It Turned Out To Be Pink!

This was the year of dividing most of the dahlias, but it is also the year of conserving water, which does not bode well for anything. I planted dahlias in various places around the yard, curious to see what colors made it through the winter. Of course they were unlabeled, but I figured I would see flowers soon enough. Turns out that between the gophers and the drought, not very many of the plants survived at all, even the ones in cans. What started out as a good burst of foliage ended up a stunted mildewed mess. I could repeat this experiment next year, since I think the bulbs are still viable, but given the conditions, I am about to give up on dahlias altogether. Stunning when they work, but a lot of fussing for someone who's trying to simplify the garden. Still, this pink dinner-plate dahlia is hard to lose. The flower is at least as big as my hand span. It's one of the few that isn't named for the friend who gave it to me, since I actually bought it many years ago.