Cafe au Lait Royal Dahlia Tubers

Cafe au Lait Royal Dahlia

There's a rather sophisticated trend underway at the moment for dahlias in muted coffee and pink tones. And Cafe au Lait Royal is right there, a dusky star in a heavenly firmament of dahlias. The blooms are seriously huge, up to 25cm across, with double petals that are more strawberry milkshake than latte when they first open, but which quickly and handsomely transform to faded cappuccino, the petals gently streaked. The foliage and stems are of a fresh mid-green. There are plenty to choose from in the rest of our Dahlia range.

Like most dahlias, the flowers of Cafe au Lait Royal are perfect for bringing indoors to create fantastical arrangements. If you've a wedding planned for late summer, grow plenty of these: bouquets of dusky pink and coffee coloured dahlias are all the rage – just take a look on Pinterest! It flowers from mid to late summer right up to the first frosts. Keep picking to encourage more blooms.

Coffee in the garden

As it grows to around 1m in height, it is best planted towards the centre of a bed or border. Remember that with the flowers being so large and heavy you'll need to stake the stems, so access is important!

Try planting with other dahlias in similar faded colours of ivory, peach, apricot and cream to create a beautiful, serene scene. Or deep orange and bronze David Howard would make a nice contrast. At the front of the border bronzed ornamental grasses such as Anemanthele lessoniana complement dahlias beautifully. Or combine with other late-summer stars such as Japanese anemones, Verbena bonariensis and fluffy, wafting pennisetums.

For planting times, see below:

Tubers – In pots from end Feb, in the ground from mid April

Rooted cuttings – pot up in late March, plant out in late May

Pot grown – from end of May onwards

Supersize me

A relative of Cafe au Lait, apparently the most famous dahlia in the world, which goes right back to 1968, when it was introduced by Dutch breeders Bruidegom. Royal has the same flower form but a slightly more intense colouring. Cafe au Lait became a sell-out dahlia a few years ago after it was featured by cult US TV personality Martha Stewart in Martha Stewart Weddings. So get it while you can!