What are the Easiest Dahlias to Grow?
Handful of Salmon Runner and Wyoming Wedding dahlias as the field just began to bloom in August 2026.
February 2, 2026
Are some dahlias easier to grow than others?
In my years of growing thousands upon thousands of dahlias on our regenerative flower farm in Western New York, I can say in my experience that, yes! Some dahlias actually are easier to grow than others. In this article, I’ll explain why some dahlias are easier to grow and which varieties we sell in our Dahlia Tuber Shop that are most likely to make your dahlia-growing adventures successful and rewarding.
What makes a dahlia easy or hard to grow?
In general, dahlias are not hard flowers to grow if you have optimal gardening conditions.
To grow dahlias successfully, here is the main criteria you need — and note that each step is super important:
Full Sun Exposure (8+ hours of sun exposure per day preferred)
Good Drainage (no standing water after rains and watering)
Balanced, Fertile Soil
Consistent Watering
For help with growing the best garden for dahlias, I wrote a book! In Growing Gorgeous Dahlias: The Regenerative Grower’s Guide to Abundant Dahlias from Garden to Flower Farm, I describe in thorough detail how to improve soil and grow the most fabulous dahlia garden of your dreams. If you grow dahlias (or flowers of any kind) you will benefit so much from the information I share!
Assuming you have all of the above gardening criteria in check, your dahlia-growing pursuits should be floriferous. If you want to ensure success, you could select varieties that are guaranteed to be easier to grow than others.
Criteria for a dahlia being “Easier” to grow than others
There are a handful of dahlia varieties we grow on our flower farm that we will always grow simply because they are so reliable.
“Easy” dahlias sprout sooner than others, and generally always have a large sprout started at planting
They pop through the soil surface earlier and generally bloom earlier
They are very resistant to powdery mildew (I have never had mildew on any of the varieties listed below)
They are floriferous and will keep shooting up blooms after cutting
They produce lots of tubers, and the tubers from these varieties generally store well (they are not prone to rot)
easiest dahlia varieties to grow
The varieties in our field that are the easiest to grow (based on the criteria above) are: Blizzard, Cornel, Cornel Bronze, Chimacum Katie, Jowey Winnie, Hemisphere, Kelvin Floodlight, Maarn, Natalie G, and Salmon Runner.
Feel free to browse our Shop and look forward to our Dahlia Tuber Sale starting March 1, 2026!
