Vancouver Dahlia Society

Our Annual Show at is this coming up this weekend! We look forward to seeing you there!

Come out and enjoy the gorgeous blooms on display 1pm - 5pm Saturday, 11am - 2:30pm Sunday at the Floral Hall.

Those who are planning to enter your flowers in the show: Staging of your blooms/entries is open this Friday from 6pm-8pm and Saturday 7am-9am.

Judging of blooms will follow.

There will be fresh cut dahlia bouquets available for sale (available first come first serve until sold out), with proceeds supporting the Club.

**VanDusen Garden Admission is not included with admission to this event**

Connie Sheryl (foreground) and PGK Katrina (background) putting on quite the show at our VDS plot over at the Unitarian Church. Thanks again to all our volunteers that help tend to the plants during the growing season.

Speaking of show our VDS Annual show is coming up next weekend! Show schedule can be found here:
https://vancouverdahliasociety.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Vancouver-Show-Pages.pdf

Thinking about showing your dahlia blooms at our upcoming Dahlia show at VanDusen Botanical Garden September 5-6? Here's a useful resource to know what the classification numbers are when writing out your exhibitor tags. If this is your first time exhibiting and you need help, we encourage you to come during the Friday evening staging from 6-8pm where a member can assist you with filling out your tags before the show. Staging is still available on Saturday morning 7-9am.

Link here for Show Schedule:https://vancouverdahliasociety.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Vancouver-Show-Pages.pdf

Our next club meeting will be held at the Floral Hall at VanDusen Botanical Garden this coming Wednesday August 19th.

We are gearing up for the excitement of our upcoming dahlia shows!

Clerking Class — We will have a clerking class prior to the general meeting for anyone who wants to learn to clerk at our upcoming annual shows.

Clerks play a pivotal role in the judging process by assisting the judges and ensuring accurate record-keeping. Clerks prepare scorecards, collect them after judging, and help with placing ribbons.

This is a great way to learn first hand from judges what to look for in a show flower. Prepare to learn lots! If you would like to learn how to clerk for our show or would just like a refresher on clerking please meet at 7pm before our meeting.

After a short business meeting at 7:30, it’s “Everything you need to know about showing Dahlias but were too afraid to ask!” presented by the show committee.

There will also be live demonstration from our show committee on how to cut and stage dahlias for the show.

This is an excellent chance for anyone considering bringing blooms to the show to see how it is done first hand.

All are welcome. See you Wednesday!

Mark your calendars for our VDS annual dahlia show on September 5-6 2026 at

Come out and enjoy the gorgeous blooms on display 1pm - 5pm Saturday, 11am - 2:30pm Sunday at the Floral Hall.

If you’ve considering entering your dahlias in the show and don’t know where to start out next club meeting on August 19 will be dedicated to helping you learn how to stage your blooms in preparation for the show.

**VanDusen Garden Admission is not included with admission to this event**

Join us this month for our VDS Members Open Gardens! Some of our VDS members will be opening their gardens for us to tour this summer.

These gardens have something for everyone who grows dahlias; from gardens that focus on hybridization and competitive varieties to collections of rare and unusual dahlias (the unicorns).

There are two dates and a total of 5 different garden locations that you can choose from.

This tour is open to all current VDS members and locations can be found in our latest July Newsletter.

Not yet a member? https://vancouverdahliasociety.ca/about-us/become-a-member/

Hope to see you there!

Thank you Gerri for the informative floral art demonstration at our last meeting!

We can’t wait to try some of your tips at our upcoming dahlia show!

Thank you Gerri for the informative floral art demonstration at our last meeting! We can’t wait to try some of your tips at our upcoming dahlia show!

We're excited to welcome Gerri as our special guest speaker at our next VDS club meeting on Wednesday July 15!

A certified floral art judge and current President and Program Leader of the BC Floral Art Society, Gerri has spent more than a decade inspiring others through teaching, judging, demonstrations, and floral design. Her passion for learning has taken her to flower shows and renowned gardens around the world, and she'll soon represent Canada at the World Flower Show in Sydney, Australia.

At our meeting, Gerri will share floral design tips and demonstrate techniques to help members prepare for the floral art section of our September Show. We look forward to an inspiring evening!

MEETING LOCATION NOTICE : This month's club meeting will be held in the Floral Hall at VanDusen Botanical Garden

We have a special guest speaker at our next VDS meeting this Wednesday.

Connie Young Davis is coming from Victoria to share her expertise in growing and showing dahlias.

Connie is known around the world as one of the best dahlia competitors of our time. She has also made a splash with several new originations. She was the keynote speaker at last year's National Show held in Chicago.

Connie won Best in Show at our main show as well as 12 other head table prizes. Connie is very generous with her knowledge and will have lots of advice on how to grow the best dahlias whether you plan to show them or not.

We will also have a volunteer sign up sheet for the upcoming VDS shows at the meeting as well as show schedules and flyers will be available.

Hope to see you there!

Our next meeting is this Wednesday May 20th at 7:30 pm in the Fireside room at the Vancouver Unitarian Church, 949 W. 49th Ave.

VDS member and professional photographer Sandra Leung will be speaking on Dahlia Photography. Sandra will be providing some helpful tips and tricks on how best to use your smartphone to capture your dahlia blooms.

There will also be a live demonstration at the end of the presentation. All are welcome and hope to see you there!