08/12/2026
Why I stopped growing dahlias.
Now, all the dahlia lovers out there, please put your knives and pitchforks down. I too also love dahlias. I love their many petals, their long, strong stems, their subtle sunset tones. I have my favorites (looking at you, Robin Hood and Bracken Rose). They've been a Twig End Farm staple for years.
But I have a very small farm. A VERY small farm. And I finally admitted to myself that the space I've used to grow over sixty dahlia plants should be dedicated to a flower that would give me many more blooms per square foot.
Meet lisianthus.
It has taken me years to build up the confidence to finally take the plunge and start growing this beauty. Now I wonder why I waited so long.
Please no hate but now I'll compare and contrast dahlias and lisianthus and why it makes more sense to grow the second on my farm.
Like I said, blooms per square foot. I plant over 150 lisianthus in the space I used to plant just six dahlias plants. That's unbelievably more blooms, more than I can describe, which truly makes a huge impact on a tiny farm.
Vase life. A dahlia bloom will start looking sad in the vase after three or four days. Lisianthus? It's probably the one flower with the best reputation for vase life. Want something that still looks stunning on your table after two weeks? Lisianthus is your girl.
I could go on. I could talk about their long window of harvest, how well they store in the cooler, how gorgeous they look in the garden. How much less physical labor goes into growing lisianthus than growing dahlias (and lifting and dividing their tubers and hoping they store well through winter). You get the picture.
And for my dahlia people: I am still growing twelve dahlia plants this year. I couldn't go entirely without a few of my favorites. But honestly, I'm not sure I'll even be growing that many next year. I'm not sure I'll need to.
Because lisianthus have earned my respect and stolen my heart.
🖤
