November Meeting

Our November dahlia meeting will be held Thursday, November 1st at 7:30 PM at the Celeste Campbell Center, 155 High Street, Eugene. The topic of this meeting will be the proper digging, dividing, and storage of dahlia tubers. Society members will be set up at many work stations, giving hands-on demonstrations of tuber dividing. This is one of our most popular meetings of the year and we expect a large turnout. As always, the meeting is free and open to the public. We hope to see you there!

October Meeting

The Lane County Dahlia Society will hold its October meeting Thursday, October 4th at 7:30 PM at the Celeste Campbell Center, 155 High Street, Eugene. At this month's meeting Eugene Kenyon & Sonia Hall will give a demonstration on saving seed from dahlias. They will also talk about their unique hybridizing programs and explain the "magic" behind the creation of new dahlia varieties. We will also have an informal dahlia "show-and-tell" as members bring in blooms to share. The meeting is free and open to the public.

Show Recap - The 49th Annual LCDS Dahlia Show

This weekend, the Lane County Dahlia Society hosted its 49th Annual Show. Exhibitors arrived from all over the State of Oregon and from Washington as well. By 9:00 AM Saturday morning, the Wheeler Pavilion was aglow with hundreds of dahlia exhibits awaiting judging. By early afternoon, the judges had picked the "best of the best" and the head table celebrated the winners. The front of the table displayed the best single entry and triple entry winners from all 36 sections.

The back of the head table highlighted the Novice and Amateur winners, as well as the of the special section and seedling winners.

Everywhere you looked, there were beautiful dahlias! We were fortunate to have Eugene Register-Guard writer Diane Dietz shadow our Saturday morning judging. She then wrote a great story that appeared on the front page of Sunday's City Section.

A display of mass arrangements.

A table covered with lovely basket entries.

Best 1-Bloom Fully Double in the Show

"Sir Richard"

Wayne Lobaugh

Best 3-Bloom Fully Double in the Show

"Brookside J Cooley"

Max Ollieu

Best 1-Bloom Disc Center Bloom in the Show

"Fancy Pants"

Tiffany Boatwright

Best 3-Bloom Disc Center in the Show

"Raeann's Canis Majoris"

Wayne Lobaugh

Best Basket in the Show

"Hollyhill Crystal, Mary Eveline, & Lark's Pioneer Pride"

Christy Parks

Best Arrangement in the Show

Along the Garden Path

Margaret Kennedy

There were so many excellent entries that made the Head Table. Lane County Dahlia Society members had a strong showing at their "home" show. It was particularly exciting to see Amateur exhibitor Gretchen Randle and Novice exhibitor Brian Fullerton each on the head table. Great Job - you have made LCDS proud! Below are the 1-bloom and 3-bloom exhibits from the Head Table that were grown by LCDS members.

Best 1-Bloom AA Size

"AC Bean"

Camille Noel

Best 1-Bloom B Size

"Stillwater Liz"

Gretchen Randle

Best 1-Bloom Ball

"Snoho Doris"

Michael Canning

Best 1-Bloom Waterlily

"Wildwood Marie"

Brian Fullerton

Best 1-Bloom Novelty Fully Double

"River's Novelty"

Michael Canning

Best 1-Bloom Single

"Firesplash"

Brian Fullerton

Best 1-Bloom Mignon Single

"Lo-Blush"

Brian Fullerton

Best 1-Bloom Peony

"Elvira"

Brian Fullerton

Best 3-Bloom A Size

"Mingus Wesley"

Cheryle Hawkins

Best 3-Bloom Anemone

"EV Purple Puff"

Sonia Hall

Best 3-Bloom Novelty Fully Double

"River's Novelty"

Eugene Kenyon

Best 1-Bloom Flower of the Year

"ReaAnn's Peach"

Cheryle Hawkins

Smallest Pompon Blue Ribbon Winner

"Little Scottie"

Tom Heath

LCDS member Camille Noel with the highest scoring ADS Seedling Bench Evaluation, bred by Mike Iler. Its name.."Camille Noel"!

We had a special treat at our show this year. Our Flower of the Year was "Raeann's Peach" and we were honored to have the real Raeann - Raeann Lobaugh - at our show. Here she is, pictured above, holding an exhibit of her flower.

LCDS 49th Annual Dahlia Show

Lane County Dahlia Society 49th Annual Show

" A Rainbow of Dahlias"

Show Flower of the Year: RaeAnn's Peach

September 15-16, 2012

The Wheeler Pavilion, Lane County Fair Grounds

Entries accepted Friday September 14th from 6 PM - 8:00 PM and Saturday September 15th from 6:30 AM to 8:45 AM. All exhibitors must check in at the registration table. The judges meeting will start at 9:00 AM sharp and judging will commence at 9:30 AM.

The show will open to the public from Noon until 6 PM on Saturday and from 10 AM until 4 PM on Sunday. Please come, bring a camera and enjoy the show! Free Admission! The public is encouraged to vote for the People's Choice special entry and there will be a staffed information table to answer any questions. We look forward to seeing you!



