You still have a couple of days to catch the dahlia festival at Swan Island Dahlias in Canby OR. We went last Monday to avoid the crowds…HAH! It was wall-to-wall people but a fun, festive atmosphere. (I just missed catching a shot of an adorable little girl peeking out the center of that flower graphic)
Row upon row of incredible flowers stretch as far as the eye can see.
Thanks to clear signage, you can wander the fields to create a list of must-haves.
My latest heartthrob is the pom pom form, like ‘Maarn’, above. Hard to believe that nature can produce such geometrical perfection.
‘Spartacus’ is a whoppin’ big guy with recurved petals and a velvety richness.
‘Gitt Crazy’ has wonderfully modulated shades of color and a name that must have come from a late-night session fueled by who-knows-what.
The fields will be open through September. Here’s a glimpse of what you will miss if you can’t make it to the festival: music, food, crowds of happy people, and extensive indoor displays of cut flowers like those above. I prefer seeing the flowers growing in the fields, where the varying heights and strength of stems are obvious.
We came home with a nice bouquet…
…and a full color catalog that I cut up to make my selections (it was a little too overwhelming to me to make up my mind on the spot). Prices range from a low of $5.95 to upwards of $25.00 for new introductions. You can order online HERE for delivery at planting time. OOOH what bouquets I dream of making next summer!
This is where I order my dahlias. It must be amazing to see their fields full of blooms. I always have trouble deciding from the many choices!
Suffering from overchoice is my favorite affliction.
So many gorgeous dahlias; so little space in my garden. It’s wonderful to visit dahlia gardens like this but my list always ends up being far too long and I’ve no empty space to plant any at all. I look forward to seeing your blooms next year!
I will have to shoehorn them into pots to avoid the *%*# gophers, but resisting temptation was not an option.
I’m not sure which I like more, the dahlias, or the fact you were out having fun! Oh wait, it’s that you were out having fun. Yay!!!
Yes! Fun was FUN!
This festival looks like so much fun! It’s so fun to see all the color and variety in one spot. Hope you’re doing well. I’ve been barely keeping up with blogs for a while, but it’s nice to see you out enjoying yourself.
Gardeners are the nicest people and garden bloggers even go them one better. Thanks!
Oh, maybe someday I’ll get to visit that. Love those Dahlias! Thanks for letting us see some of the fields–swoon.
Consider it a thank-you for all those posts you do of your wonderful SoCal flora.
I’ve been without them for two years ! Next year Dahlias .
They will fit in beautifully to your scheme.
So…does that make you “Gitts Crazy”?