Dahlias #3 Dividing and Propagating
In this section I will try to describe the process of dividing Dahlia clumps and also the propagation of Dahlias from cuttings.
Crate full of Dahlia Tubers
First inspect your clump of tubers, and look for eyes and try to figure out which one is the Mother Tuber - the original tuber you put into the ground last Spring, has now completed it’s life cycle.
In this photo, is one of the clumps I had dug out last fall, and now I am cleaning the dirt off and having a good look at all the tubers attached to the core of the group and finding the eyes.
Small clump of Tubers, with eyes circled with black magic marker
The clump split in half
Four Tubers are the result
Complete the task on all the tubers you have stored over the winter. Remember if no eye then there won’t be any growth!
Propagating Dahlias from Cuttings - also produces a clone of the original tuber.
First you must wake up the tubers you wish to propagate, since not all tubers wake up at the same rate, start earlier than you think. Once the eyes become more visible, place your tubers in growing media and on top of a heat pad, and wait for shoots to form. Once you have a viable shoot, use a clean disinfected scalpel and cut off the shoot, dip it in rooting compound and place it in moist growing media and cover with dome to maintain humidity. In approximately 10-14 days roots will form and and you will notice additional growth. once the roots form you will not need the dome and will need grow lights or sunshine to continue to grow.
Allow your young Dahlia to grow and leaf out and then plant outside after a few days of hardening off. Cuttings are about one month faster than starting from a tuber in the ground. They will develop tubers and create a small clump by Fall. BUT when you dig the clump up in the fall DO NOT DIVIDE it. The Following Spring plant the entire clump out and allow for a new tubers to grow out. Then you can divide the clump in the Fall. Those first tubers created from a cutting are fibrous tubers and should not ge divided for propagating. Propagating from cuttings is a very quick way to increase your numbers of a specific variety relatively quickly but it still takes a year minimum.