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

Overview

Dahlia 'Starburst' (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 'Starburst' (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 'Starburst' (S-c) is a tuberous, clump-forming herbaceous perennial used for bedding and cut flowers that blooms from July to October. It has green foliage that can be occasionally darker in some plants and prefers a south-facing, sheltered spot. Plant in loam with a neutral pH and keep soil moist but well drained. It suits summer and early autumn displays in borders and containers.

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 'Starburst' (S-c) is a member of the Asteraceae and originates from the dahlia group native to western South America, Mexico and Central America. As a tuberous, clump-forming perennial it is treated as a summer-flowering bedding plant or herbaceous perennial in UK gardens, producing blooms from July to October. Grow it in full sun on a loam soil with a neutral pH, keeping the soil moist but ensuring good drainage; a south-facing, sheltered position helps flowers develop reliably. The plant carries green foliage that may be darker on some cultivars; stems and tubers support repeated summer flowering when sited and fed appropriately for tuberous dahlias. Hardiness is H4 (average), so it fits readily into many UK garden situations without requiring exceptionally mild conditions. Use Dahlia 'Starburst' (S-c) in mixed borders where summer and autumn colour is needed, in large containers on a sunny patio, or as a source of cut flowers for seasonal bouquets. The flowering window through July to October makes it particularly useful for extending vase-worthy blooms into autumn, when stems still hold well for cutting.