Dahlia 'Hy Clown' (D) (Dahlia) — Bushy, clump-forming, tuberous perennial

Overview

Dahlia 'Hy Clown' (D) is a bushy, clump-forming, tuberous perennial bedding in the genus Dahlia, part of the Asteraceae family, with green, occasionally dark-leaved foliage. Dahlia 'Hy Clown' (D) 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.

About

Dahlia 'Hy Clown' is a bedding, tuberous herbaceous perennial that produces blooms from July to October. It forms a multi-stemmed, clump-forming habit with green foliage that can occasionally be darker. Plant in full sun on neutral loam in a south-facing, sheltered spot and use in borders, containers or for cut flowers. The plant belongs to the Asteraceae family and suits season-long summer to autumn display.

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 'Hy Clown' sits within the Asteraceae family as a tuberous, herbaceous perennial grown for its extended summer-to-autumn flowering. From July to October it provides a steady run of blooms that make it useful where a prolonged display is wanted. The foliage is generally green but may present darker tones in some plants, adding subtle contrast in mixed plantings. Give this dahlia full sun and a south-facing, sheltered position to reduce wind exposure; it prefers loam of neutral pH and soil that remains moist but well-drained. The hardiness rating H4 (average) indicates it is suited to most UK gardens when sited in a sheltered spot. Good soil structure and consistent moisture regimes help sustain flowering through the season. Use Dahlia 'Hy Clown' where its flowering period will be most appreciated: edging borders, large containers on a sunny terrace, or a cutting patch for seasonal bouquets. Its tuberous nature and midsummer start to flowering mean it slots into planting schemes that need reliable blooms from mid-summer into autumn, supplying stems for cutting over several months.