Though preservation is our mission, bulbs drop out of our catalog every year.
Sometimes it’s because the harvest was too small. Sometimes it’s because they’re widely available elsewhere and don’t need our help. And sometimes it’s because we’ve lost our only known source due to severe weather (cold, drought, etc.), health problems (a debilitating stroke), or economic woes (small farmers are always at risk).
The good news is that, in time, we’re often able to return these bulbs to our catalog. So here’s a list of many we’ve offered in the past. For an alert the moment they’re available again, subscribe to our free email newsletter. Or to find a similar bulb, try our easy Advanced Bulb Search.
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With swirling petals of apricot, bronze, yellow, pink, and orange, this exuberant, post-war beauty may remind you of a windblown flurry of autumn leaves. And it’s big, up to 9-12 inches across. No wonder the experts at both Garden Gate and Gardening How-To magazines have recommended it so highly. 4-5’, from New Hampshire.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Care-free and bright, this happy little dahlia may well remind you of vacationing in sunny Aruba. (It’s named for a popular 1950s dance tune by the composer of Aruba’s national anthem.) It came to us from France where it’s still a great favorite, and we’ve been loving its abundant, classic, ruby-red blossoms in our trial garden and bouquets. 4-5” 4-5 feet tall, from Oregon. Last offered in 2006. We may offer it again someday.
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In the beginning, there was Dahlia atropurpurea. With lacy foliage and profuse, single flowers, it’s the dark maroon form of D. pinnata, one of the first three wild dahlias to reach Europe from Mexico. Although its offspring soon left it in the dust, it’s handsome enough to earn a place in any garden – and will give you a refreshing new perspective on the spectacular diversity of dahlias today. 3”, 4-5’, from Holland. Last offered in 2016. We hope to offer it again someday.
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This lovely, 79-year-old pompon is an old-fashioned, old-rose pink, a “colonial” pastel that would have been oh-so stylish in 1930s cottage gardens. Try it paired with white Japanese anemones and purple New England asters — lovely! 1-2” 3-4’, from Oregon. Last offered in spring 2008. Available elsewhere.
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Every bit as dramatic as the Noel Coward play for which it was named, “Blithe Spirit” takes center stage in the garden with 8-10” blood-red bursts ending in a flurry of snowy tips. Not at all wispy or ephemeral, this bold beauty catches your eye even at a distance…and, like the play’s revivals, the flowers just keep coming!! Formal decorative, 4-5', from Holland.
Last offered in 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Much more than just a pretty face, this infinitely varied dahlia is helping researchers at the Stanford University Dahlia Project explore the mysteries of genetics. But trust us, you don’t have to be a scientist to enjoy its big, primrose to cream flowers delicately sprinkled with wine. They’re gorgeous! Michigan-bred by Dixie Dahlia Gardens of Clio, 6-10”, 5-6’, from Michigan.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Just like two voices joined in song, each blossom of "Duet" finds a perfect balance of deep purplish red bases with white tips. After trialing it in our farm and home gardens, we agreed with all those for whom it's a long-time favorite: it's time to bring this lovely bicolor to a wider audience! 3-4' high, 6-8" formal decorative blooms, from Holland.
Last offered in 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Bigger than a pompon but just as perfectly composed, this vivid, rose-pink dahlia almost seems to glow with an inner light. Its many flowers are held on strong, dark stems and make a dazzling display in garden or vase. The year it was introduced, Pope Benedict XV visited the Portuguese village of Fatima where in 1917 the Virgin Mary had miraculously appeared to three shepherd girls. Ball/formal dec, 2-2½”, 4’, from Oregon.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Is this really “the most popular dahlia of all time”? That’s what experts have called this shell-pink beauty, praising it as “a superb cut flower” with “splendid stems” that’s “easy to grow,” great in the garden, and “the ideal waterlily” dahlia. Who could ask for anything more? 3-4”, 3-4’, New Hampshire.
Last offered in 2022. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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‘Giraffe’ is not just weird, it’s wonderful. Its unruly, golden petals twist and fold forward to reveal back sides barred with bronze. Some see giraffes, others orchids or ocelots, but everyone agrees it’s not like any other dahlia — and very cool. Cut a few for a vase so you can enjoy its rich complexity up close. 4” 3-4’, from Oregon. Last offered in 2009. Though ‘Giraffe’ is a very interesting flower, it’s not a strong grower and we don’t plan to offer it again.
