Join Joann and Allison chat with Dave Gillam of Dave Gillam Dahlias. Dave is currently serving as Chairman for the UK National Dahlia Society. He is an exceptional exhibitionist. During this Part 1, Dave shares with us his passion for dahlias and what it is like to exhibit dahlias over in the UK.

You can find out more about Dave on his YouTube video at https://www.youtube.com/@DaveGillamDahlias or on social media @DaveGillamDahlias.

Part 2 will release next week, March 24,2026!

Join Joann and Allison chat with Jeff Miner, ADS National Show Chair. Jeff shares with us a little sneak peak into what to expect for the 2026 ADS National Show at the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He shares with us details about weekend tours and activities and how to stage and enter your blooms.

You can sign up here to get email updates on the National Show.

Join Joann and Allison talk with Levi of Levi's Dahlias and plant biologist friend Mike Qiu. Levi shares with us a bit of his dahlia journey and how he went from growing beauitful flowers to sowing his first dahlia seed. Levi shares his currently breeding goals. Levi and Mike dive deeper into how Levi focuses on healthy growing stock through virus testing.

You can find out more about Levi's dahlias on his webiste:https://www.levisdahlias.com and on instagram @levi_tremblay.

Join Joann and Allison chat with Janell Weiss of the Pollinator Patch. With a professional background agriculture, Janell grows thriving dahlias in Ohio, placing a strong emphaisis on virus free dahlias. When she was first made aware of virus in dahlias, she set a goal to clean her garden and has stuck with it. Janell shares with us her experiences along this journey and how others can also achieve a healhty dahlia garden.

Find out more about about Janell and the Pollinator Patch on social media @thepollinatorpatch and on her website www.thepollinatorpatch.com.

Join Joann and Allison discuss the Pacific Northwest Trial Garden in Tacoma, WA with Trial Garden Director Terry Schroeder. Terry has made significant contributions to the dahlia community. In addition to being director of the Tacoma Trial Gardens, Terry also serves as secretary for the Federation of Northwest Dahlia Growers and secretary for the American Dahlia Society.

Terry shares with us how she and her husband, Bob, help coordinate all that is involved with running the Trial Garden. Its not as easy as just throwing some tubers in the ground.

If you're interested in getting inolved, you can find Trial Garden Director contact information on the American Dahlia Society Website.

Join Joann and Allison chat with Dr. Jan Gawthrop of Oldoc Dahlias. Jan is a bovine pediatrician. He grows dahlias in Northeast Indiana and is a member, previously Vice President, of the Elkhart Dahlia Society. Jan shares with us a bit of his dahlia history and reminds us how much joy sharing these flowers with others can bring.

Jan new dahlia introductions are distributed through jsdahlias.com and missysdahlias.com.

Join Joann and Allison sitting around the table with Barb and Paul Bloomquist of Bloomquist Dahlias talk about how they started growing dahlias and how it looked for them over the years. Bloomquist dahlias are known for their beauty and strong plant habits, definitely staples in the dahlia garden.

If you're intereresting in purchasing new Bloomquist releases be sure to follow Paul's son's dahlia farm www.northcascadedahlias.com and @northcascadedahlias on social media. North Cascade Dahlias grows around 600 Bloomquist varieties and is home to to Paul's seedling patch (hardly a patch when you're growing thousands of seedlings) where he selects and grows out potential new varieties.

Part 2 of our discussion with Steve and Sandy Boley of Birch Bay dahlias discussing their mentors. However, we do often get off topic and Steve and Sandy share quite a bit about breeding.

Part 2 cover mentors: Wayne Holland, Jean Herringa, Steve Santose, Walt and Cory Wynne, Dick Williams and Bill Bonneywell.

You can find out more about Steve and Sandy's breeding on their website www.birchbaydahlias.com or on their facebook page.

Dahlia Legacy Project: https://www.legacy.nwdahlia.org/person/boley-steve-sandy/

Steve and Sandy Boley of Birch Bay Dahlias are back! This time our converstaion focuses on how the many mentors of theirs influenced their journey to become the incredible hybridizers that they are today.

Part 1 goes over mentors: Dr Kieth Hammett, Gordie Leroux, Richard Raymond, Evie Gullikson, Curt Sell and Bill McClaren.

You can find out more about Steve and Sandy's breeding on their website www.birchbaydahlias.com or on their facebook page.

Join Joann and Allison chat with Deanna of the Growing Kindness Movement. Driven by a mission to use flowers as a way to connect and show kindness towards others, the Growing Kindness Movment has become a worldwide effort.

To find out more about the Growing Kindness Movement, check out www.growingkindndessproject.com or on social media @growingkindnessproject. You can listen in on their new podcast, Growing Kindness, on all the major podcast platforms.