How can one narrow down the best dahlias for cut flowers to a list of 10 or 20 or 30 or more when there are thousands of varieties to choose from? When you’re growing dahlias for cut flowers, you need to grow quite a few varieties to ensure your bouquets are always beautiful and that they differ from week to week. Having multiple varieties in each colour group or colour palette is important. Having multiple varieties to choose from is important. Having different styles of blooms is important. Having blooms all season is important.
Warning! This is a highly subjective topic, but we hope to give you some ideas that will help you choose the best dahlias to grow for cut flowers.
Our list of favourite dahlias for building bouquets may change over time as we develop and or grow new varieties. And it may also change due to our personal tastes and styles changes. One year we were all about the waterlily blooms, then it was the cactus dahlias that struck our fancy, now its the balls and decorative styles.
We specifically source, select for and grow dahlias that are best for cut flowers. If we can’t use it often in a bouquet, then we’re not likely to grow very many of them and we’re not likely to grow them year after year. The best dahlias for cut flowers must have great stems that are easily used for bouquets and flower arrangements. And they must be floriferous, producing a good amount of blooms over the season.
The vast majority of the dahlias we favour for cut flowers are in the 3-6″ bloom size range and we like a few in the 2″ size range for bouquet accents. We have developed a large collection of varieties that are excellent for cutting, so for the most part we’ll break down our favourites for cut flowers by colour group.
Favourite Accent Dahlias ~2″
Small World (white), Skeena Posh (blush pinky lavender), Skeena Daybreak (yellow), and Skeena Kiss Kiss (red) are favourites.
We like to grow a number of “accent blooms” for bouquets because they add a great deal of interest and texture to arrangements. Typically pompons, miniature ball & decorative style blooms that are approximately 2″ in size work beautifully as accent flowers.
Favourite White Dahlias ~3-6″
Carl Chilson, Skelmersdale Jayne, Irish Ruffles, Skeena Crystal
White blooms are an excellent staple to have growing because they can be used in so many styles of bouquets all season long.
Favourite Blush Dahlias ~3-6″
Skeena Yve, Skeena Posh, CB Snowshadow, Skeena Nana
These are favourites blooms for bouquets that tend to have a white base and blush soft pink or pinky lavender. Odyssey, Tahoma Odyssey, and Daddy’s Girl are excellent too!
Favourite Light or Dark Blend Dahlias ~3-6″
Skeena Easy Breezy, Skeena Harmonies, Skeena Sugar Pie, Blyton Softer Gleam
Blooms with blends of multiple colours are fabulous for tying in solid colour flowers of the same colour palette in bouquets. Some blooms like Skeena Harmonies have an outline of a complementary colour along the petal edges called picotee! Its super pretty.
Favourite Yellow Dahlias ~3-6″
Canoz Jaguar (buttery yellow) , Skeena Hope (soft muted buttery yellow), Skeena Fairy Lights (light and lemony)
Always bright! Always a delight! There are many hues and tones of yellow. The buttery and the lemony tones are on trend for us. The buttery tones pair well with pinks, whites and burgundies. The lemony tones are fun to pair with whites, oranges and lavenders.
Favourite Orange Dahlias ~3-6″
Ryecroft Jill, Brown Sugar, Seabeck’s Shirley
The colour of Joy! We. Love. Orange. The thing about orange dahlias is that its such a versatile colour for use in bouquets. Early summer thru to the fall, customers love orange in bouquets all season. When we roll into September, the leaves on the trees start to turn colour and the cooler nights whisper of fall, orange is still a star.
Favourite Pink Dahlias ~3-6″
Miss Sarah, Clearview Peachy, Bargaly Blush, Hamari Rose
Pink is forever! Give us all the pink all the time! Again, as with other colour groups there are so many tones and hues of pink. Pastel, barbie, bubblegum, peachy. The list is infinite. Picking a colour palette may help you settle on the varieties that work best for your own preferences.
Favourite Lavender Dahlias ~3-6″
Bloomquist Compare, Skeena Glitter, Snoho Sonia, Robann Regal
We love the soft pastel lavenders. Gorgeous in bouquets with whites and soft yellows.
Some lavenders have a pink tone, and some pinks have a lavender tone. Those subtleties can make a big difference when choosing the best blooms for your bouquets. Sometimes you just won’t know if a dahlia will go well with others until you grow it and use it in bouquets. We take photos of our blooms alongside colour cards to give a sense of the tone and size of dahlias. The colour cards are available for purchase from the American Dahlia Society.
Favourite Coral Dahlias ~3-6″
Askwith Minnie, Flip Flop, Jomanda, Skeena Sockeye
The shades of corals can be softer or darker and depending on the variety lean more into pink, red, or orange tones. We love corals blended in bouquets with whites and yellows. They are also striking when arranged with mauves and lavenders.
Favourite Red Dahlias ~3-6″
Aurora’s Kiss (very dark), Bloomquist Crave (medium dark), Cornel (medium red), Skeena Katie (medium red)
Those dramatic, not quite black, red dahlias are drop dead gorgeous! They go so well with pinks and other tones of red. We love to grow a number of brighter red dahlias to use in our rainbow bouquets.
Favourite Purple Dahlias ~3-6″
Twilight Boy (wow colour), Skeena Gem (floriferous), Bloomquist Mojo (vigorous)
Productive purple people pleasers – these favourites are all of that! From incredible colour (Twilight Boy) to exquisite gold tips (Mojo), these dahlias are great choices for cut flowers
Favourite Bronze Dahlias ~3-6″
Hy Patti, Skeena Humpy, Cornel Bronze
Subtle undertones of pink and orange. The bronze colour palette is warm and well suited for exceptional fall themed bouquets.
That’s already quite a few dahlias that make excellent cut flowers. There are so many to enjoy. Discovering which dahlias you find best for cut flowers while building your own stunning collection will keep you, your friends and family in beautiful bouquets for years to come.
Enjoy the Dahlia!