Dahlia David Howard

The 'David Howard' Decorative Dahlia has a range of attractive shades. Its generous and long flowering consists of large double flowers of a vibrant orange highlighted by a darker heart shade. The whole is enhanced by dark foliage leaning towards purple and violet. This rare and fascinating combination contributes to the composition of characterful flower beds and allows for the flowering of the house with beautiful and lasting bouquets.

Belonging to the Asteraceae family, the Dahlia is a perennial tuberous plant that is sensitive to frost and needs to be stored during winter in most regions. It appreciates sunny exposures and prefers rich soils for long and colourful flowering. Its erect and rather bushy habit is suitable for summer annual flower beds. Its hollow stems stand 80 to 100 cm (32 to 39in) tall and sometimes require staking. They bear compound leaves with three to five finely-toothed leaflets. Their very dark green, close to black, is nuanced with purple and slightly violet reflections. At the top, beautiful double heads proudly stand towards the sun. They consist of several rows of wide and barely concave ligulate flowers arranged in a very orderly manner. Very tightly packed in the centre, they form a darker-coloured heart. Towards the outer edges, the ligulate flowers enlarge and unfurl. The whole opens up and quickly reaches a diameter of 10 cm (4in). Their colour, a very vibrant orange, is a source of light and cheerfulness in summer compositions and harmonises well with the foliage.

Thanks to its particular colour palette, 'David Howard' is a distinguished guest in flower beds with characterful tones. It is essential in ensembles that sweep the range of reds, from orange to purple, and naturally blend with Echinaceas, Heleniums, and other Dahlias. Our 'Catalan' and 'red and black' inspirations perfectly harmonise with their strong nuances.