Thank you cinnie. I don't see anything I can use on your list. If I don't get a trade offer for something I need by the time I get home from work tomorrow evening, I will email you to see if you want them for postage. Alana

Dahlias are perennials, they are just not very hardy perennials. It is possible that your mother in law has a dahlia that survives the winter. Is it planted against a south facing wall? Is it mulched heavily and kept dry over the winter? The main issues with overwintering dahlias are soil moisture level and frost penetration depth. If the ground is kept dry and frost free at the tuber depth then a dahlia should survive the winter regardless of your climate zone. If the soil is very dry it is more difficult for frost to penetrate than if their is moisture in the soil. I would expect that in much of Utah there would be very dry soil.in winter which would help insulate the tubers. A thick layer of snow that is on the ground continuously during the coldest months would act as an insulator too.

Thanks, Ceh2101. Here in Canada, we tend to get delayed somewhat with blooms, but I start them in April, and get them out ( in pots ) as quickly as I can. There is a lot of lugging in and out during those frosty days of April and May. The last photo is actually a tropical hibiscus. My perennials have not yet started to bud up, but the plants are getting quite large already. The camera is a simple panasonic lumix with a 12 x optical Leica lens. I purchased it in Scotland when "someone" actually left my $1500 digital SLR on a fence at the Toronto airport. This one is a LOT lighter, and much easier to manipulate. The photos are posted and stored at Photobucket, and copied into the space here. Once again, thanks for your comments and interest.

Timing depends on the bloom size and overall condition of each plant. It's possible watering/fertilizing conditions aren't right, or that you have a larger bloom size. We are in similar zones, and only 1 out of 5 of my three-four foot plants are blooming right now. Normally, I start getting a few blooms mid-July with heavier blooming mid-August and the best blooming displays by late August- mid September. This is an average based on several hundred varieties, of all types. Patience. They will get there.