There are 42 beautiful Dahlia species in all, including cultivars. But here are the main types, with at least one of the most popular varieties of the said flower:
- Cactus Dahlias – Dahlia ‘Alfred Grille’ and Dahlia ‘Karma Bon Bini’
- Semi-Cactus Dahlias – Dahlia ‘Henriette’
- Decorative Dahlias – Dahlia ‘April Dawn’ and Dahlia ‘Melody Dora’
- Pompon Dahlias – Dahlia ‘Wizard of Oz’
- Anemone Dahlias – Dahlia ‘Totally Tangerine’ and Dahlia ‘Purple Haze’
- Collarette Dahlias – Dahlia ‘Mary Evelyn’
- Mignon Dahlias – Dahlia HS ‘First Love’
- Single Dahlias – Dahlia ‘Waltzing Mathilda’ and Dahlia ‘Bright Eyes’
- Peony Dahlias – Dahlia ‘Bishop of Llandaff’
- Orchid Dahlias – Dahlia ‘Honka Fragile’
With this guide, our agenda is to delve into each of these types and their flower varieties so you’ll be familiar with them and figure out which one you might like to get.
1) Cactus Dahlias
The first type of dahlia, cactus dahlia is notable for its bright spiky petals. These petals usually curl back halfway across, emphasizing their spiked appearance even more.
Speaking of which, there are attractive hybrid cactus dahlias. They can grow over 3 feet in height and stand proudly with their fabulous flowers in your garden.
Popular Cactus Dahlias
- Dahlia ‘Alfred Grille’ – This cactus dahlia variety has bagged multiple awards. Despite the name of its classification, it resembles sea anemones with their bountiful salmon-pink petals.
Also, their long spider-leg-like velvet petals nicely curve toward their center. And their vibrant hues effortlessly and perfectly complement their tall, dark-green stem.
- Dahlia ‘Karma Bon Bini’ – It’s identified by its flaming red-orange sets of relatively short petals surrounded by a golden center.
The double flower measures 4 to 6 inches wide and doesn’t hold a lot of water. So whenever it rains, the Karma Bon Bini stays up safely and securely.
2) Semi-Cactus Dahlias
As opposed to cactus dahlias, semi-cactus dahlias have a broader petal base.
Apart from that, they’re the same in terms of fluffiness and full-double flower arrangements.
Popular Semi-Cactus Dahlias
- Dahlia ‘Henriette’ – One of the most amazing dahlias ever cultivated, the Dahlia Henriette captures attention with its bedazzling salmon-pink blossoms that lighten to cream toward their tips.
These extremely charming flowers can grow 4 to 6 inches spread and 3 to 4 feet tall. Their showy flowers make them great as cut or ornamental flowers during summer and fall.
3) Decorative Dahlias
The third type of dahlia is known for its broad and flat-ended or wavy petals that fall nothing short of spectacular.
Different decorative dahlias fashion either a formal or informal petal arrangement.
The formal ones have regularly placed, flat-tipped petals, while informal petals are mostly curved and situated in all directions.
Popular Decorative Dahlias
- Dahlia ‘April Dawn’ – The Dahlia April Dawn differs from the bright and eye-catching varieties. This one is informal and pastel in style with lilac petals turning purple at the ends around a white heart.
It can grow a width of 6 to 8 inches and a great height of up to 6 feet tall. Plus, it blooms abundantly throughout the middle and late summer and fall—just when other flowers are winding down.
- Dahlia ‘Melody Dora’ – Like its name, Dora, which means gift in Greek, the Dahlia Melody Dora is a spectacular gift of nature.
The complete double flower sports a salmon-pink color with inner petals igniting to a deep-orange or red-violet hue. However, it’s pretty short, growing up to 26 inches in height only in relation to the other dahlia kinds.
4) Pompon Dahlias
Aptly named, pompon dahlias are known for their mesmerizing ball shape. They have a mass cluster with row upon row of flat or roundish petals surrounding a white or yellow center.
Also, they are borne on a single strong stem that holds them up high. They are perfect as cut flowers, garden flowers, or potted ones for the deck, patio, porch, or garden.
Popular Pompon Dahlia
- Dahlia ‘Wizard of Oz’ – This is a light pink explosion of globular flower beauty. It stands on verdant, lobed foliage.
Although the lovely flowers are only 2 to 3 inches across, they are very eye-catching. And with their brightness and beauty, they attract many pollinators in the garden, especially butterflies.
You can plant the Dahlia Wizard of Oz in your garden bed, border, or patio. As a gift, you can definitely spoil someone close and dear to you with these magnificent blooms!
5) Anemone Dahlias
Anemone dahlias have a center of yellow or pink florets surrounded by majestic flat ray petals. They can have a single or double flower formation, both of which are equally beautiful.
Whether grown as garden, decoration, or vase flowers, they are a superb choice because they can quickly enhance the aesthetics of the area with their showy petals and various exciting colors!
