Dahlia 'Wise Guy' (D) — Bushy, clump-forming, tuberous perennial

Overview

Dahlia 'Wise Guy' (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 'Wise Guy' (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 'Wise Guy' is a clump-forming, tuberous herbaceous perennial grown for summer and autumn flowering from July to October. It belongs to the Asteraceae family and is used for bedding and cut flowers. Foliage is normally green but plants may occasionally produce darker-leaved shoots. Plant where it receives full sun on a south-facing, sheltered position in moist, well-drained loam with a neutral pH.

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 'Wise Guy' is a tuberous, clump-forming herbaceous perennial in the Asteraceae. It is raised for its season of display from July to October and is commonly used in bedding schemes, planted in containers, or grown to supply stems for cutting. The habit is clump-forming and the foliage is usually green, with occasional dark-leaved forms appearing on individual plants. Give Dahlia 'Wise Guy' a sunny, south-facing spot with shelter from prevailing winds. It prefers loam that is moist but well drained and a neutral soil pH; these conditions support steady growth and flowering. In UK hardiness terms the rating is H4 (average), meaning it is suited to normal garden conditions across much of Britain when sited where winter wet is avoided and plants are protected from exposure. This cultivar works well at the front or middle of a mixed border, in large patio containers, or in an area dedicated to cutting flowers. Planting in a sheltered, sunny aspect will help produce longer stems and extend the display through the July to October season, making it straightforward to schedule stems for vases during those months.