Dahlia Philadelphia

The Decorative Dahlia Philadelphia produces elegant flowers, perfectly uniform in dark red. They are architectual, fully double, medium-sized, composed of countless wide and almost flat petals. It blooms for a long time, from summer to autumn, above a strong medium green clump. A star plant in ornamental gardens, it pairs well with white, pink, and deep violet shades, planted at the back of perennial borders. Its flowers are great for making generous bouquets.

Dahlias are tuberous plants from the large Asteraceae family, originally native to the high plateaus of Mexico. Currently, the approximately 25,000 horticultural varieties obtained by humans have invaded, to our great pleasure, gardens worldwide. Dahlias are classified according to the shape of their flower. 'Philadelphia' is classified in the category of Decorative Dahlias. In this group, the coloured ligules of the head are arranged regularly in a spiral, they can be curved towards the stem or even fringed, for example. In this variety, the heads are about 8-10 cm (3-4in) in diameter and their ligules are a very rich red. The flowering period is from July to October. The plant will reach 1.20 to 1.50 m (4 to 5ft) in height, and 60 cm (24in) in width, with a bushy and erect habit. The highly branched stems are hollow and the leaves are opposite, pinnately compound, meaning they are divided into 3 or 5 leaflets, which have very denticulate lobes. The leaves and stems are medium green.

To promote repeat flowering and extend the flowering period, be sure to remove faded flowers. Even better, regularly create attractive colourful displays by combining various varieties. The tall stature of this variety makes it suitable for the back of perennial borders, of course, to structure a composition of flowering shrubs and lower perennials. The flowering of Echinaceas is a perfect accompaniment to that of Dahlias, as they occur simultaneously, as well as the flowering of perennial salvias for example. Also consider ornamental grasses (Miscanthus saccharifolius, Stipa arundinacea, Eragrostis trichodes) that take on beautiful colours in autumn.

A star plant in ornamental gardens, dahlias are undoubtedly beautiful flowers, they are perfect in flower beds but can also enhance the vegetable garden. In Mexico, this tuberous plant was first cultivated as a root vegetable for consumption. Its poor taste qualities quickly assigned it the status of an ornamental plant. Since then, the interest in their beautiful exuberance has never waned.