Storing Dahlia tubers over winter

Dirty Harry

What does everyone do?

Is there a best medium to store them in? Dry compost, wood shavings?

A crate would be handy if I could get hole of one but maybe individual pots is easier for identifying them all.

Storing them in the shed was my initial thought but I had a pot of compost in there last winter and noticed it had frozen solid one day! 

1634 Racine

Harry, not sure if you have noticed (difficult I know with the weather) but it is June 😁

Dirty Harry

I'm preparing well ahead of time rather than waiting until October to realise I'm not prepared...

Janie B

I knock off the excess mud, tie a name tag around a bit of the tuber, then store them wrapped in a couple of sheets of newspaper in a cardboard box in the shed. Last year I tucked them all in with some fleece. Seems to work for me here in Lincolnshire! 

1634 Racine

Dirty Harry said:

I'm preparing well ahead of time rather than waiting until October to realise I'm not prepared...

You are a trooper.  Personally I found a cardboard box filled with some shredded straw from pets at home was quite good 

hogweed

Wait until the first frost to lift them.

Hostafan1

I've not even got mine planted out yet. 
I know I'm behind, but clearly I'm REALLY behind.

Mr. Vine Eye

 I dug mine out. Washed them, sat them upside down in pots to dry for a week.

Then packed them in a plastic storage box, lined with card, and filled with dry compost, covered loosely with the edges of the card folded over the top and the plastic lid for the box. Left them in the shed.

They were all fine and are growing strongly in the ground (I didn't pot them, I just planted them straight in to the soil mid-end May.)

Only problem is I didn't do any labelling - relying on the fact the tubers were all different shapes - assumed I'd just remember which was which. Ha!

This year I'm just going to leave them in the ground and mulch them

TenN

I mulched mine this year but lost one plant. Not sure if frost or squirrels did for it though.

Janie B

Tbh, I only lifted mine this year, as I wanted to change them around a bit. I usually mulch, and they all come back!

Lyn

Much the same as above, but need to check for vine weevil that hide in the tubers, make sure they are completely dry before wrapping in newspaper or else they’ll rot, then pack in a cardboard box, but if plastic works for you, that’s your choice.  They are then stored in a spare wardrobe in a cool room.
Wait until the frost has turned them black.