Five Reasons NOT to Lift Your Dahlia Tubers.

A few years ago, I wrote a whole article called Five Reasons to Lift Dahlia Tubers.

Well... I’ve changed my mind.

The more dahlias I grow, the more I realise there’s a big difference between what you can do in the garden and what you actually need to do.

I used to lift my dahlias every winter. Now, if they’re growing happily in well-drained soil and have overwintered successfully before, I’m quite happy to leave them exactly where they are.

So, in the interest of making gardening a little less complicated, here are five reasons not to lift your dahlia tubers.

• It’s a lot less work
  No digging, washing, drying, storing, labelling and replanting.

  When you grow a lot of dahlias, lifting every single plant at the end of the season becomes a pretty big job. Leaving established plants in the ground saves a huge amount of time and means one less garden job to worry about.

• Dahlias can overwinter perfectly well in the ground
  Here in Brightwater, Nelson, we have relatively mild winters, and our dahlias are growing in raised garden beds with good drainage. In those conditions, we’ve found they are perfectly happy staying in the garden over winter.

  Before the winter frosts arrive, check the beds and make sure all the tubers are completely covered with soil and not poking out above the surface. If exposed tubers get frosted they will rot.

  The important part here is knowing your own garden. If you have very wet soil or particularly cold winters, leaving your tubers in the ground may not work as well for you.

• Established clumps can produce brilliant plants
  If a dahlia is growing beautifully, I don't see much point in disturbing it just because another winter has arrived.

  Instead, I leave established clumps alone and divide them when they actually need it. In my garden, that could mean leaving a clump in place for three to five years before I decide it's time to dig it up, divide it and replant.

  If it's healthy and flowering well, I'm quite happy to let it keep doing its thing.

• There’s less chance of losing tubers in storage
  No shrivelling, rotting, forgotten boxes or labels mysteriously disappearing over winter.

  Well... my labels still mysteriously vanish in the garden, but there’s slightly less chance of it happening.

  Storing tubers successfully takes a bit of care, and leaving them in the ground removes that whole process.

• You don't have to garden by the rules
  This is probably the biggest thing I've learned.

  There are plenty of gardening rules about what you're supposed to do, but your own garden will tell you a lot more if you pay attention to it.

  If your dahlias are healthy, your soil drains well and they've overwintered successfully before, you don't need to create extra work for yourself just because someone says dahlias must be lifted every year.

  Do what works in your garden, your soil and your climate.

So, should you lift your dahlias?

Sometimes, yes.

If your soil stays wet over winter, you live somewhere very cold, you want to move or divide your plants, or you've got a particularly precious variety you don't want to risk, lifting your tubers can absolutely make sense.

But if your dahlias are happy, your soil drains well and they've already survived winter in the ground?

You might be able to leave the spade in the shed.