These two gorgeous hybrids are similar in their astounding size and breathtaking color palette, but but they do have some obvious differences.
Omega has more of a cool pink/purple palette than the warm, deep toned coral/red Belle of Barmera, and these two dahlias also have different forms. Omega is considered a laciniated form because of its fringed petals, and Belle of Barmera is an Informal Decorative form dahlia. Both dahlias are about the same height (hanging out at 30″-36″ for us) and fairly productive, especially for dinnerplate dahlias which use up SO much energy producing their enormous blooms. The varieties are no exception to the rule of thumb, “the more you cut, the more they bloom,” and keep giving the nicest, strongest stems when harvested regularly.
Have you ever grown these side by side? What other differences/similarities do you see in these two?
Over the past 12 years, Steve and I have curated 700+ named varieties to grow in our fields in 2023, welcomed several special Legacy Program hybridizers’ trials into our fields, and started a seedling program of our own. If you’re headed to the farm for an event this summer, you are in for a treat as you get to see them all for yourself! Aside from the beauty overload that we get to enjoy, having lots of varieties is so helpful to us for comparing similar blooms side by side for height, and vigor, and color.