountainous range which is quite cool, but mainly quite dry. The tuber has evolved as a water supply storage to keep the plant alive over the dry season. When the rains come again, growth resumes.

This would suggest that to get good tubers you should gradually withhold water at the end of the season to mimic the trigger of the natural dormancy period. In our Northwest climate, if heavy rains set in, you may as well dig them up as soon as there is a break in the weather. If you don't the tubers will rot or become so water rich that prolonged curing is required before storage.

You might even lose some of next years eyes if they begin to sprout in what may seem to the Dahlia to be the returning rains of the ancestral spring!

Another factor to consider is that both the plant and the tubers are more susceptible to frost when the natural antifreeze action of the sap sugars is diluted by excess water content.

Over watered or waterlogged conditions are never satisfactory as the acidic, low oxygen environment inhibits root growth and nutrients are not gathered and growth suffers.

Conclusion? Water Dahlias as little as you can when they are small in order to promote root growth to seek out the limited moisture. Then increasingly more water as leaf area becomes significant, and continue through the blooming season. Then less water to ripen the tubers and bring the season to a natural end. Common sense is required, of course, and if they look like they need a little water, then water them! For example, young plants or seedlings will often wilt badly on a very hot day and there is nothing wrong with a few light spays to raise the humidity and cool them off. I would caution you however not to soak them every day to try and prevent the wilting. Let them be stressed a bit and they will make better roots and be better plants.

The only time that water is essential, beyond that required to keep the plant looking good, is just as the buds are forming. At this stage it is essential to water thoroughly and often or the number of petals in the forming buds will be decreased and a much less desirable bloom will result.

 

 

Fraser Valley Dahlia Society

Newsletter

46172  Clare Ave., Chilliwack, BC, V2P6N1

New Website location : www.fraservalleydahliasociety.com

Email fvds@shaw.ca

Since 1997 Vol.3. June.- July, 2008

Meetings: Held on the 4th Tuesday of the month February trough October,

At 8 PM, Central Heights Church, 1661,  McCallum  Road. Abbotsford

 

Meeting: 8 PM ,  June, 24, 2008.

Refreshments :  Sylvia Devitt., Kristy Byer, Arlyne Kuiper

Question and answer period.

Program : Taking photos of your Dahlias With

Meeting July 22, 2008  Potluck Club provides the meat, Picnic at Janette and Gordon Stach

9884 Lyncean Drive, Surrey, BC. V4N 4M7

Presidents Report

 

Here it is the 17^th of May and spring has finally made an attempt to appear as it should be.  Digging in the garden has been cold but has had no affect on the buttercup and thistles population in my garden, but not for long.  With gardens dug and planting started it looks like another fun summer for both me and the dahlias. 

My boat is away at the shop having a new canvas installed for the summer so now is the time to get things done in the garden. We went to Victoria the 16^th of May for our granddaughters wedding and met some people from South Carolina who told me that they take there tubers up every second year to divide them and that most winters are not harsh enough to hurt the tubers. The ferry traffic was very light both ways with no waits at either end. 

 How about that $30.00 for five gallons of gas for the lawnmower, maybe a solar powered model is not going too be to far away and I don’t mean man or wife powered.  I wish you all a great summer for watching and caring for your dahlias and a great picnic.  See you at the next meeting on the 27^th of May all being well.

 Ross Wright

President

 

Important Dates: July 19- Summer Workshop- Faith Lutheran Church, Seattle. 9 AM

                                   July 26- Judge's Workshop- Mount Vernon Senior Center 9AM

Show Season Starts Aug.2-3  KCDS Show- President's Hall, Kitsap City Fairgrounds

Aug. 3 Trial Garden Judging School - Pt. Defiance Park, Tacoma WA

Aug. 9 - 10  SVDS Show - Skagit Valley Gardens, Mount Vernon, WA

Aug. 16 - 17  SCDS Show - Floral Hall, Forest Park, Everett, WA

Aug. 16 - 17 Victoria Dahlia Society , Hillside Mal, Victoria

Aug.23 - 24  PSDS Show

Aug. 23 - 24  Nanaimo Gladiolus and Dahlia Society Show, Country Club Centre. Nanaimo

Aug. 30 - 31 VDS Show, VanDusen Gardens, Vancouver

Sept. 6 - 7 WCDS Show - Bloedel - Donovan Park, Bellingham

Sept. 13 - 14  FVDS Show-George Preston Recreation Center, Langley, BC

Please support some shows by attending and / or entering some of your blooms in the shows. All of the shows are free to enter.

 

How To...

