Growing Dahlias with Sarah Pead

on demystifying dahlias, cultivating and sharing beauty, and flowers as a family legacy

My friend Sarah is the kind of person who pauses in the midst of life’s busyness to encourage others as they come to her mind and heart. She has sent me the most meaningful texts alongside gorgeous photos of her homegrown, handpicked bouquets, often arriving in the moments I have needed them most.

I've long admired her dahlias, and today she’s sharing not just her best tips for growing them, but also how these flowers have become a cherished family legacy.

Sarah, you and I have talked about how growing dahlias can feel intimidating for so many people, myself included! I usually love trying new things, knowing I'll learn something along the way, even if it’s what not to do next time. But when it came to dahlias, I hesitated and ended up giving my tubers to my mom, who has a green thumb and can grow anything in the Midwest. Can you tell us how you got started with dahlias?

I was very intimidated by dahlias, too! After reading books and following dahlia farmers on Instagram, I thought they were flowers that couldn’t be touched by an amateur flower gardener like myself. Dahlias indeed require a special type of TLC, but I think if a gardener allows that trepidation to keep them from trying, they may not experience the happiness of the plants thriving and blooming. That’s the adventurous part of gardening anything. There will be wins and losses—sometimes, we can control the conditions, but oftentimes, it’s out of our hands. I’m sure there’s a deep life lesson in there somewhere. Haha!

But to answer your question about how I got started with dahlias…A few years ago, I visited my parents’ house before attending a mama’s retreat in Virginia. It was October, so my mom’s dahlia garden was in full bloom. The colors were stunning, and she had more than she knew what to do with. So, we cut several bouquets as gifts for the retreat hosts. As we picked the blooms, my generous mother instructed me to tag the stems of any flowers I wanted in my garden. It has always been her practice to share from her abundance, especially since her first dahlia tubers were also gifted to her by my father’s dad, whom we all lovingly call “Grandpa.” He, too, was known for growing beautiful flowers.

Those original plants have come and gone, but my mom still grows dahlias in Grandpa’s honor. I chose one specific bloom color: Night Queen. It has a rich, red wine color, nothing of which I had grown in my garden before. That fall, before the first frost, my mom dug up the dahlia tubers for winter storage and set them aside for me to plant in the spring.

Dahlias need full sun and rich soil that sheds off the water after each watering. They also must be staked so the stems can grow vertically. Without that support, the stems will swirl and grow wherever they please. I’ve let some stems get pretty gnarly before. I picked out a solid spot next to the outside fence of my chicken yard. I knew the soil would be very fertile (you know, because of chicken fertilizer ;) ), and it was elevated, allowing the water to run off.

As my yard began to wake, I began tending to the weeds that were popping up here and there. We live on a property that used to be a pig farm, making the soil and weeds somewhat wild. As I was pruning along, I saw something coming up in the flower bed where I had planted the dahlias. Thinking the sprout was a weed, I began digging. Unbeknownst to me, I was digging up my newly planted dahlias! Thankfully, I was able to replant the tubers without causing significant damage. It was a quick lesson to remember to tag my garden beds when I plant things.

Exposure to full sun is very important for dahlias. Last spring I had to move my entire dahlia patch to a new spot in my yard due to a hedge of arborvitae trees that grew faster than anticipated and blocked most, if not all, of the sunlight. As each shoot emerged, I carefully relocated the tubers near my vegetable garden, where I had an existing trellis system. I monitored their growth and weaved the stems through the trellis. It worked out wonderfully because I could manage all of my gardening in one space.

This fills me with so much nostalgia! Both of my grandfathers were avid gardeners as well. Also, your photos absolutely melt me. The opening photo of you working in the garden as a child and the one of your grandfather in the sun hat are family heirlooms themselves. They are such an inspiring and powerful reminder to slow down and capture these everyday moments.

It’s so moving that your dahlias have been passed down from your grandfather to your mother and now to you. I love that flowers are a part of your family’s legacy, not just of cultivating beauty but also of sharing it. How does this legacy shape your connection to the flowers?

