How To Cut Dahlia Flowers? Know Cutting and Arranging Your Dahlia for Floral Display

Dahlias are among the most popular flowers in the world, and for a good reason! They are stunning plants that can be arranged in many ways to create beautiful floral displays. To cut the dahlia for floral display, trim bouquet-length stems horizontally with pruners or scissors. Choose open or nearly open flowers since cut buds won’t open. Cut above leaf nodes and side buds if possible. Cut as much as your bouquet needs. These nodes will sprout shoots.Want to know more? This article will discuss how to cut dahlia flowers and arrange them for floral display. We will also provide tips on selecting the right dahlia for your needs and extending its vase life. By following these instructions, you’ll be able to create beautiful flowers in no time!

Dahlia Care: Cutting and Arrangement

While dahlia flowers make lovely bouquets, cutting a few to put in a vase is okay because doing so encourages the plant to produce more blooms. Make sure to remove any spent blooms as well.

The cool of the morning is the ideal time to cut flowers, including dahlias. Take stems that are long enough for your bouquet by cutting them horizontally with clean pruners or scissors. Since the buds will not open after being cut, choose open or nearly open flowers. If possible, aim to cut just above a group of leaf nodes and side buds. It would be best to cut as much length as you need for your bouquet. From those nodes, fresh shoots will develop.

Once the dahlia flowers have been picked, make a fresh horizontal cut at the base of the stem, and then place the cut ends in 2 to 3 inches of very hot (but not quite boiling) water. For at least an hour, leave the stems submerged in water. The blooms will last four to six days thanks to this hot water conditioning of the stems.

After conditioning the cut stems, remove any leaves below the water line in your vase. This holds for all bouquets, not just dahlias. Leaves that are submerged for an extended time decompose and release bacteria that reduce the flowers’ vase life. Every two or three days, replace the vase’s water and add a floral preservative to extend the life of the flowers. Even though dahlia arrangements are stunning, they can be combined with other cut flowers to produce stunning effects.

How to Extend Dahlias’ Vase Life

Dahlias in Bud Form

The dahlias in your garden will last longer if you cut them in the morning or at night, as suggested by The Backyard Gardener. According to the University of Georgia Extension, dahlias will not open if you cut them before they are fully bloomed.

To avoid damaging the delicate flower tissue, a clean, sharp knife should be used to make the cuts. Do not delay placing the flowers in a bucket of cool water to keep them from wilting.

Cut the Roots and Leave the Leaves

Keep the dahlia stems in the water while you use a clean, sharp knife to remove the bottom inch or so. It is best to cut the stem at an angle so that more of its surface area is exposed to the water in the vase.

Purge the Vase

Scrub the vase with a solution of one part bleach to 10 parts water after washing it with hot soapy water. It’s time to give the vase a good washing.

Prepare a Vase for the Dahlias

Warm water flows into the stems more quickly than cool water, extending the time the flowers can be displayed in a vase. A water temperature of about 110 degrees Fahrenheit is optimal. If you want your dahlias to last longer in a vase, you should get rid of any leaves or buds that will be submerged in water.

Preservative for Flowers

Dahlias should be placed in a vase with water and a floral preservative packet. Do not use homemade preservatives because they will not prolong the flowers’ life in a vase. Sucrose, acidifiers, and other ingredients in commercial products are all carefully calibrated to prevent bacterial overgrowth.

Refrigerate Flowers

Put the bouquet in the fridge for an hour or two before displaying it. Don’t put the flower arrangement near any heat sources, such as a radiator or a window that gets a lot of direct sunlight.

Changing the Water Regularly

Ensure the water level is checked daily and topped off if necessary. If the water smells or looks bad, change it out for clean water. Hold the dahlia stems under water while re-cut them to about 1/4 inch from the bottom.

Take Pleasure in Your Dahlias

The methods for extending cut flowers’ vase life are universal, including caring for dahlias. Find out which dahlias are the best for bouquets by doing some digging.

Dahlias are a great addition to any garden or bouquet because of their wide range of colors, shapes, and sizes, even if their vase life is shorter than that of more resilient cut flowers like zinnias. Whether growing dark red collarettes or purple cactus-type dahlias, you’ll find that dahlia cut flower production is well worth the effort.

Best Dahlia for Cut Flowers

Dahlia ‘Alfred Grille’

The fully double flowers are up to 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) wide and have long, velvety petals that curve elegantly toward the face of the bloom and look great against the dark green foliage. They don’t have too much weight at the top and stay nice and straight even when it rains.

Dahlia ‘Ambition’

A great dahlia is a bright purple with small flowers shaped in a great spiky way. In the Dutch dahlia trial field last fall, I fell in love with it all over again. A great cut flower that lasts a long time and is worth a lot.

Dahlia ‘Chat Noir’

Because of their long and velvety petals, the flowers last a long time in a vase and look like sea urchins. The Dahlia “Chat Noir” is praised by many people who like to garden. It can reach up to 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) wide, grow on strong stems and make an amazing focal point in the garden or a vase. This dahlia can grow up to 32 to 36 inches (80 to 90 cm) tall and is an excellent choice for making a beautiful garden display or show.

