Dinner Plate Dahlia

Dinner Plate dahlias are fun to grow because the blooms are so much bigger than most flowers. I planted the tuber for this one in an old hanging basket pot, and tucked it into one of the sunnier spots in the garden.  The roots can grow through the drainage holes of the pot into the garden soil underneath.  Come fall, I can just pick up the pot, cut back back the dahlia stalk, let the soil dry out, and store it in the basement over the winter. If the tuber makes it through to next spring without rotting, I'll have some nice big yellow flowers again next year.  I have been fertilizing it every two or three weeks with a soluble formula suitable for flowers. I staked this plant because it kept leaning towards the sun, but in a full sun location it would have been fine unstaked.