Dahlia Sweet Nathalie is one of the most beautiful varieties I have ever grown. The healthy plants were covered in pale blush blooms all last season. Long, strong stems make this a great cut flower. Perfect for flower arrangements, they pair beautifully with dahlias Peaches n’ Cream, Cafe au Lait and other pink varieties. If you are looking for a beautiful dahlia to add to your garden, Sweet Nathalie is the one for you!
Planning your dahlia garden
It has been icy cold with hail and snow in the Netherlands! Spring is here, but spring weather seems far away. I know we are all longing for warmer weather and the start of the gardening season. Just a few more weeks and we will be planting our dahlia tubers at the allotment. But now there is not much gardening we can do, except dream about a garden full of flowers. And maybe plan the perfect dahlia garden! I wrote 2 blog posts about planning a dahlia garden, choosing shapes, sizes and colours and design your plot. If you still have room for some extra dahlias, there is lots of information on this blog about my favourite dahlia varieties. Today’s blog post is about another favourite, dahlia Sweet Nathalie.
Facts and figures
Sweet Nathalie is a decorative dahlia. As I explained in my post Planning a dahlia garden: choosing shapes, sizes and colours, most dahlias fall into one of three groups: the decorative, the cactus and the ball form. Decorative dahlias have flat, broad petals.
Blooms of Sweet Nathalie are about 10-15 cm (4-6 inch), in lovely shades of pale blush pink, sometimes more cream, sometimes with hints of tan. The colours are the same as Cafe au Lait but flowers are smaller and some would say more useful in bouquets. Flowers grow on dark stems, which makes a great contrast.
The strong, dark green plants reach 100-120 cm (40-50 inch). It’s a great dahlia for your garden.
Great cut flower
All dahlias make great cut flowers, the more you cut them, the more they bloom. Still, some are considered better than others. The long, strong stems make Sweet Nathalie a tremendous cut flower. The flowers are not top-heavy, like some dinnerplate dahlias. They stand up nice and straight, even when it rains. Like all dahlias, their vase life is not spectacular. I would say 5-6 days. Because I have a cutting garden I have a constant supply of dahlias throughout the summer. That’s why I like to cut them at their most beautiful, almost fully open. Maybe if you cut them earlier, they will last a little longer.
Great for arrangements
Dahlia Sweet Nathalie is also great for arrangements. I love this pale blush flower arrangement with lots of different dahlias. But I also really enjoyed this cosmos I grew last year. Such small, graceful flowers, like butterflies. I love my dahlias but they are serious, sturdy flowers. So I like to mix them with airy, delicate flowers like cosmos. I am sorry I don’t know the variety! I hope I can find it again this year.
Pink and peach flower arrangement
Last years’ favourites were Peaches n’ Cream and Sweet Nathalie. They go well with Preference in this pink and peach flower arrangement. I added lots of greens, my favourite foliage are ferns.
Dahlia Sweet Nathalie is a must grow
Last year was the first year growing Sweet Nathalie and what a useful and dependable flower it is! I think it’s a must-have for growers of dahlias looking for that cream to blush colour. If you love dahlia Café au Lait, you will love Sweet Nathalie. I highly recommend adding a few tubers to your garden. I bought mine from Zeelanddahlia.