For as long as I can remember, flower gardening and working in the soil have been a part of my life. Even as a small child, I would walk alongside my dad as he tilled the garden or sit along my mom’s flower borders as she bent down to pull weeds and lay mulch. Both of my parents inherited the joy of tending the yard, so it just became a natural part of my life.

Sarah and her mom

As an adult, each home my husband and I have lived in has had some portion developed for growing flowers and vegetables (even if it was just a window box on an apartment’s balcony). I’ve lost count of how many flower bulbs, hosta propagations, and seed packets my mom has given me. We even have a 100-year-old peony plant that currently dwells in a front flower bed here in West Georgia. It was my Grandpa’s and came by way of Virginia, Indiana, and Maryland soil! I think those types of connections make flowers all the more special. The stories my parents will share with me of how Grandpa would do this and not do that to ensure his flowers thrived. Or to hear how my mom’s dad, whom we called Papa, knew exactly when to harvest potatoes or prune his gladiolas. With gardening comes stories, and with stories comes connection.

The 100-year-old traveling peony story really needs to become a children’s book! Just imagine everything it’s seen in each of those places over all of those years. It’s so inspiring, the way you’ve left each place you've lived more beautiful with your bulbs, flowers and propagations. What a wonderful way to love the world!

Have your mother or grandfather passed along any tips or tricks that you still use today? Are there any traditions, rituals, or little pieces of wisdom about growing or caring for dahlias that have stayed with you?

There was one year when my mom’s dahlias weren’t staked quite strong enough. The blooms were beautiful, but the stems looked like twisted pipe cleaners. My mom joked about how “Grandpa would not be proud. Haha!” Grandpa was extremely fond of his dahlias. He named each one, equipping each with a wooden name tag; my parents still have a few as keepsakes!

Like many in his generation, my Grandpa rarely threw away anything. He would even use my great-aunt’s old nylons to tie the dahlia stems to the stakes. He claimed the nylons were the most gentle option to hold the delicate stems to the stakes. As the tubers sprouted each spring, he would cover the new shoots with tin coffee cans while he cut grass to ensure he didn’t catch the stems with the mower. Oftentimes, he would be found down on his hands and knees, pinching and pruning the bottom leaves and shoots so that the middle stem would grow stronger. It was a matter of patience to sacrifice a few so that the stem would grow strong enough to hold such large blooms in the late summer heat. He was a man who valued hard work and doing things “the right way.” He watched his grandfather care for plants and then was self-taught in other things he set his hand to. He then passed along many of those skills to both of my parents. I attribute most, if not all, of my work ethic and attention to detail to that legacy.

Sarah, that is such a beautiful story. I have similar memories of my grandfather working in his garden and I am still captivated by them all these years later. When we go about our work, it can feel so ordinary or even mundane, but it’s so important to remember that these small actions that our children observe can give them a vision of things so much greater.

My mom grew the most incredible dinner-plate-sized dahlias in Wisconsin, but I’ve heard so many times that they don’t do well in Texas because of the heat. Then you told me you’ve had great luck growing them in Georgia. Can you demystify dahlias for us? Are they as temperamental as people say, or do they just need the right conditions, like bright sunlight and rich soil?

Needing the right conditions makes them temperamental. They’re a lot like Goldilocks. They need everything “just right.” Living in Georgia, one of the issues I have to monitor is the humidity levels. Mildew can quickly form on the leaves if I don’t provide enough space for airflow. If you live further north, you have to be aware of a surprise spring frost. No matter your climate, the expectation for growing dahlias needs to be one of continuous awareness.

For someone wanting to try growing dahlias, can you walk us through the basics? What does your care routine look like throughout the seasons? Do you have any practical growing tips for beginners?

The first thing I would recommend is to know your planting zone. Most Dahlia tubers need to be dug up and hardened off before the winter. They can then be replanted in the spring after the last frost. However, I have found that living in the zone I’m in now (7b), I can leave mine in the ground over the winter as long as I bed them down with thick layers of straw.

