Dahlias are Romantic

I realize these are florals and that will be posted in Open Gardens Niagara, and thought they were so pretty that you would like to see them at the Marilyn Cornwell blog too.  Dahlias are beautiful flowers that are a delight to photograph.  So many different shapes and styles of petals.  Some are geometric and uniform, and others are wavy and flowing.  These are all from Ralph Suttell's Beamsville showcase growing garden.

Dahlias are Autumn's Flower...More in Flowerography

It's not typical to consider dahlias to be an autumn flower.  To me, though, this seems to be the time when they are at their best in the glorious garden of Ralph Suttell of Beamsville Ontario.  He grows competition dahlias, and they have been wonderful over the last 2 weeks.  Grown in a hoop house, they are protected from winds and insects with screening, and during hotter times umbrellas shade the most prize blooms. It's all a perfect setting for a photographer.

Here are a few of Ralph's beauties.  I've named this one 'The Shadow of Your Smile':

This is 'Demure':

This is 'The Yellow Shines Within':

These images are part of the Flowerography Series.  The Flowerography series derives from the Victorian tradition of using flowers and floral arrangements to express emotions that otherwise could not be spoken or were not allowed.  It is known as floriography or the language of flowers.   

The tradition remains today - red roses still imply passionate, romantic love.  Pink roses represent a lesser affection; white roses suggest virtue and chastity and yellow roses still stand for friendship or devotion. Gerbera (daisy) means innocence or purity. The iris, being named for the messenger of the gods in Greek mythology, still represents the sending of a message. A pansy signifies thought, a daffodil regard, and a strand of ivy fidelity.

Last Fruit Standing

These rows of old apple trees are near Ralph Suttell's place in Beamsville.  Ralph is the dahlia grower whose dahlias have been showcased here and on my website.  These photos were taken on the weekend - the first time in December that I can remember everything still looking like autumn.  The late afternoon light made long shadows across the field and turned everything golden.

Ralph Suttell - Dahlias and Lilies

Yesterday was another great garden day for me. My brother and I went to his Lily field in St. Catharines, then on to Ralph Suttell's who is a hybridizer and competitor in lilies and dahlias. Our day concluded with a trip to Ridley Garden to connect with Reggie and John for hybridizing.

Ralph's garden an acre and a half in Beamsville at the lake (yes, I'm jealous). It's a spectacle of plantsmanship and horticulture. Every dahlia is perfect and there seem to be hundreds of plants. They are specially grown so with a hoop house so that he can cover them before the competition to keep the blooms perfect from the elements (e.g. rain). He's not just a dahlia grower, though. There are a lot of lilies that he's working with. His garden is beautifully landscaped with interesting materials and there's a beautiful vegetable garden.