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Just over the dunes from the Dutch bulb fields lie the beaches of Noordwijk, “Europe’s floral seaside resort.” This 1960s beauty is a worthy namesake, with its soft, warm shades of sand and sun and its frequently split petal tips which give it a relaxed, almost windblown look. Pronounced NORT-vike, formal decorative, 4-5”, 4’, from New Hampshire.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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This sunburst of beauty is a warm red-orange brightened by what seem to be rays of golden light streaming from its center. It’s dazzling anytime but we like it best as it carries the torch of summer deep into the cool, waning days of fall. Aka ‘Mary Poppins’, semi-cactus, 6-7”, 4-5’, from New Hampshire.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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The lavender-to-pink-to-white petals of this post-war beauty are decorated with a confetti of ruby speckles and flecks for a look that’s as festive as a birthday party. Bred by Albert Parrella, once known as the “Dahlia King of the Bronx,” formal decorative, 3-4”, 4-5’, grown for us at Sun Moon Farm in New Hampshire.
Last offered in 2022. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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The dark, velvety petals of this sophisticated little dahlia curl back to form an almost perfect globe, like a shimmering drop of sherry. Long-lasting in both the garden and bouquets, it’s stunning with our ‘Rubrum’ lilies, blue salvia, and lime-green Nicotiana langsdorfii — or all alone in a simple bud vase. 3-4”, 4’, from Oregon. Last offered in 2013 and we’re not planning to offer it again. Sorry!
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More than any other lost dahlia, people kept asking us for ‘Jane Cowl’ – and when we finally tracked it down, we understood why. It’s a big, gorgeous dahlia, with undulating petals of buff, bronze, and gold, like the tresses of a goddess – or actress Jane Cowl (1883-1950), who was once “the most beautiful woman on the American stage.” It’s expensive, yes, but worth every penny! 6-10”, 5-6’, from New Hampshire.
Last offered in 2022. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Once the world’s most popular dahlia – the one even non-gardeners knew by name – this glorious, true pink, New Jersey native is still amazing. Tall and vigorous, it will give you more of its sublimely simple flowers in late summer and fall than you can find a vase for. We’re proud to have re-introduced it to American gardens, and we urge you to give it a chance to show you why it was once such a big deal. Learn more. 8-10”, 6-7’, formal decorative, from New Hampshire.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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This rare souvenir from a lost age is the most antique-looking of all of our dahlias. With neatly curled petals of custard yellow brushed with burgundy, and a green button-eye like an old-fashioned rose, it’s a true Victorian “fancy” dahlia – and one of a mere handful of dahlias that survive from the 10,000 grown in the 19th century. We’re proud to have returned it to American gardens, and we hope you’ll help us preserve it! Learn more. 3”, 4-5’, from Oregon.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Like its namesake, a bold Japanese magpie, “Kasasagi” won’t be overlooked despite its diminutive size! Its pompon flowers are 2” clusters of neatly curved red and yellow flames that glow brightly in the garden. and their long stems make them excellent cut flowers – just perfect for fall wedding bouquets! Pompon, 3-4’, from Holland.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Big, beautiful ‘Kidd’s Climax’ is one of the 20th century’s Top 10 dahlias. It offers colossal blooms of an ineffable, sunrise blend of pink, lavender, and creamy yellow that looks so luscious we bet you’ll want to take a bite. Easy to grow, free-flowering, and sturdy, it’s still winning tons of blue ribbons today at dahlia shows and county fairs across the country. 8-10”, 3-4’, heat-tolerant, from Oregon.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Like sand dunes aglow with the rosy light of dawn, the ethereal color of this stunning dahlia is NOT pink (no matter what our photo suggests), NOT bronze (as the ADS classifies it), but wonderfully, shimmeringly, mysteriously both. It blooms like crazy, too, and its form is perfection. No wonder our staff loves it! 6-8” 4-5’, from Oregon. Last offered in 2007 and we’re not planning to offer it again. Sorry!
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This big, romantic dahlia is still winning so many blue ribbons almost 60 years after it was introduced that the ADS rates it a “Cream of the Crop” dahlia. Its unusual name is the title of a wildly popular Victorian travel-adventure about life among the gypsies. (When we tried reading it, we discovered we like the dahlia a lot better.) 6-10”, 4-5’, heat-tolerant.
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From the British National Collection of Dahlias, this big, poofy, flower has purple petals tipped with white, giving it a festive, almost spotted look. And who was ‘Lois Walcher’? Mr. Walcher bred the flower, so: wife? daughter? mother? sister? Definitely someone special! 5’, from Oregon. Last offered in 2004. We may offer it again someday.
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Our photos don’t show you the best thing about ‘Madame Simone Stappers’ — it grows as a dense, rounded, all but self-supporting mound about 2½ feet tall that looks more like a small shrub or a peony than a dahlia. With dark-chocolate foliage and radiant blooms, it’s stunning in perennial borders — or try one in a big beautiful pot. 3”, 2½-3’, semi-double. Last offered in 2016 and we’re not planning to offer it again. Sorry!