Popular Anemone Dahlias
- Dahlia ‘Totally Tangerine’ – This dahlia is a simpler flower variety with eight lilac petals encircling a tangerine or hot orange flame of florets.
This flower grows up to 3 feet and is best suited to be ornamental and cut vase flowers. It also blooms abundantly from mid-summer to the first frost, during which it can wonderfully decorate your garden.
- Dahlia ‘Purple Haze’ – Large, double-flowered, and purple-red in shade, the Dahlia Purple Haze makes a fantastic showy addition to any garden or house interior.
The deep purple magnificence of the flower is matched perfectly by its matte and light green leaves. They brighten up even more when sunlight hits them.
In addition, it has a shadowy or black-hole-like center and adjoining parts that eventually reveal a white-yellow disc.
Its blooming time is between summer and early fall. As for its height, it can grow up to a little less than 3 feet.
6) Collarette Dahlias
Collarette Dahlias have a distinct collar of shorter flowers between the center and outer flat-ray petals, hence the name.
They are so stunning to behold wherever they are planted, be it in a garden bed, border, or container. They can add a delightful splash of color that can energize the homeowners and their guests upon seeing them.
Popular Collarette Dahlias
- Dahlia ‘Mary Evelyn’ – One remarkable collarette dahlia is the Dahlia Mary Evelyn.
This features triple colors of canary yellow, white, and red from the inmost center to the outmost petals. The outmost red petals are fan-shaped and blunt at the end.
With these three traditional colors, it can be great to tell someone you are fond of and love them truly and faithfully. These are what these colors symbolize, after all.
7) Single Dahlias
“Beauty in simplicity” or “the less elaborate, the more beautiful” briefly describe the single dahlia type.
Single dahlias have a single set of spiked and revolute (curling back) petals. Different species breathtakingly vary in color.
These summer and fall-growing blooms have a black center clustered by yellow-headed stamens.
Popular Single Dahlias
- Dahlia ‘Waltzing Mathilda’ – Graceful in its petal formation, the Dahlia Waltzing Mathilda has overlapping pink pointed petals with marginal strips of fuchsia.
The vivacious color nicely contrasts with the dark green stem and foliage supporting the flower. They are the people’s choice for cut and border flowers thanks to their exquisiteness and longevity.
- Dahlia ‘Bright Eyes’ – This is another captivating single flower. The Dahlia Bright Eyes is reminiscent of the sun with dominant hues of fuchsia and a shining yellow center.
The flowers are extremely lovely and sway lightly in the summer breeze. Also, its super-group of yellow stamens easily attracts butterflies and bees in the garden.
8) Mignon Dahlias
Mignon Dahlias are single-flowered species whose petals are round. In the center are no more than two rows of pollen.
Each of these flowers measures less than 2 inches in diameter. Their max mature height is less than 2 feet and their max spread is roughly 12 inches.
Furthermore, they vary in color combinations and are absolutely gorgeous as garden and container plants.
Popular Mignon Dahlia
- Dahlia HS ‘First Love’ – Botanists are great at naming things. Indeed, the Dahlia HS First Love is a great symbol of first love.
It consists of only a single row of eight petals with a lovely cantaloupe or light orange color plus a dark red-orange crowning the black and yellow center.
9) Peony Dahlias
Peony dahlias have a sublime flower structure like the well-known peony flower. They have one to three rows of half-cupped or flat petals opposite a burgundy center disk.
The flowers of the peony dahlia are eye-catching, and they are safely borne on a forest-green stem, which nicely pairs their color. Plus, like all dahlia plants, they’re very simple to care for.
Popular Peony Dahlia
- Dahlia ‘Bishop of Llandaff’ – This particular hybrid is considered to be the most famous type of peony dahlia. It features a deep-red petal color and virtually black-red leaves.
It’s a vintage species that dates all the way back to 1927. It’s a prized peony dahlia flower that’s suitable for any garden and cut flower ornamentation or gifting purpose.
10) Orchid Dahlias
Orchid dahlias showcase uniformly placed and open or folded petals bordering a tight center. Each of its revolute florets or petals rolls back about two-thirds their length, giving the flower an elegant look.
Seen from afar, these unique flowers are marvelously shaped like the sun with its rays, twinkling stars, or starfish. And their amazing pattern of colors is set amidst a carpet of dark green foliage.
What’s more, they can grow up to 3 feet in height and make remarkable cut, border, and garden flowers.
Popular Orchid Dahlia
- Dahlia ‘Honka Fragile’ – It’s one of the prettiest orchid dahlias in existence, Honka Fragile boasts an intricate star pattern with eight narrowly folded petals, all of which connect at the central brightly colored disk.
Their different colors are absolutely one of the major assets of the Dahlia Honka Fragile. And as we have said, it’s also unlike any other dahlia type.
