Dear Dahlias, In the North, you are awaiting the first killing frost. The freeze will set you free from all that continuous feeding and blooming. Soon you will throw off the cloak of bloom, and return to your resting state. Your large lobes of promise for the next year will be stored with hopes for another bright summer of form and color.
In the South, you are finally released from the struggle through heat. The scorching heat and mid day sun made you wilt all through August and September. What a valiant fight you had to stay alive. You waited for the cool ocean breezes and lower temperatures to persuade you to do what you do best…bloom. Your season seems to just be starting.
Your friend who stands nearby with some concern for your fragility, has managed to bloom throughout summertime so easily.
Those large scrappy leaves of the crinum not only shade some of you, but protect smaller flowers below. Ahhh, autumn!
Jayne In Georgia 
Great post. Everyone is showing off their Dahlias. I can only enjoy others’, as Dahlias don’t grow well here.
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