# How to Cut Dahlia Tubers
Dahlias provide large, colorful blooms to a summer garden. These tender perennials grow from enlarged root sections called tubers. The tubers aren't winter hardy, so they must be dug up and stored indoors in areas that experience winter frost. Cutting the tubers apart, a process called dividing, allows them to be propagated into new plants. Cut the tubers in the spring when new growth begins but before transplanting them to their summer home in a garden bed.
Things You'll Need
- Sulfur powder
Instructions
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1
Inspect the dahlia tubers when the sprouts appear. Set aside tubers with more than one sprout for dividing.
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2
Cut through the tubers with a clean, sharp knife. Cut each tuber into two to four sections, with each section having at least one actively growing sprout.
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3
Dust each cut edge with sulfur dust, available from garden centers. Spread the roots out on a tray and place them in a well-ventilated room for one to three days, which allows the cut edges to dry out and prevents rot and disease.
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4
Plant the dahlia tubers in a pot indoors or outside in a garden bed after all danger of frost has passed. Set the tubers in the soil so the sprout is on top and the top of the root sits approximately 3 inches beneath the soil surface.
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