...top your dahlias

by, Richard Parshall
 

This "how to..." article deals with topping your dahlias. This technique, sometimes called pinching or stopping, should be done for two reasons. First, to encourage lateral branches to start development so that you will have plenty of blooms in time for show season and second, to produce a bushier, sturdier and more compact dahlia plant. This will make your plants less susceptible to high winds and inclement weather. An additional benefit is that because you are actually forcing earlier blooms you will naturally have more blooms during a growing season. (It’s true that letting the terminal bud bloom would give you a single early bloom, but then a longer interval would occur before your laterals begin to develop)

There seems to be a natural reluctance for most novice dahlia growers to perform this necessary task. Don’t think of it as a beheading but rather as grooming. Along with disbudding and disbranching, which will be discussed in our next article, topping should be considered more like a haircut for your dahlias. Remember that more new growth will replace what you have removed and it will replace it faster.

Before topping

During topping

After topping

The technique itself is quite simple. Gently grasp the central growing tip on your dahlia plant and bend it until it snaps off. Be careful not to damage the two emerging lateral branches that will just be beginning to form on each side of the plant tip right at the base of each leaf. This task should be performed early in the morning or in the evening when your plants are crisp with moisture. It may be a little more difficult in the afternoon when they are all rubbery from the sun and heat. Now all of your plant’s energy is directed into the growth of the lateral branches rather than the plant’s terminal bud.

Now that you know how and why to top, you need to learn when to top. This is where things get more complicated. It takes approximately 50 to 70 days for a lateral branch to develop into a full bloom. Small varieties usually develop faster than large varieties. Since most shows are in August and September, most dahlia growers will top their plants during the middle of June so that they will have plenty of blooms for the shows. Furthermore, depending upon the size of a plant’s bloom, experienced growers will usually leave a specific number of lateral branches on each plant. This is done by topping and then removing one or more sets of leaves beginning at the bottom of the plant and moving up. * The removal of the bottom one or two sets of leaves gives the added benefit of getting the plant up off the ground so that air can circulate around the plant which helps prevent the development of powdery mildew. The following guidelines will help:

A(Large) or AA(Giant) - 2 or 3 sets of leaves (4 or 6 lateral branches)

B(Medium) - 3 or 4 sets of leaves (6 or 8 branches)

Varieties under 6 inches - 5 or 6 sets of leaves (10 or 12 lateral branches)

As the branches grow, some can be removed to allow only a specific number of flowers to develop, especially for the larger varieties. Only allow 3 to 5 blooms to mature on large and giant varieties and 5 to 8 on mediums. Smaller varieties will usually not require disbranching.

Rough Time Table for Topping (Days before Show)

A or AA size - About 70 days before show

B size - About 65 days before show

BB and Ball size - About 60 days before show

Smaller blooms - 55 days or less

Plant growth and bloom time is very dependent on weather conditions, soil type, fertilizing programs and watering schedules. These conditions may vary from year to year and individual varieties may also differ from the norm, so please use the above information as a general guide in helping you grow bigger and more beautiful dahlias.

*Author’s Note: Some people believe that the bottom laterals develop into the largest and nicest blooms on a plant, they, therefore do not remove the first true leaves from the bottom. These dahlia growers will count up from the bottom to get the required number of leaf pairs and then top their plants.

 

 

 

Fraser Valley Dahlia Society

Newsletter

46172  Clare Ave., Chilliwack, BC, V2P6N1

New Website location : www.fraservalleydahliasociety.com

Email fvds@shaw.ca

Since 1997 Vol.2. April.- May, 2008

Meetings: Held on the 4th Tuesday of the month February trough October,

At 8 PM, Central Heights Church, 1661,  McCallum  Road. Abbotsford

 

Meeting: 8 PM ,   April, 22, 2008.

Refreshments : Lloyd Clark., Johanna Van Den Bosch., Renee Vande Burgt.

  Program:  Question and answer period.

 Getting Ready to plant

 

Meeting,: 8 PM,  May, 27, 2008

Refreshments : Dorothy Rogers., Mary Probert., Pat Glennie

Program:  Question and answer period.

 Program: Bug Control and Hybridizing. With Paul Bloomquist

 

Presidents Report

 

Yes it is April already and everything is starting to grow.  I think the snow is finally gone, although it keeps trying to make a comeback.  We are still getting some frost at night.  I have started a little on the yard as we had a lot of broken trees and branches everywhere.

