Dahlia Dark Angels American Pie

The Dahlia 'American Pie' is part of a series of selected varieties for their small size, dark foliage, and small, abundant flowers in vibrant colors. These are vigorous, floriferous, and original Dahlias, perfect for border ornamentation and potted flowers. The flowers of 'American Pie' are a tender and fresh pink, marked with a small orange center, they cluster candidly on a lovely cut foliage of almost black purple. It blooms early in the season and its flowers renew until the first frost.

Dahlias belong to the Asteraceae family, they are originally from the Mexican high plateaus and have inflorescences organized in capitula, which we commonly call 'flowers'. Currently, the approximately 25,000 horticultural varieties obtained by humans have invaded, to our greatest pleasure, gardens all over the world. The Dark Angels Dahlias, developed in the Netherlands, have names that allude to successful American films such as 'Braveheart', 'Pretty Woman', 'Star Wars', 'Dracula', 'Pulp Fiction', and our adorable 'American Pie'.

The variety 'American Pie' ('Vdtg26') is a dwarf Dahlia, it will not exceed 30-40 cm (12-16in) in all directions. It is also classified among the decorative Dahlias called 'Mignon', which is a horticultural category defined by the shape of the flower. In this group, the 8 ligules or colored 'petals' of the capitulum (what we generally call the flower) are arranged in single corollas around a central disk. The 'American Pie' flowers are approximately 4 cm (2in) in diameter. The peripheral ligules are a fresh pink, very bright at blooming, warmer at the base, and fading to a pale pink over time. The initially very dark heart of the flower is composed of tiny flowers that bloom in a bright yellow-orange. The flowering takes place from June-July to October, or even November if the weather is mild. The habit is bushy and compact, not requiring staking. The very branched stems are hollow and the leaves are opposite, pinnately divided into 3 or 5 very toothed lobes. The leaves here are tinted with a very dark purple, with bronze-green reflections in the sun. The stems are also a very dark purple.

To promote floral re-growth, take care to cut off faded flowers, or even better, regularly make large colorful bouquets by combining it with other compact varieties. 'American Pie' goes well with all other Dark Angels varieties in planters and at the front of flower beds. Very colorful in both leaves and flowers, this Dahlia often stands on its own. However, you can offer it a setting of white and delicate flowers such as Diamond Frost Euphorbia, Nemesia, white snapdragons, or Aster prostratus Snow Flurry for example. Also consider small grasses like Pennisetum setaceum Rubrum, Stipa pennata and barbata, and Carex Comans bronze, which will bring a beautiful touch of lightness and elegance to the ensemble.

As a star plant for borders and herb gardens, Dahlias confidently accompany the most beautiful flowers but are also appreciated alongside vegetable plants. In Mexico, this tuberous plant was first cultivated as a root vegetable for consumption. But its poor taste qualities assigned it the rank of an ornamental plant. Since then, the interest in their beautiful exuberance has never waned.