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With all the simplicity and charm of ‘Bishop of Llandaff’ and ‘Clair de Lune’, this wildflowery dahlia blooms like crazy — and the bees love it! First grown at Ireland’s romantic Glenveagh Castle, it’s named for the man who served there as head gardener for over 50 years. 2-3” 3-4’, from the UK National Collection and now Oregon. Last offered in 2007. We hope to offer it again someday.
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Big and sensual, that’s ‘Mrs. George le Boutillier’ (pronounce it “Booty-ay,” and don’t laugh). The backs of her lush, deep red petals are elegantly highlighted with gold. Though snooty gardeners may frown, if you give ‘Mrs. B’ a try we bet you’ll be amazed. 6-10”, 4-5’, from Oregon. Last offered in 2013 and we’re not planning to offer it again. Sorry!
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When a Japanese dahlia collector offered us this rare jewel, we were thrilled. Much like the old ‘Seven Sisters’ rose, it blooms with flowers ranging from almost white to vibrant rosy lavender. Praised and pictured in Gordon’s 1912 Dahlias, it’s the only one of hundreds in that classic book that still survives – and we have just 50 available this spring! Pompon, 3-4’. Last offered in 2016.
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The celebrated British gardener Sarah Raven describes this lively little ball dahlia as “a long-standing favorite” that “opens tangerine” before gradually “deepening to vermillion.” Although its yellow button eye may keep it off the show bench, in the garden it only adds to its baby-like charm. Ball, 2-3”, 3-4’, from Holland.
Last offered in 2022. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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In his celebrated poem “Pied Beauty,” Gerard Manley Hopkins praises all things dappled, stippled, brindled, and freckled – so you know he would have loved ‘Nonette’. Set against dark green leaves, its apricot petals are intricately speckled and streaked with burgundy for a look that’s as natural as a finch’s egg yet totally sumptuous. Wow! Waterlily, 4-6” 4-5’, from New Hampshire.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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This big, sprawling, high-spirited flower throws its petals out and about as if caught up in an ecstatic dance. Molten gold in the center, its petals are richly shaded with pink, apricot, and orange. Though we rarely offer dahlias this young, our very picky crew gave it a dozen green thumbs-up. 6-8” 4-5’, from Oregon. Last offered in spring 2012. Available elsewhere.
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Martha Stewart Living has featured this burnished beauty in the garden and stylish, hand-made vases of our good customer Frances Palmer. Brush-stroked with ruddy orange on amber, its flowers have a lively, almost flickering effect in the garden and improve any fall bouquet. 4-5”, 5-6’, from New Hampshire.
Last offered in 2022. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Perfect for perennial borders, this compact, apricot beauty is so packed with blossoms the whole plant looks like it was arranged by a floral designer. A long-time favorite in France, it grows about three feet tall and blooms exuberantly summer and fall with informal, 3-4 inch cactus flowers of apricot shading to fuzzy golden centers. The more you pick, the more it blooms! From Oregon. Last offered in spring 2006. Available elsewhere.
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Hot and bright, this dazzling dahlia is the garden equivalent of those Fourth of July sparklers you loved as a kid. Its petals are exclamation points of brilliant yellow flamed with red. Bred in New Zealand, its Maori name means “cliff’s-edge sunrise.” 4-6” 4’, from Oregon. Last offered in spring 2006. Available elsewhere.
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Fringed dahlias like this glamorous lavender beauty are called “laciniated” in the US, “fimbriated” in England, but the French say it best: dentelle or lace-work dahlias. They first came into vogue in the ‘50s, and ‘Popular Guest’ – with its echoes of Sputnik lamps and starburst Formica – has a mid-century vibe that’s enduringly cool. 4-6”, 4-5’, from Holland. Last offered in 2016. Available elsewhere.
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Improbably beautiful, ‘Prinses B’ combines unusual colors in dramatic flowers that we get all ga-ga about here. Opening golden-orange tipped white with peachy centers, they mature to pale, pale pink edged with orange-gold. Though it may sound weird, it’s oh-my-gosh lovely. Our photo can only hint at it! 4-5” 4-5’, from Oregon. Last offered in spring 2004. We’ve lost our entire stock but we hope to offer it again someday.
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We rediscovered ‘Prinzessin Irene’ in Germany and fell in love at first bloom. With a heart of gold and fewer, longer petals than most modern dahlias, it has a serene, languid look that’s charmingly antique. Try it paired with soul-mate ‘Jersey’s Beauty’ – ahhhhh! Formal decorative, 4-5”, 4-5’, from Holland. Last offered in 2016 and we’re not planning to offer it again. Sorry!
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This frilled, award-winning, mid-century classic is a soft pastel yellow that has great carrying power in the garden. It’s also a fine flower for bouquets, where its delicately fringed tips make for an almost sparkling effect. It’s strong growing and floriferous, with 4-5” laciniated flowers on 4-5’ plants, from Holland. Last offered in spring 2013. We hope to offer it again someday.