The main thing I have to keep my eye on is if we have an exceedingly wet winter because leaving them in the ground can rot the tubers. Unfortunately, I’ve experienced it. When hardening them off, you want to ensure they’ve thoroughly dried and are free of dirt, and then place them in brown paper bags. The bags should be stored in a cool dark place that has limited humidity. If you have a basement, you can space the tubers apart and store them uncovered on shelves. My grandpa would store his in the cellar, placed on old bread trays he saved when he ran a local grocery—again, the man never threw anything away!

Another tip that I think makes dahlias so special is to pick the blooms and share them. Even if you’re picking for your own home, the more you harvest, the more blooms you’ll get through the season. I think that’s why I had such a long growing season last year. I started seeing blooms at the end of May and they didn’t stop until early November—they even survived our first frost! With so many blooms I couldn’t help but pick and share with friends! If we had company and someone noticed how pretty they were I would say, “Let me cut you a few to take home!”

People are often taken aback by offers like that, thinking it’s imposing, but it’s not at all. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from my parents, it’s that pouring out from one’s abundance is always worth it. So the next time someone offers you flowers from their garden, don’t rob them of the joy of blessing you.

Are there any common mistakes you see people make with dahlias?

Be mindful of humidity and moisture. This is where dahlias get a bit persnickety and where they get the stereotype of being hard to maintain. It’s the in-between time when they need extra care. Snipping the bottom shoots as they grow fortifies a strong stem—which is extremely important for holding such large blooms. Lastly, stake those stems. I’ve seen this done in several ways—vertical bamboo stakes along each stalk, horizontal trellis netting, or a picket fence post. Whatever you choose for support, install it as soon as you plant the tubers or as soon as you see the first shoot.

I love how you mention the joy of sharing, not just the flowers, but the tubers too. What do you love most about sharing your dahlias with others? Do you have any favorite stories of times you’ve passed them along or gifted them?

I have a dear friend who loves the color purple, so any time I’m growing flowers even remotely close to that color, I arrange bouquets for her. I’m very much a “just because I love you” kind of gift giver—especially with flowers. On one such occasion, her mother was visiting in town and saw the bouquet and just loved it!

My friend later shared with me that her mom was beside herself with glee at their beauty and wanted to know if I’d share seeds with her so she could plant such gorgeous blooms in her own South Carolina garden. I was tickled by how much happiness they brought her. Of course, I said I would be happy to share a few tubers with her.

For my long-distance friends, I’ll share photos of the blooms through text as a way to say I’m thinking of them. I think I’ve sent you photo bouquets multiple times! If I have a stint of multiple parties, get-togethers, or what have you, in lieu of buying a gift, I’ll pick and arrange a bouquet from my garden. I have an entire kitchen cabinet devoted to collected jars, glasses, and containers just so I can give away flowers.

That’s such a great idea, to collect jars and glasses for your hand-picked bouquets. It makes them even more thoughtful and unique. Your bouquets are truly magical and the photos you send of them are a bright spot in my days.

Are there any varieties you look forward to growing year after year? Do you have any favorites or ones that hold special meaning for you?

So far, I’ve only grown the Night Queen variety. Last year, I bought some low-mounding dahlias, which were great for adorning a decorative flowerbed or placing in a large pot, but they weren’t very conducive for picking. I have a few varieties on my list for this year: Boom-Boom White, Cornel Bronze, and Cafe au Lait. My mom special orders her tubers from Holland. If my local friend sells out before I can order, I might go the international route—I mean, dahlias from Holland?! What a dream!

What is making you come alive right now outside of growing flowers?

Sourdough! I was recently gifted my first starter in December and I love it! I was adamantly against making it for so long because I didn’t want one more thing to feed—the farm animals and family keep me busy on that—BUT I have found baking bread and other sourdough-enriched foods have brought me such joy. I love that the bread we eat as a family is made directly in our kitchen and that I get to pour out my love into what I make.

More on Flowers:

My Three Favorite Easy-to-Grow Spring Flowers

An Interview with Flower Farmer Sarah Davis

You can find more interviews in my series here.