Dandy Dahlias: U-Pick at Jamie’s Dahlias and tips for growing your own

Fortunately for us, Clark County’s dahlias are unbothered by pandemics or smoky skies. Local dahlia fields are still blooming like that’s the only thing that matters. Even though dahlia season starts in July and peaks around Labor Day, these fearless flowers will keep strutting their stuff until the first frost of October.

If a bouquet of vivid blooms sounds like just the pick-me-up you need, consider visiting Jamie’s Dahlias, 704 N.W. Hughes Road, Washougal. If you’re not able to make it to Washougal before the fall’s first cold snap, then here’s an introduction to this remarkable flower, with expert tips on growing your own and information on where to purchase dahlia tubers locally.

U-pick

If you’d like to pick your own, now’s the time to do it. Jamie’s Dahlias is currently the only U-pick dahlia farm in Clark County that’s open to the public. Visitors are welcome every day of the week from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. to cut their own bouquets, or to wander the fields searching for unusual varieties to grow in next year’s garden. Dahlias are cultivated from tubers that are typically dug up after the growing season and planted again around Mother’s Day, when the warmth of spring days will coax them into an extraordinary array of blooms.

“We have 220 named varieties, and we have about 20 originals that are seedlings that we’ll name this year,” said Jamie Smith, owner of Jamie’s Dahlias along with her husband, Kerry. “We have everything from micro-palm, which are under 2 inches, all the way to dinner plate double dahlias, over 8 inches wide.”

The Smiths purchased the dahlia business from Linda’s Dahlias, a now-closed farm that was also located in Washougal. The Smiths moved all the growing stock and equipment about four miles down the road to their own property before officially opening in September 2019. It’s been a bumpy first year, with the pandemic and then choking smoke at peak blooming and picking season.

“Our fields are in perfectly full bloom right now, so it’s absolutely heartbreaking,” said Smith, who had to close her farm for several days when the air quality was hazardous due to smoke. “It’s still in full bloom, but definitely every single color has popped.”

Jamie’s Dahlias offers more than U-pick, providing richly colored blooms for weddings, baby showers and other milestone events and celebrations. Brides can choose a color palette of custom-picked blooms, which Jamie said is “a very affordable option for weddings,” especially for couples who are eager to keep their dollars local.

The farm is also a valued resource for dahlia aficionados who wish to purchase both popular and rare varieties. It’s an inspiration to see fields of blooms in person, of course, but anyone can visit jamiesdahlias.wixsite.com/2020, www.facebook.com/Jamies-Dahlias-111072660284739/ or www.instagram.com/jamiesdahlias/ and start dreaming of future blooms.

“I post lots of pictures of different varieties on my Instagram so that people can start to generate a wish list,” Smith said.

It’s not too soon to start planning now for a garden bursting with jewel-hued dahlias next July, but be warned: a fondness for this flower can easily become a passion.

Dahlia fever

Clark County dahlia grower Adrienne Hale, board member of the Portland Dahlia Society and senior judge for American Dahlia Society shows, first fell in love with dahlias at the Clark County Fair. Her daughter had entered an art competition, which was situated across from a dahlia display. Hale had grown dahlias in her own garden for many years, but never considered that her blooms could win ribbons.

“I started looking at all these flowers, and there was this one guy who had entered all these dahlias. I was like, ‘Well, I grow dahlias. If he can do it, I can do it,’ ” Hale said. “So the next year I entered my dahlias at the Clark County Fair. That the same year – 2012 – there was a national dahlia show in Portland, which was fantastic.”

She was hooked. She joined the Portland Dahlia Society in 2012 and then the American Dahlia Society in 2013, and now she grows award-winning show dahlias from her garden in Vancouver’s Northwest neighborhood. Part of the flower’s enduring appeal, she said, besides its long blooming season, is the vast variety of bloom shapes, sizes and colors.

“It’s an unknown number, there’s so many,” said Hale, who quickly reeled off a dozen forms of bloom, including fully double, ball, miniature ball, palm, formal decorative, informal decorative, orchid, orchette and water lily.

Hale had plenty of tips for first-time growers. Dahlias grow best in well-drained soil with full sun. They like water but can rot when overwatered, and they won’t survive freezing temperatures. Hale recommended fertilizing at the time of planting, then once a month until August. She also noted that tubers multiply once they’re in the ground, so if you plant one tuber, you might end up with five tubers at the end of the season – perfect for sharing with friends or expanding your collection. Hale said she digs her tubers up when the rains start so she can divide them and ensure they don’t die during the Pacific Northwest’s wet, sometimes snowy winters.

“For a lot of people, you can get away with just leaving them in the ground,” Hale said. “They’ll start to grow just as soon as the sun starts to warm up. You just have to be willing to put up with losing them. It just depends on the weather.”

Hale says she’s already planning for the next American Dahlia Society show in Portland 2023. Until then, you can visit Cowlitz River Dahlias in Castle Rock, www.facebook.com/crdahlias/, or make the trek to Swan Island Dahlias in Canby, www.dahlias.com or www.facebook.com/swanislanddahlias/, where you can see fields of late-blooming dahlias or purchase tubers (but no picking, sorry). Evelyn’s Garden in Battle Ground sells tubers online at www.gardensbyevelyn.com, and you can find fresh dahlia bouquets from this grower at Allen Designs Studio, www.allendesignsstudio.com, at 4510 N.E. 68th Drive, Unit 116, Vancouver. You can also buy cut dahlias at the Vancouver Farmers Market, open every 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays through Nov. 1.

The most delightful option, however, might be to savor blue skies and fresh air from the middle of Jamie and Kerry Smith’s blooming field in Washougal, and leave with your very own bouquet of sparkling gems.