April Digest 2024

A Note From Our President

April holds a special spot in my heart because it marks the kick-off of new growth in the garden after the winter chill – I'm always so ready for it!

For the DSO, April is buzzing with action! We've got three in-person events lined up, and I'm hoping to catch you at one of them. There's nothing quite like reconnecting with everyone and I’m excited to meet all of the new members.

But you know what event has got me the most excited? The DSO Dahlia auction. We've got some awesome donations lined up, and I just know it's going to be a blast. Plus, it's your chance to snag some seriously hard to get dahlias. You won't want to miss out on this!

As always, if you have any questions about your dahlias—please message me. If I don’t know the answer I’ll put you in touch with our more experienced members.

Jess

Membership Renewals

It’s that time of the year again when membership renewals are due. If you are a returning member, your membership is good through 4/30/2024. You can renew on our website with the option to purchase just a DSO membership or an ADS membership as well. The DSO membership will cover all of the local meetings and events and with the ADS membership you will be a part of the larger parent organization and receive The Bulletin, their print publication three times a year.

If you want to mail your membership fees, you can download the application from our site and mail it to Nancy Riopelle.

To shop the tuber/plant sales you will need to be a paid member for the 2024-2025 season.

If you are unsure, please email Nancy at membership@dahliasocietyofohio.org and she can check for you.

Digest Question of the Month

We reached out to the membership to ask you how many dahlia plants you plan on growing this season. There is a large range - from first time time growers with 5 to seasoned gardeners with 1500!

Mean: 280
Median: 75
Minimum: 5
Maximum: 1500

Upcoming In-Person Events

Quarterly Get Together

Join us on Apr 4, 2024 for a night out. We’ll be meeting at Slyman’s Tavern in Independence, 6901 Rockside Rd, Independence, OH 44131.

Jess will have a special "unicorn" tuber to give away - must be present to be entered to win.

We’ll meet there at 6:00 pm.

If you’re interested in attending, please RSVP.

Grazing Party

Join members of the MVDS and the DSO for the annual Grazing Party that is hosted by Jim Chuey and the Swaney’s. What’s a Grazing Party? Similar to a potluck, you can bring a dish to share and graze on some food and chat with dahlia friends. We’d love to see you there!

It will be Apr 13, 2024, at noon at the Moebius Nature Center in Aurora Ohio.

Dahlia Auction

The DSO will once again be hosting an auction for hard to get/popular dahlias which we haven’t done since pre-COVID. This will be the day before our tuber sale opens and there will be varieties at the auction that will not be available online. This event will be in-person, we’ll have some snacks and beverages available at the event. This will replace our April meeting.

This event will be on April 19th, in person, at Furnace Run Metro Park, 4955 Townsend Rd., Richfield 44286 at 7:00 pm.

We will have a list of dahlias available for auction posted the Monday before the event.

If you have dahlias that you’d like to donate specifically for the auction, please let Tammy or Jess know.

Please bring a form of payment with you, either a check or you can pay via Paypal. More details on the auction are below.

Plant and Tuber Sales

Tuber Sale

Our annual tuber and plant sales will again be held online this year. If you are interested in donating tubers to the sale (or for our new member kits) please contact Tammy May. Tammy will need to have your tubers in hand by Apr 12, 2024. All tubers must have a visible eye.

The tuber sale will be April 20-21st. Pick-up of tubers will be at Petitti’s in Oakwood on on April 27th from 10 am - 1 pm.

Plant Sale

The plant sale is scheduled for May 11th-12, 2024 with pick up on May 19th at Willoway Nursery.

The list of what tubers/plants that will be available for sale will be posted the week before along with instructions for the sale.

The sale is members only. If we have extras we may open to the general public.

DSO Merchandise

Want to get some DSO swag and donate to the club at the same time? You can check out our online store where we have a number of clothing & accessory options for you. The DSO gets a small portion of each sale.

Shop Now

Member Spotlight!

Name: Kim Smola

City/Town: Avon

Tell us a little about yourself: I am a retired Speech-Language Pathologist having spent 35 years in the educational setting. I'm married and have 2 adult children. We have 1 grandson and are anxiously awaiting the birth of our second grandson in February and twin granddaughters in June! I like to golf, garden and exercise. I also dabble in watercolor painting and love to bake. I have roses and a great vegetable garden and have recently been bitten by the dahlia bug!

Number of years growing dahlias: I'm entering my third season of growing dahlias.

How did you get into the world of dahlias? I got interested in dahlias after my son started growing them.

What is your favorite dahlia to grow? I love the pastel dahlia such as Cafe Au Lait and Sweet Natalie.