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Although soft baby pink when it first opens, this 1950s classic quickly matures into a vivid, vibrant, and vivacious rose-pink highlighted with silver. It somehow manages to combine the sweetness of an 8-year-old girl with the elegance of a night on the town, and it absolutely pops in the garden and bouquets. Cactus, 5-6”, 4-5’, from Holland.
Last offered spring 2019. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Glowing like neon, this mutant twin of the great ‘Kaiser Wilhelm’ looks ready for a night of cabaret-hopping. Despite its name, it’s not red but a deep, deep rose on white that’s so vivid it almost buzzes. 3”, 4-5’, from Oregon. Last offered in spring 2013, and we’re not planning to offer it again. Sorry!
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A perfect Valentine’s Day dahlia (if only dahlias bloomed then!), ‘Romance’ has gracefully curving petals of rosy pink tipped with silver and a heart of French vanilla. It’s a great size for bouquets, and exquisite with our ‘Pearl’ double tuberoses. 3-4” 4’, from Oregon. Last offered in 2006. Available elsewhere.
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The peony-like flowers of this blissful dahlia open pale, primrose yellow and then mature to apple-blossom pink, giving you a bouquet of colors on every plant. They’re just the right size to pick for bouquets, too, and they bloom so abundantly you’ll never miss the ones you cut. Waterlily, 4-5”, just 3-4’ tall, from New Hampshire.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Although only about two feet tall, ‘Roxy’ is so vibrant and unusual that it won’t be overlooked. Its chocolate-tinted foliage provides the perfect contrast for its brilliant flowers, and its dark eye ringed by yellow stamens adds to its smoldering appeal. Bred in Hamburg during the boisterous Sixties, it’s making a big comeback today in England – where the RHS has dubbed it “Perfect for Pollinators.” 2-4”, 1½-2½’, from New Hampshire.
Last offered in 2020. We hope to offer this variety again soon. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Dramatic ‘Sellwood Glory’ is an almost black and white ensemble of silvery petals thickly brushed with deep, dark raisin-purple. Though it hails originally from the historic Sellwood neighborhood of Portland, Oregon, it had all but disappeared from US gardens till we reintroduced it from the British National Collection in 2008. (Read its full story here.) Formal decorative, 8-10”, 3-4’, from Oregon.
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Up to a foot across, with ruffled petals of copper, amber, and bronze, ‘Sherwood’s Peach’ may remind you of a mellow, rising, autumn sun. One bloom in a Rookwood bowl on an old oak table is sheer bliss. But caution: this is our latest-blooming dahlia, so you’ll need a long growing season to enjoy it. 4-5’, from Oregon. Last offered in 2009. Available elsewhere.
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One of our biggest dahlias, summery ‘Surprise’ offers 8-10 inches of informal, incurving, semi-cactus petals of soft, luminous peach, yellow, and rose that almost seem to wriggle in delight. Although a bit of a late bloomer, it’s always worth the wait. 5-6’. Last offered in 2015, and we’re not planning to offer it again. Sorry!
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This 124-year-old granddaddy is a pompon-like “fancy” dahlia of deep burgundy-red irregularly splashed with bits of white – like a sparkling garnet brooch or maybe a tiny, antique velvet sofa with lacy antimacassars. Reintroduced by us from the British National Collection of Dahlias. 1-2”, 3’, from Ann Arbor.
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This classic dinner-plate dahlia isn’t just big — 8 to 10 inches across when well grown — it’s ruggedly handsome, with an ivory center opening into masses of rippling white petals. You might think of it as the muscular, New Jersey-born, football-playing cousin of ‘Prinzessin Irene von Preussen’. Dinner-plates, the most iconic of dahlias, were hugely popular from the 1920s through the 1950s. Semi-cactus/informal dec., 6-10”, 5-6’. Last offered in 2013, and we’re not planning to offer it again. Sorry!
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Like white hydrangeas by a lakeside porch, ‘White Fawn’ is cool and refreshing. If Vita Sackville-West didn’t grow it in her celebrated White Garden at Sissinghurst, she should have! Formal decorative, 3-4”, 3-4’, from Oregon.
Last offered spring 2023. If you’d like to be notified the next time we offer this treasure, click to sign up for an email alert.
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Exquisite in its symmetry, this perfect little pompon dahlia seems to have been shaped by a jeweler from Middle Earth. Or maybe it will remind you of your childhood backyard twinkling with lightning bugs. Either way, it’s one of our oldest and rarest dahlias, excellent in bouquets, and a true delight. 1-2” pompons, 3’ tall, from Oregon. Last offered in 2013, and we’re not planning to offer it again. Sorry!
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