Dahlias: An Essential Flower Consideration to Build a Bouquet

Flowers of the Field
Jul 11, 2020
2 min read

Title: "Dahlia - An Essential Bouquet Flower" and "bridalbuilder.com/blog" with a hand-drawn dahlia sketch in the background. Colors: purple, yellow/gold — @bridalbuilder

This week, we talk about our #3 most-suggested flower, the dahlia.

You guys seem to be big fans of the dahlia, as well! Let's talk about this flower, why it's so popular, and what to expect from your florist when you show them a bouquet design with dahlias in it.

A pink and yellow variant of a dahlia flower against a green, leafy, sunny background. — Photo credit: @_backyardblooms_

For a recap on how we find out which flowers are most popular in a bouquet, click here.

What is a dahlia?

A purple dahlia flower fills the screen with circular petals that give it an almost perfectly-round shape. — Photo credit: @flowersfrommytravels

According to The Spruce, Dahlias are very diverse flowers, ranging in color and bloom size as well as petal shape. This flower is native to Central America and has 30 species. Dahlias are considered cut flowers by most florists. They're somewhat persnickety to grow, as their temperature and sunlight have to be right to yield preferable results, but are quite long-lasting. The stems are especially sturdy, so they make good arrangements (such as bouquets)!

What do you need to know about dahlias in a bouquet?

Growing season

Dahlias bloom between mid-summer and the first frost of the year. Because they're very hearty, dahlias can actually still bloom after a light frost, but won't last long in the cold. Dahlias need full sun, so once winter hits, they will typically stop blooming for the year.

A cluster of bouquets wrapped in brown tissue paper viewed from above. The bouquets have white, light blue, pink, and purple flowers and various greeneries. — Photo credit: @elizabethjaneflowers

Color variety

They're diverse, just like hydrangeas. Florists like to play with dahlia genes and make new, more spectacular versions of dahlia every year!

Bloom size

Dahlias range in size from little buds to plate-sized flowers, depending on how big the overall plant is. Since dahlias are really hardy like hydrangeas, there's a wide variety of them.

We put out an article on hydrangeas a couple weeks ago. Click here to see our thoughts on that gorgeous flower!