This weekend we received NZ Bulb's 2019 Summer Catalog, offering a beautiful array of seasonal flowers: lilies, sweet peas, begonias, gladioli, zantedeschia (calla lilies), and dahlias. What interested me most were the dahlias. I came across two varieties we've had growing in the Homestead gardens here at Struan Farm for years and years (and years).
One is called "Cactus Yellow Star," the other "Cactus Colour Spectacle." The latter is a striking orange, one of my favourite flowers around the place and certainly my favourite dahlia. The yellow one was my father-in-law's favourite flower. (Long standing blog readers will remember I have a somewhat love/hate relationship with dahlias, I'm not keen about their tendency to swoon over in the gardens. But John's parents loved them and we continue to have them in the gardens as a result.)
It was good to learn the names of these dahlias, which are designated "heirloom" in my mind since they date back to John's parents. Also that this spiky type of dahlia is called a "cactus." Other types are "single" and "Collerette," which have a collar.
It's nice to have these pops of brilliant colour in winter, isn't it?
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