Dahlia ‘Honka’

Dahlia ‘Honka’ has pretty, 8-petaled, pale yellow flowers that look like stars and have a light scent. It looks more delicate than most Dahlias and has a quiet presence. Its flowers look good with other plants and add color and shape to the borders in late summer and fall.

Dahlia ‘Karma Bon Bini’

This flower has a lot of beautiful, orange-red, glowing flowers with a golden center. The double flowers have velvety petals that are longer than wide and are not top-heavy because they don’t hold much water.

Dahlia ‘Karma Choc’

Karma Choc is a unique dahlia because it has a lot of dark, velvety red flowers that are almost black in the middle. It is one of the darkest dahlias. It is perfect for cutting and has a long vase life (7-12 days). The fully double flowers have dark, strong stems and don’t lean too much to one side. Even when it rains, they stand up nice and straight.

Dahlia ‘Karma Corona’

This dahlia has beautiful salmon-orange flowers that glow and have a golden center. The petals of the fully double flowers are long. They have strong stems, so even when it rains, they stand up straight. This dahlia grows up to 3 feet (90 cm) tall and blooms from July until frost. It stands out in the garden and bouquets.

Dahlia ‘Karma Irene’

It has orange-red flowers with strong stems that light up. From midsummer until frost, it has a lot of flowers. This dahlia can grow up to 26 inches (90 cm) tall and stands out in a sunny border or a vase of flowers.

Dahlia ‘Karma Lagoon’

Dahlia “Karma Lagoon” is a beautiful flower that stands out and lasts a long time in a vase. It is perfect for cutting. This dahlia is also a great addition to the garden because it has beautiful purple-blue flowers. The fully double flowers stand on sturdy stems and look very pretty. They stand up straight and well. This type of dahlia makes a great cut flower but also looks great on a sunny border.

Dahlia ‘Karma Sangria’

This beautiful and eye-catching dahlia has bright pink flowers with gold accents that last a long time and sit on top of dark green, serrated leaves. It’s easy to see why it won so many awards. The flowers are beautiful and about 6 inches (15 cm) across.

Dahlia ‘Mrs. Eileen’

This award-winning dahlia is a beautiful flower with large, bright orange flowers that stand out against its lush green leaves. It has a long stem that makes it easy to place in the ground or if you want to make a beautiful cutting flower bouquet. It’s also affordable and grows up to 18 inches (45 cm) tall.

Pruning Dahlias

• When dahlia stems reach 16 inches, pinch off the flower heads (41 cm). The dahlia will produce its first four sets of leaves when it is young. To promote branching and a fuller plant with more flowers, pinch the top off the plant just above the fourth set of leaves.
• The dahlias are currently in the rapid growth phase of their life cycle and will therefore recover quickly.
• You can keep cutting back on new growth throughout the growing season to promote even more flowering.
• You can trim away the new growth with your forefinger, thumb, or any other sharp tool.
• If you want big blooms, each plant should only have 3–5 flowering stems. The dahlia’s energy is used up faster when it has more flowers, so the flowers get smaller—limiting the number of flowers on each plant to get the biggest dahlia blooms. This lets the plant’s energy go toward growing just a few large flowers.
• If you do not mind smaller flowers, you may include up to 10 stems. If you desire more flowers and are less concerned with their size, simply prune back new growth occasionally. As the dahlia plant branches out, up to ten flowers may appear on a single plant.
• Once flowers have begun to wilt, cut them off with scissors. Removing spent flowers, also known as deadheading, promotes the growth of new flowers. If you remove faded flowers throughout the season, your dahlias may continue to bloom well into the fall.
• Since dahlia stems are tough and stringy, it’s best to use sharp scissors, pruning shears, or a knife to cut off the flowers.
• Cut the flower stem back until it connects to the main stem.
• When deadheading, leave rounded buds alone. When a flower’s petals have all fallen off, the closed calyx that remains is called the dead head and can look very similar to a new flower bud. On the other hand, a bud has a round shape, whereas a dead head has a cone shape.
• Removing spent blossoms can stimulate the growth of new flower buds, but taking out the buds themselves will put off the blooming process.
• Dahlias should have diseased parts lopped off. You can improve the look of your dahlias by trimming off any brown or shriveled sections with a pair of gardening shears. If you do this regularly, you can help keep plant diseases at bay.
• Diseased parts of plants should be removed and disposed of properly, including leaves, buds, and stems.
• If you notice knots forming in the plant, it’s best to uproot the whole thing and start over. The knots will first appear close to the roots and worsen over time.
• If you notice the veins on your dahlias have turned a strange color, burn the plants and their roots immediately. Verticillium wilt can be identified by leaf discoloration and wilting, which can persist in the soil for years.
• If you can’t burn these plants because of local regulations, put them in the trash.
• If you notice mosaic mottling on the leaves of your dahlia, it is likely due to a virus spread by aphids, and you will need to destroy the entire plant.
• Keep dahlias away from overhead sprinklers to avoid smut. Yellow spots appear on the leaves due to smut, and the leaves turn brown and dry. When water is poured from above, it can pool and promote the growth of smut.