Talk Dirt To Me

Gardening in Alaska presents big challenges, whether it's the extra effort in finding plants tough enough to survive our Zone 2-4 climate, communicating with like-minded Alaska gardeners, or keeping up with the latest trends, issues and solutions. We'll try to help with that. We'll also tour gardens from Homer to Anchorage to Wasilla to Willow whenever we get the chance, and post the best garden photos around. Presenting a forum about cold-weather gardening and for cold-weather gardeners is what we are all about. We hope you'll join us on the Talk Dirt garden blog.

Photographer and gardener Fran Durner (fdurner@adn.com) writes the blog.


2009 Garden galleries

Images from a full year of gardening in Alaska.

Jeff Lowenfels

A member of the Garden Writers Hall of Fame, Jeff writes a weekly column on gardening in Alaska.

Moose-free garden? - 11/5/2009 8:23 am

Book review: Black Plants - 10/29/2009 3:46 pm

November Garden Calendar - 10/28/2009 2:49 pm

Fall means apples and winter veggies - 10/26/2009 6:12 pm

Botany of Desire airs on Wednesday - 10/25/2009 5:39 pm

Some changes proposed for muni Horticulture Section - 10/22/2009 11:47 am

Verna and Frank Pratt recognized - 10/20/2009 10:35 am

Birds are gardeners' companions - 10/18/2009 6:58 pm

Anchorage is one of the best cities for community gardens - 10/14/2009 3:18 pm

Fall colors Outside - 10/14/2009 11:26 am

Take advantage of the sun to mow your leaves. - 10/12/2009 4:09 pm

A gardener's conundrum - 10/11/2009 5:00 pm

Out of the office and in the garden - 10/1/2009 5:07 pm

October Garden Calendar - 9/30/2009 11:25 am

Yes Virginia, maples can grow in Alaska - 9/29/2009 4:21 pm

TREErific tree tour on Wednesday at UAA - 9/28/2009 2:26 pm

Dig, bake and eat potatoes in Palmer Friday - 9/24/2009 4:09 pm

Still time to harvest - 9/23/2009 4:52 pm

Termination dust signals the end of summer - 9/22/2009 4:04 pm

I know you have photos, I know you do... - 9/17/2009 8:41 pm

More mushroom walks this weekend - 9/16/2009 8:47 am

Gardening grows camraderie - 9/15/2009 10:43 am

Splitting dahlias with Amelia Walsh

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One of Amelia Walsh's dahlias. Photo by Fran DurnerOne of Amelia Walsh's dahlias. Photo by Fran Durner

If you love dahlias, like I do, you've probably tried a million ways to keep them through the winter.

I've tried storing tubers buried in moss or in bags of wood shavings, wrapped in sheets of newspaper, even tucked naked into baggies. I've tried every recommended way I can think of only to find a stem with rotted tubers attached or a mostly dessicated brown lump harder than a piece of driftwood come spring.

So this year I decided to try Amelia Walsh's method. Amelia is known for her beautiful dahlias that line the side of the house during the summer and have their own plot in the Walsh's sizable garden.

Amelia digs her tubers in the fall and doesn't wash off a speck of soil. Her philosophy is that they are just going back into dirt so why bother? Makes sense. Meanwhile the tubers sit in large tubs. She'll split the tubers and replant them in pots as soon as she can get to them. With hundreds of dahlias in her collection, that can take a bit of time. Last year Amelia had 900 pots of dahlias stored between her garage and the unattached heated greenhouse. Talk about a collection!

With hundreds of pots of dahlias, Amelia Walsh lines the driveway next to the heated greenhouse. Photo by Fran Durner.With hundreds of pots of dahlias, Amelia Walsh lines the driveway next to the heated greenhouse. Photo by Fran Durner. Besides repotting the tubers in dirt, the other trick seems to be keeping the storage space barely heated, not more than around 42 degrees, and keeping them as dark as possible through the winter so they don't break dormancy and begin growing too early. Amelia will check them occasionally and break off any stems that have begun to show above the soil. When it's time to start growing, they will put out more.

The other thing is to plant in slightly moistened soil - not too damp or the tubers will rot. Amelia also adds a little steer manure to the soil mix.

VIDEO: Splitting dahlias with Amelia Walsh

I visited Amelia recently and watched as she potted up a few tubers. You might find this video instructive - she makes it look so easy!

A garden gnome watches over pots of plants inside the greenhouse. Photo by Fran DurnerA garden gnome watches over pots of plants inside the greenhouse. Photo by Fran Durner Amelia also stores pots of geraniums, primroses, sedums and cactus in the greenhouse - many of them still in bloom just before Thanksgiving! But that's a subject for another time....