Dahlia propagation taking cuttings

Taken at @hallsofheddon on the 17th February 2023 this short video shows how we set about taking cuttings from our Dahlias. We often hear of basal cuttings being recommended as a means of taking cuttings. Whilst there is nothing wrong with this method it can limit the amount if cuttings you can get from a tuber. For most situations that isn't a problem but where a high number of cuttings are needed then taking cuttings as we do can help yield many more.
It is very important to only propagate from healthy stock that is true to type so regular inspection throughout the growing season is very important, especially at flowering time. Correct labelling is vital throughout the process. I would also emphasise that checks should be made at all stages of propagation with any suspicious tubers being destroyed.
Each year we take in the region of 80-90,000 cuttings from the 6500 or so tubers that we lift. These are, if necessary, supplemented by pot tuber stock.
Some might question the amount of cuttings we take off our stock tubers over a 3-4 month period but the quality of the stock flowering in our fields in September shows this has no negative impact.
I hope this helps give you some understanding as to what we do and the work involved behind the scenes in not just the growing but also the planning of production to match supply of plants as best we can with the demand.