Dahlia Brown Sugar

The Dahlia 'Brown Sugar' is a variety of Dahlia known as a 'ball' Dahlia, with flowers that display a truly flamboyant colour, in coppery orange with a redder centre. Medium-sized and slightly flattened pom-poms, the flowers are organised in countless cells that play with light and give depth to the flowers. The plant, of medium stature, blooms abundantly from summer to frost on long, sturdy purple stems, which hold up well both in bouquets and in borders. Its autumn-coloured flowers will be stunning with asters or the blooming of grasses.

Dahlias belong to the Asteraceae family, they are originally from the high plateaus of Mexico and bear inflorescences in heads, which we commonly call 'flowers'. Currently, the approximately 25,000 horticultural varieties obtained by humans have invaded, to our great pleasure, gardens all over the world.

The 'Brown Sugar' variety will measure approximately 1m (3ft) in height and 70 cm (28in) in diameter after 3 to 4 months of cultivation. It is classified as a Dahlia from the decorative group with Ball-type flowers. In this category, the heads have no visible centre and are composed of numerous petals (ligules) regularly arranged and completely rolled up on themselves, tubular, and never flaring. This includes varieties that form true spheres, such as pompons (diameter less than 6 cm (2in)) and balls (diameter greater than 6 cm (2in)). The heads of this 'Brown Sugar' variety generally measure 9-10 cm (4in) in diameter. The ligules are initially uniformly coppery orange, then those in the centre turn dark red. The plant has an upright habit, and its sturdy stems usually do not require staking. The flowering of this variety begins in July and ends in October-November, if one takes care to remove faded flowers or frequently make bouquets. The highly branched, long, and sturdy stems are hollow and the leaves are opposite, pinnately divided into 3 or 5 deeply toothed lobes. The leaves are dark green here, and the stems are purple.

To encourage repeat flowering, make sure to remove faded flowers, or even better, regularly make large colourful bouquets by combining it with other varieties. 'Brown Sugar' produces splendid flowers in bouquets, in the company of single or pompom-type varieties of white, orange, or even purple. This variety stands out beautifully against the bronze or purple foliage of fennel or the acid green of alchemilla. In borders, this joyful Dahlia will create highly colourful spots alongside grasses such as foxtail barley and cordifolius asters ('Little Carlow') for example, which bloom at the same time. Its long, heavily blooming stems allow for the creation of bouquets until late in the season.

As a star plant in borders and ornamental 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 relegated it to the status of an ornamental plant. The Dahlia, with its infinitely varied shapes and colours, is now considered one of the most beautiful flowers in the garden.