Minnesota Prairie Roots

SEVERAL YEARS AGO my friend Steve gave me some dahlia tubers.

I looked at the ugly, dried pieces of root and wondered if he was crazy. How could something so drab transform into a beautiful flower?

Steve assured me that would happen and even pointed to the tiniest of sprouts emerging from the tubers.

Well, he’s made a believer out of me.

Into my third year of growing dahlias, I am already passionate about this prolific plant that produces pedestrian-stopping blossoms. Seriously. Last year a guy paused to photograph a saucer plate-sized red dahlia with his cell phone. Granted, he was from China, so in reality he was a tourist, but still…

I’ve received numerous other comments about my beautiful flowers.

Like those many admirers, I am simply smitten by the showy dahlias. Not only do they fill my yard with color, but my house too. These make great, long-lasting cut flowers.

That’s why I need to tour my friend Steve’s dahlia patch soon. When I visited his spacious dahlia garden last autumn, he sent me home with armfuls of dahlias.

There’s something simply romantic and delightful and inspiring and wonderful about a house overflowing with dahlia bouquets.

© Copyright 2009 Audrey Kletscher Helbling