September Meeting

The Lane County Dahlia Society will hold its September meeting Thursday, September 6th at 7:30 PM at the Celeste Campbell Center, 155 High Street, Eugene. This month's meeting will focus on how to enter a bloom in a dahlia show. We will discuss how to improve bloom quality on your plants, how to transport blooms safely to a show, and demonstrate how to stage a 1-bloom and 3-bloom exhibit. We will also have an informal dahlia "show-and-tell" as members bring in blooms to share. The meeting is free and open to the public. Free refreshments will be provided. We look forward to seeing you there!

August Meeting

The Lane County Dahlia Society will hold its August meeting Thursday, August 2nd at 7:30 PM at the Celeste Campbell Center, 155 High Street, Eugene. This month's meeting is dedicated to learning about how to incorporate dahlias into a floral design. The meeting will be presented by special guests from the Eugene Garden Club who will give a hand-on demonstration on making a beautiful flower arrangement using dahlias, cut flowers, and foliage from the garden. Audience members will be invited to participate. We will also have an informal dahlia "show-and-tell" as members bring in blooms to share. The meeting is free and open to the public. Free refreshments will be provided. We look forward to seeing you there!

Final Sale at the Key Bank!

This Saturday, May 19th, will be the last tuber sale of the year held by the Lane County Dahlia Society. The sale will take place from 9 AM until 3 PM and will be located at the Key Bank on River Road. The address is 1960 River Road. Key Bank is located right in front of the Bi-Mart, just south of the Beltline Expressway. Please come early for the best selection. With the sun shinning and the outside temperature warm, now is the time to plant. All tubers will be$3.50 each or 5/$15. We will even have a limited number of young dahlia plants for sale too. We hope to you you there!

May Tuber Sale

Tuber Sale

Oregon Plant Fair

Alton Baker Park, Eugene

Saturday, May 12th

9 AM - 2 PM

We will once again join the Avid Gardeners for the Oregon Plant Fair in beautiful Alton Baker Park. Look for our members selling dozens of varieties of dahlia tubers under the Picnic Shelter. We will be joined at the event by many local, specialty plant vendors, as well as garden artists and food vendors. Come early for the best selection!

May Meeting

The Lane County Dahlia Society will hold its May meeting Thursday, May 3rd at 7:30 PM at the Celeste Campbell Center, 155 High Street, Eugene. At this month's meeting a panel of experienced dahlia growers will be on hand to discuss preparation methods for planting a dahlia garden. They will offer advice on when, where, and how to plant your dahlia tubers and will gladly answer any questions. There will also be a tuber and dahlia plant sale that will begin at 7:15 PM. The meetings are free and open to the public. We hope that you will join us!

Lane County Dahlia Society Annual Tuber Auction & Sale

Lane County Dahlia Society Annual Tuber Auction & Sale

When : Thursday, April 5th , 2012

Where: The Celeste Campbell Center, 155 High Street, Eugene

Time: The Auction will start at 7:30 sharp, to be followed by open table sales approx. 1 hour later

What: Choice dahlia tubers will be auctioned off and sold to support the activities of the Lane County Dahlia Society. After the auction, there will be tables loaded with different dahlia tubers for sale. There will be free door prizes throughout the evening, as well as free refreshments. This is always a fun evening and we hope that you will join us! Call 541-461-8004 or 541-344-0970 with any questions

March Meeting

The Lane County Dahlia Society will hold its March meeting Thursday, March 1st at 7:30 PM at the Celeste Campbell Center, 155 High Street, Eugene. "Building a Drip Irrigation System for the Garden" will be the featured topic at the March meeting. Two experts from Jerry's Home Improvement Center will demonstrate how drip irrigation can help your dahlias thrive and help you use less water in your garden. The meetings are free and open to the public. We hope that you will join us!

Welcome 2012! - It's Time to Renew Your Memberships!



January is the time to renew your dahlia society membership and pay yearly dues to help sustain our organization. If you joined the Lane County Dahlia Society after September 1st 2010, then your dues are good thru 2011. We encourage members to join the American Dahlia Society and the Pacific Northwest Dahlia Conference as well.


Lane County Dahlia Society Dues are $10 per person, $15 each family; Members receive 11 issues of our newsletter The Dahlia Data

American Dahlia Society $24 per person, $27 for a family. Members receive the quarterly ADS Bulletin and the 2010 Classification Guild. The Bulletin contains timely articles pertaining to dahlias, information on new cultivars, and a host of other topics. The Classification book is indispensable as a guide that states which cultivars performed well in your region and lists winning varieties from around the nation. The ADS provides a great service to all dahlia enthusiasts at a bargain price.

Pacific Northwest Dahlia Conference $10 per person or $15 for a family. The PNDS hosts 3 trial gardens: Inland Empire Garden in Spokane, Canby Trial Garden in Canby, Oregon & the Victoria Trial Garden on Canada's Vancouver Island. The PNDS provides training for judges, maintains records for all member societies, and sponsors an annual show. Each member of the PNDS receives 3 newsletters a year, a membership booklet, and an exhibiting number.

Please renew your dues by mailing them to our Treasurer Phyllis Shafer at : 312 Limerick Ave., Eugene, OR 97404. Make all checks payable to : The Lane County Dahlia Society.
Our first meeting of the new year will be held Thursday, February 3rd. at the Celeste Campbell Center in Eugene. Our program that evening will be a DVD of the new 2011 dahlia introductions. We hope to see you there!