To say that we love dahlias is a bit of an understatement. When it comes to collecting new dahlia varieties, I truly have an addiction! Each year we grow between 150 and 200 different dahlia varieties at Sea Change.
If you’ve grown dahlias before, I’m sure you know what I mean if you haven’t, then let me invite you to give these fantastic plants a try. You won’t regret it! To help set you up for success, here are the best-of-the-best, the creme-de-la-creme, the varieties I would hands down recommend to anybody.
Here are my picks for 10 must-grow dahlias to add to your garden in 2025.
1. My Forever
My goodness, what a fabulous new addition to our fields this year! This waterlily dahlia had soft peachy tones and stole our hearts with its romantic blooms.
This variety, as with most waterlily-type dahlias, is shorter-lived as a cut flower, but we still used it in many wedding arrangements. So excited to grow this one again in 2025, and I hope you are as well!
2. Cupcake
I have been trying to get my hands on Cupcake for years. And now, I’m thrilled to finally be offering it up in our sale!
If you love pink, like I do, then Cupcake is a must-grow. Great for wedding work, or great to simply admire in the garden.
3. Blizzard
I know, I know, Blizzard is not a “new and exciting” unicorn variety. But it has made my Top 10 list before, and it deserves a spot here. Blizzard is the most productive white dahlia that we grow.
With long stems for days on a reliable and healthy plant, Blizzard will not let you down.
4. Sugar Daddy
Another new addition for us this year, Sugar Daddy is a cute lil mini ball variety with golden-peach coloring. I’m excited to grow this one again! A productive bloomer with tall, healthy plants.
5. Seduction
Seduction is the best purple dahlia that we grow. It’s a waterlily form with upright-facing blooms, which makes it a joy to arrange with. Stems are strong and flowers bloom in clusters.
The petals of Seduction have a lovely darker purple reverse with a lighter purple front, giving them a romantic iridescent quality.
6. Cafe au Lait Mini / Jolene
Love, love, love this smaller version of the classic Cafe au Lait. The miniature variety has the same great vanilla-buff coloring as its larger counterpart, but in a size that is perfect for bouquets.
Cafe au Lait Mini, also called Jolene, also makes a smaller plant than Cafe au Lait–which makes it easier to manage in the garden.
We’ve been building up our stock of this hard-to-find variety, and I am so excited to offer it to you in our sale this year!
7. Rose Toscano
Rose Toscano is a perfect little peachy ball. We love tucking this one into fall bridal bouquets–it’s a great soft color to bridge with brighter oranges. Plants are productive, though on the shorter side.
8. Caitlin’s Joy
We’ve grown Caitlin’s Joy since the beginning, and she will always have a place in our crop plan. The coloring of this bloom is like a beguiling orange-to-purple hologram, with blooms as a whole reading a shade of smoky pink.
Caitlin’s Joy is a healthy plant, a productive bloomer, a great cut flower, and a generous tuber-maker. 100% recommend!
9. Miss Amara
One of my all-time favorite dahlias. Miss Amara is not as productive a bloomer as the other varieties on this list, but she makes up for it with absolutely stunning flowers.
Butter yellow petals have streaks of darker pinky-peach tones, like gentle paintbrush markings. Blooms are a good size for bouquets and centerpieces.
10. Clearview Peachy
This ball variety shifts its coloring over the growing season. Some blooms are a pale, almost-yellow peach. Some are more pink. Most are a color somewhere in between, like a peach mid-ripening.
Clearview Peachy is a reliable bloomer with tall plants, and flowers bloom on long laterals. A great cut flower.
Want more dahlia recommendations? See our 2024 picks, and our 2023 picks.
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