Pooh

Swan Island Dahlias introduced Pooh in 1998 and their listing marks it S.I.D. Created, their own origination. British growers list it as Pooh - Swan Island to separate it from anything else carrying the name, and that fuller name is recorded here so search resolves either way. A claim circulates online about an older 1951 dahlia called Pooh; it traces back to a page that does not contain the statement, so it is not repeated here. Collarettes have had a long run of being unfashionable and are now recovering, helped by exactly the pollinator argument that makes them worth planting.

Pooh is a collarette, which means an open single ring of outer petals around a shorter inner collar and a visible center, and it is one of the forms that actually feeds pollinators rather than just looking like it might. Swan Island calls it a very prolific bloomer and rates it yes for exhibition and yes as an excellent cut flower, which for an open-centered form is not a given. Blooms are about 3.5 inches, timed at 90 days, an average mid season start. Height is the unresolved field and the spread is large: Swan Island says 4.5 feet, Heirloom Soul averages 48 inches, and British listings put it closer to 3 feet, so climate is doing real work. Open-centered dahlias shatter faster in the vase than doubles, so cut these fully open and use them fresh rather than expecting a long hold.