FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
We get these questions a LOT and hope this will be helpful. Please read through these FAQ's before contacting us. We don't have employees, so it may take us a few days to respond. If the answer to your question is on this list and you do contact us, we may not reply or may reply with a link to the FAQ's solely for efficiency purposes.
1. Can you reserve tubers or cuttings for me so that I don't have to fight the dahlia wars for them when they are available? Do you have extras I can buy directly from you?
A: To be fair to everyone, we cannot set aside tubers or cuttings outside of a live sale. Currently, extras rarely exist in this industry and the only inventory we have outside of what we list for sale is what we set aside for planting. The current demand is insane and in order to maintain our integrity, we will not accommodate such requests. If Mother Nature allows more inventory to become available, we will announce a restock via email to our subscribers so you can be ready the moment the sale goes live.
2. Will you be restocking?
A: Mother Nature will determine this and we are unable to predict or control what she will do. We may or may not restock certain varieties depending on when they "eye up" and/or if we end up with more cuttings than predicted. Restocks will be announced in advance via email to our email subscribers.
3. When is your sale date?
A: If the sale date isn't yet posted, the sale date has not yet been determined. We typically aim for late January or early February, but it depends on when we finish dividing and counting. We will notify our email subscribers and post the sale date(s) on our website when they have been set.
4. Do you ship to Canada or anywhere outside of the US?
A: Not at this time. The demand in the United States alone is more than we can currently accommodate, so we do not plan on expanding our shipping area any time soon. We currently ship to all 50 states, including Alaska and Hawaii.
5. When will you ship my order?
A: We politely ask that you please don't email us regarding this question unless you didn't receive your order within the stated timeframes on the website (April & May). We absolutely understand your excitement to receive your box of goodies! However, we get this question so incredibly often while we are packing orders that it slows us down - which slows down how quickly we can pull orders. Our shipping timeframes are entirely dependent on Mother Nature here in SW Michigan and it often takes us a few weeks to pull all of the orders. We are unable to ship on demand, even if you are inclined to believe that harassing us will make us ship to you first - it won't. We do not want to risk your tubers or cuttings being damaged by extreme temperatures. You will receive an order notification and tracking number via email when your order ships. If you have travel plans or another issue that needs to be taken into consideration before we ship your order, by all means, contact us and we will accommodate you if possible (unless you're requesting that we ship early or in bad weather). If there is a shipping delay for any reason, we will let you know via email. Early Access Memberships have an option for early shipping with insulation and heat packs. This is ONLY available to the Early Access Members, and ONLY for tubers, because we cannot accommodate many early shipments before April due to other farm duties during that time. If you are a member and have opted for early shipping, your tuber orders will start shipping in March *IF* temperatures are consistently at least 35 degrees. Cuttings are not eligible for early shipping.
6. Do you guarantee that my tuber will grow?
A: No, because there are too many variables with dahlias and too many factors that are completely out of our control. You will receive a viable tuber with a visible eye. Once your tubers are in your hands, it is your responsibility to care for them and not to kill them. We highly recommend pre-sprouting your dahlias indoors in ziplock freezer bags (halfway closed) with fresh potting soil (we prefer ProMix BX.) There is no need to add water until you see sprouts & roots, and even then - water sparingly to avoid the possibility of rot. Do NOT use heat mats with your dahlias, room temperature is perfect to get them started. Keep the established roots intact when planting outdoors. Your dahlias have a much better chance of survival if they have established roots when planted. We guarantee that you will receive the variety you purchased from us, but cannot guarantee how it will perform in your climate. Soil health, temperatures, rainfall, fertilizers, daylight hours, your location, insect pressure, humidity and many other factors can contribute to how your plant performs. We understand that is a risk, but it is a risk you accept when you decide to purchase dahlias. Dahlias aren't the easiest of plants to grow and we encourage you to become comfortable with growing them before investing your money into the pricey "unicorns".
7. How much inventory do you have of a particular variety?
A: We try to build as much stock as possible during the growing season, but in all fairness, we cannot disclose our inventory. We may or may not restock certain varieties depending on when they "eye up" and/or if we end up with more cuttings than predicted. Restocks will be announced via email to our email subscribers.
8. What is your virus protocol?
A: This is a tricky topic. We do not claim to be scientists or plant virologists and much more extensive research needs to be done in the field of dahlia viruses. First and foremost, we sanitize our tools (with a virucide / bactericide / fungicide / mildewstat) between every single plant when harvesting stems, dividing and taking cuttings. We do not host U-pick events in order to prevent contamination of our stock. With cuttings, the cuttings from one tuber go into their own separate mini-pod that isn't shared with any other cuttings from any other tubers. In our indoor grow room, we only water the plants from the top so that they don't ever share water between plants.
With that said, virus is part of nature. It's not going away. If one virus is eradicated, a new virus will emerge. We don't take any chances with spreading virus within our stock, but it is impossible to prevent entirely since there are so many vectors. Microscopic insects are the most common vector, such as thrips and aphids. We have an aggressive insect control regimen and use an electrostatic sprayer that covers all sides of the leaves. We rotate insecticides to avoid resistance and typically spray every 14-21 days for maintenance and prevention. Just to add, our dahlia area is a significant distance from our home, our pets and any neighbors. Please don't judge, we're just trying to keep our plants healthy. We will be looking into using beneficial insects to control the bad bugs in the future, but need to do more research first. A plant that is virus-free one day could be infected the following day by a single bug. Recent studies have concluded that 85-90% of dahlias carry some form of virus, but don't panic! Not all viruses are the equivalent of Ebola. If you were to test your grass, trees, and landscape plants, you'll find virus there too. Personally, we feel that Mother Nature isn't given enough credit to overcome obstacles on her own. Every living thing has an immune system, albeit very different mechanisms. TLC, in different forms, can help fight off virus (although our bodies or plants may still contain evidence of prior infection). If we have a plant that is not performing well, we give it TLC and micronutrients, and an extra spray of insecticide (to prevent spread by insects in case it is sick), and time. If it rebounds beautifully into a productive plant, we thank Mother Nature for "doin' her thing" and move on. If a plant doesn't rebound, we pull it, place it in a plastic bag and put it in the trash (not compost). The one exception to that is TSWV - Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus. It can affect thousands of different plants and can be particularly harsh on dahlias. Fortunately, we haven't seen many instances of TSWV on our farm. However, if we see the telltale bullseye ringspots, we pull that plant immediately. We might be overreacting here, but until we know more, we won't take any chances with TSWV.
We cannot guarantee virus-free stock (and if anyone can, it likely won't stay virus-free for long unless it's grown in a vacuum). We pull any plants that don't perform well after being given TLC and nutrients. Plant performance is one of our top priorities. But given the statistics, virus is a risk we all take when purchasing dahlias. It is nearly impossible to trace when and where a plant was infected and we cannot take responsibility for those unknowns.
9. What is your protocol for Leafy Gall and/or Crown Gall?
A: We follow the same sanitation practices as outlined above in our virus protocol with every single plant. If we see any signs of Leafy Gall or Crown Gall, those plants are immediately bagged in plastic and put into the trash (not compost). Fortunately, we have had very few instances of gall on our farm. Gall can take months to years to show up, and is nearly impossible to detect where it came from. We cannot guarantee that your tubers/cuttings from us will never get gall, because the bacteria could already be in your soil or nearby plants. However, if for some reason before you plant your tubers from us, they show any signs of gall, please reach out to us. We will double check our stock and if our stock of that particular variety has also developed symptoms of gall (that we previously didn't detect), we will refund you.