Dahlia 'Corson Gold' (S-c) — Bushy, clump-forming, tuberous perennial

Overview

Dahlia 'Corson Gold' (S-c) is a bushy, clump-forming, tuberous perennial bedding in the genus Dahlia, part of the Asteraceae family, with green, occasionally dark-leaved foliage. Dahlia 'Corson Gold' (S-c) grows best in full sun, and tolerates loam soils and neutral pH. Its UK hardiness is rated H4. Suggested uses include borders, containers and cut flowers. It is native to Western South America, Mexico and Central America.

About

Dahlia 'Corson Gold' (S-c) is a tuberous, clump-forming dahlia grown for summer–autumn blooms and suitability for borders, containers and cutting. It produces green foliage, sometimes with darker leaves on certain plants. Plant in a sunny, sheltered spot on loam with a neutral pH and soil that stays moist but drains freely. Rated H4 for the UK, it performs in average British garden conditions and flowers from July to October.

About the genus

Dahlias come from the high meadows of Mexico, and somewhere in that heritage is the explanation for how they behave here: tender to frost, hungry, generous beyond all reason. No other plant gives you quite so much for so little. One tuber, planted after the last frost, becomes a shrub's worth of flowers by August — and the more you cut, the more they come.The range is faintly ridiculous. Tight pompoms, spiky cactus types, singles the bees adore, dinner-plates the size of your face. Whatever your garden's mood, there is a dahlia that agrees with it, which is probably why every generation falls out of love with them and then, a decade later, falls straight back in.They're at their best when much of the garden is winding down — late summer into autumn, flowering hard until the first frost calls time. I think of them as the encore. And they always play it.

Written by Henry

In the garden

Dahlia 'Corson Gold' (S-c) belongs to the genus Dahlia in the Asteraceae and traces its heritage to western South America, Mexico and Central America. As a tuberous, clump-forming herbaceous perennial, it returns each season from its storage roots and forms a multi-stemmed mound that supports summer and autumn blooms. Foliage is typically green, with occasional plants showing darker leaves. Choose a south-facing, sheltered site that receives full sun and avoid waterlogged positions. It prefers a loam soil at neutral pH that remains moist but is well drained; heavy, compacted soils benefit from organic matter to improve structure. In the UK it carries an H4 rating (average), so it suits most gardens where it can be given a protected, sunny aspect. Dahlia 'Corson Gold' (S-c) works well at the front or middle of mixed borders, planted in groups or as a single specimen in a container where the clump-forming habit is contained. Stems make reliable cut flowers for vases, helping to extend the border display into autumn. Expect blooms from July to October.