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Worth saving poor performers?

linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)

17 years ago

We had frost last night so I assume I will be digging soon. I had several kinds that really underperformed. They were Apricot Sorbet and Procyon. These were bought at Sam's Club, where I got some really good ones last year. The other were bought individually or in 2-packs at Lowe's, Home Depot, and Walmart. They (and all the others)were started in March inside: even with the extra-long growing time Procyon and Apricot Sorbet had just started making buds recently. Some (I had 8) had less than perfect spots, since I ran out of room and put the more "important" dahlias in the best spots, but even the ones in good locations were budding out at pretty much the same rate.

Is it worth digging and saving these? I don't know whether to blame me or them for the poor performance. As with any plant, there are those that are stellar performers and those that should be pulled off the stage. Other kinds have given me at least 2 months of bloom so far (Bishop of Llandaff, Akita, Veritable); the little "window box" dahlias have been going strong all summer.

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Comments (2)

gybns
17 years ago
I am by no means an expert in the field of Dahlias but can share a story with you. Two years ago I had a poor performer Dahlia which I dug up and stored because the tubers looked strong. Last year I changed its location and increased the fertilizer and it did a little better. This summer I changed both the soil mixture and location and my Dahlia is very strong and the many blooms are beautiful. Maybe I just got lucky but I think all Dahlias deserve a second chance.
Poochella
17 years ago
I give my dubious performers a new location and a second year to make the grade too. Some are just not worth the space they take up- wimpy stems, too slow, too few blooms etc.
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