Why I Oughta...

The last of the Dahlia tubers are in the ground:  I planted four Cornell Bronze Dahlias that I bought this past winter from Longfield Gardens.  I started them in nursery pots indoors, then moved those to the patio to get acclimated.    I've put in six Melina Fluer dahlias - three in the sideyard and three in the front porch bed .  Then, I put in four Orange Nugget dahlias in the new sideyard bed .  And, now I've put in four (2 in sideyard and 2 IB2DWs) Cornell Bronze dahlias.  13 total plants for the season.  Cut flower season. These are behind the others, but with a little water and a lot of sun, I'm thinking they'll close the gap quickly. 

2024 is the year when I need to continue to remind myself to get more comfortable with flowers.  By that, I mean...I'm a gardener.  But, I'm a foliage gardener.  Because of my full-shade backyard, I've opted for focusing on foliage gardens - ferns, astilbes, shrubs, trees.   Last Fall, I bought a couple of late-season flowering perennials and decided that I needed to do more - specifically in the new IB2DWs (extended) bed that is a conifer garden.  At the end of last growing season (2023), I ran through my normal 'to-do list' grades, but I also wrote up some 'lessons learned' that included 10 things that I wanted to keep in mind including #6 :   6. Flowers continue to be a little bit outside my comfort zone. Change that. I started this Fall, but plenty more room to grow/go. Countertop arrangements need flowers. Try some dahlias, too. I've started down that path - at least in theory.   Back in December, I ordered some Dahlia tubers ...