Dahlia’s are considered to be one of the most beautiful flowers on earth and come in many, shapes, sizes and colours. In today’s product profile we dive deeper into the history of this astonishing flower. 
 

Origin

The dahlia is part of the composite family. Famous family members include the Sunflower, Chrysanthemum and Aster. A family trait these flowers share is the star-shaped placement of the petals around the heart of the flower. 

The flower originates from Central America. And took its first steps on the European mainland in the late eighteenth century when the Spaniards brought this flower home from Mexico. They gave a name to the, then unknown, flower; Dahlia. Named after Swedish botanist Andreas Dahl. Quickly the flower spread throughout Europe and everywhere it went, people were absolutely enchanted by its looks. The ‘rise of the dahlia’ was unstoppable and people started breeding intensively with the dahlia. Nowadays, all commercially available dahlia’s are actually hybrids. There are about 42 species within the dahlia genus and over 20.000 different varieties. 

Dahlia is an extremely popular cut flower and a very popular garden plant as well, as it can survive without any effort in almost any circumstance. Plus, the more flowers you’ll cut from the dahlia, the more flowers will grow back. What a win-win situation!

Symbolism

Dahlia comes in many different shapes and sizes. The petals can be round, spikey or curled and are available in the most brilliant colours you have ever seen. 

The elegant dahlia symbolises dignity, elegance, inner strength, commitment, uniqueness, grace and an everlasting bond. During Victorian times, dahlia symbolised a deep connection and an everlasting love. Partners gifted dahlia’s to each other to express feelings of deep appreciation and eternal love for each other.

From the Victorian era back to the current day; Since 1926 an annual dahlia flower parade takes place in Zundert (the Netherlands). This 'dahlia parade' is the largest of its kind and is the second largest flower parade in the world. The preparations for the parade start months in advance. Fields of dahlia’s are planted; about 6 to 9 million flowers are used in the dahlia flower parade. 
 

Assortment

Dahlia’s in our selection are supplied from The Netherlands, by My Dahlia Society. We also source Italian Dahlia's. Click here to go to our current available selection. Please keep in mind that our selection changes daily.