Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => General Gardening => Topic started by: fatbelly on February 04, 2012, 09:19
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Hi,
Last year I ordered some Dahlia Tubers from T & M.
They arrived in the post this morning in plastic bags in a box. The tubers look in very good condition but the planting instructions say not to plant until April. How do I store them until then. I have a cold but dry brick garage should I just take then out of the plastic bags and leave in the box in there?
I have never grown these before but now I have moved to a full size plot and I now have space for flowers :D
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You need to ensure they do not get frosted - in the current temperatures I'd avoid the garage or a shed. Have you got somewhere cool but not frosted?
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Yes we have got a loft room which isn't heated but never gets frost.
How shoud I place them up there, left in the box covered over away from the light or spread out on a tray?
Thanks for the speedy reply :)
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Not sure - my guess would be covered, but I'll let others answer this.
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In a light room, yes, cover. However, it sounds like, you might not need anything doing to them. This is standard storage: perforated plastic bags, with vermiculate or sawdust in, in a box. If so, just put the whole job somewhere frost free. Check a couple of times that none started decaying.
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Thanks for all the help guys and also the swiftness of reply.
Into the loft they will go packed advised.
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My tubers - dug up from end of flowering season last year - are in trays in the cold greenhouse. Am hoping they'll be alright not in the dark, but as Gobs pointed out, tubers are stored in perforated clear bags, and stay like that for months in garden centres.
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They just might start growing then. You want them to be dormant for a while.
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I find I must pot mine up by March so they start coming back to life. otherwise, they're too slow and start to flower just when fall frosts come along. They'll usually sulk in their pots for about a month, then finally start coming to life.
I'm talking the big dinnerplate dahlias rather than the smaller varieties.
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Hi, just a tip when they start to grow (you may already do this) pot them up the when big enough take cuttings and pot them up,you will get more plants for the same price :D.A show grower we met says he did all his plants like this and the results were fantastic.Not sure about plastic bags tend to make things sweat then rot if not checked, good luck.