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

Overview

Dahlia 'Zirconia' (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 'Zirconia' (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 'Zirconia' is a multi-stemmed, clump-forming tuberous herbaceous perennial grown for summer and autumn blooms and cut flowers. Its foliage is normally green, with some plants showing darker leaves. It prefers a south-facing, sheltered spot in neutral loam kept moist but well-drained. Flowering runs 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 'Zirconia' belongs to the Asteraceae and is cultivated as a bedding and herbaceous perennial with tuberous roots. The plant forms a compact clump of stems and leaves, and some stock has darker foliage that can add contrast in mixed plantings. Blooms are produced from July to October, making it a summer–autumn presence in the garden. Select a south-facing, sheltered position in loam with a neutral pH; the soil should hold moisture yet drain freely to avoid waterlogging. Give the plant full sun for best flowering and avoid exposed, windy sites. In the UK it carries an H4 hardiness rating (average), so place it where winter exposure is moderated and consider any local microclimate differences when siting tubers. Dahlia 'Zirconia' suits formal and informal borders, containers on a sunny patio, and use as cut flowers. Its season-long flowering period from July to October provides stems for arrangements and fills late-summer gaps in perennial borders, while the occasional darker foliage forms a visual counterpoint to lighter-leaved neighbours.