I have made my selections for the tuber sale, both those to sell and those to buy.  I hope you will support our club by bringing out your tubers for sale.  Some of the smaller varieties are very popular with people who have smaller gardens.  Bring along your friends and neighbours.  As you know, we have been in Aldergrove for a good number of years and have been very successful.  Now we have a new venue George Preston Recreation Centre 20699- 42 Avenue, Langley, BC.  We are hoping that the new venue will be as successful as the old one was.

I cannot express enough, the need for your help in the setting up on the Friday night April 18, 7pm to 9 pm. We also need help with the sale itself and the taking down on Saturday the 19^th.

Remember this is your club and the sale makes a lot of the club happen.  Hope to see you all at the tuber sale April 19, 2008- 9am to 5pm.

 

Ross Wright, President

 

Tuber Sale.  Our Clubs only fund raiser will be Saturday April, 19. 9 AM to 5 PM. At the George Preston Centre 20699 42nd Ave. Langley .

Setup will be Friday night 7 PM to 9 PM., April, 18, 2008. We need some help to set it up.

Tubers can be placed on the tables as soon the tables boards and pictures are in place until 9 pm. Doors will be open at 7 AM . Saturday, April 19, 2008

Tubers must be in place before 9 AM. Members can start shopping as soon tubers are on the tables.

Saturday we need lots of help to sort tubers and recording sales, help our costumers find the locations off the tubers they are looking for.

So whether or not you are selling tubers :Your Club needs your help.!!!!! Without this sale, we cannot survive, we all need to do our part. Ralph

Back by popular demand Our soil amend (Composted pig manure) man is back April 22 before the meeting at 7 pm. He will bring a load of bags for us the cost this year $5.00 per bag.

B C. Council of Garden Clubs Meeting

Doug and Diana Youngson attended the meeting on March 29 ,2008, at St. Helen’s Church in North Burnaby.The doors opened at 8.30am. with a plant sale, and ticket  sales for excellent draw prizes, all donated by the various garden clubs and societies .  The FVDS donated a $25.00 gift certificate for our tuber sale, and we also handed out flyers advertising our tuber sale. The next meeting in Oct. 2008 will be at Our Lady of Sorrows Church  at 555  Slocan St., Vancouver. There were  40 clubs represented at this meeting. There are now 154 clubs that belong to the BC Counsel of Garden Clubs! The minutes and financial statement were distributed in our package envelopes. We heard the Council’s Committee Reports , and Elections were held. First Vice President is Mas Tanizawa, who we know from dahlia shows, Treasurer remains as Louis Peterson , and the Bulletin Editor remains as Marilyn Holt. The Scholarship Trust Committee remains as Sylvia Davis. The first speaker was Rolf Matthewes on plants and the history of the Queen Charlotte Islands.  He showed incredible slides covering the glacier age, right up to present day. Very, very interesting.

After lunch, the second speaker was Heather Edwards on Eco-Sculptures. She works for the Municipality of Burnaby and she showed us fantastic wire, ect. sculptures that Burnaby has made. Two huge cranes are atop Burnaby Mt. and they have also created salmon and carousel horses.  They are covered with living plants and really beautiful to see.

The next meeting has a tentative date of Oct. 4, 2008  Diana Youngson

 

 

How To...

...plant your dahlia tubers

by, Richard Parshall

It is planting time! This month's "How to... " page deals with planting your dahlia tubers. Hopefully you've all prepared your beds by amending them with plenty of organic material, i.e. compost, manure, etc.

Step one is to place your stakes where your dahlias will go. Stakes are necessary for taller variety dahlias to keep them from blowing over during wind storms. Five foot steel fence posts are great for this purpose, especially in heavy soils. Some people use rebar cut to four or five foot lengths and of course the old standby of most gardeners is cedar stakes.

Spacing of your stakes will depend on your individual needs. Larger varieties are generally placed 30 to 36 inches apart and smaller varieties will be fine at 24 inches. Most people plant double rows (two tubers or plants per stake. Some people, however, plant staggered rows with only one tuber or plant per stake. When planting staggered rows, plant your tubers offset four to six inches from a center line and space your stakes 18 to 24 inches apart. The nice thing about staggered rows is that your watering hose can be laid down the middle of the row. You can also place more tubers or plants per row with this method. Space your rows 4 to 5 feet apart so that you have plenty of room to get in around your plants to groom and tend. It also helps to promote better air circulation, which helps prevent powdery mildew.

Once your beds are ready, stakes are in, and all chance of frost is past, its time to get your hands dirty. For average soils, most people plant their tubers about six inches deep. Plant eight inches deep in light, sandy soils and four inches in heavy, clay soil. Dig a deep hole and back fill to appropriate depth. Lay tuber horizontally with the eye end toward the stake. The tuber eye should point up and be about four inches from the stake.