Dahlia Melody Lizza

The Dahlia 'Melody Lizza' is a small decorative dahlia and a feast for the eyes, its extravagant flowering unfolds its bicolour palette of mauve pink and cream. Each slightly hollowed ligulate is finely edged with magenta on a cream background. The flowers are very double and very full, with a small cluster of yellow and magenta petals in the center. It blooms for a long time, with buds succeeding from summer to autumn, above a dark green and compact bush, densely leafy.

Dahlias belong to the asteraceae family and are originally native to the high plateaus of Mexico. At present, the few 20,000 horticultural varieties obtained by humans have invaded, to our greatest pleasure, gardens all over the world.
The variety 'Melody Lizza' is a semi-dwarf dahlia, it will not exceed 55 cm (22in) in all directions. It is also classified among decorative dahlias, which is a horticultural category defined by the shape of the flower. In this group, the coloured ligules of the capitulum are arranged regularly in a spiral, they can be curved towards the stem or fringed for example. The flowers of 'Melody Lizza' are 10 cm (4in) in diameter. The outermost ligules are pink cream, margined with mauve pink, and those in the center are yellow tinged with magenta. The golden heart of the flower only appears late, just before withering. The flowering takes place from July to October. The habit is bushy and compact, not requiring staking. The very branching stems are hollow and the leaves are opposite, pinnatisect, meaning they are divided into 3 or 5 very toothed lobes. The leaves and stems are dark green with a bluish tint.

To encourage flowering, be sure to remove faded flowers, or better yet, regularly create large colourful bouquets by combining them with other varieties. 'Melody Lizza' pairs particularly well with pale pink and yellow flowers. In the front of borders, this dahlia will create colourful spots alongside Echinaceas for example, which bloom at the same time, as well as daylilies or asters. This modest-sized variety is particularly suited for container gardening, to easily decorate the terrace or balcony.

A star plant for borders and cottage 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 relegated it to the rank of ornamental plant. Since then, the interest in their beautiful exuberance has never waned.