Thomas Edison is one I will always try to make sure I never do without. It is the perfect royal purple, as close to a true purple as a dahlia can get since it has no genetics for blue coloration. Pictures always make it look a little more pink/violet than it is in person. Dahlias are always hard to catch in true form in photos, but Thomas Edison is especially difficult. The dark stems and rich green leaves provide a pleasing frame.
This is a larger dahlia but not a giant, usually giving about 5.5-7 inch blooms, depending on weather, stress, and whether you disbud or remove lateral blooms to route energy. It is very productive, and not just for it's size. Thomas Edison is always constantly full of gorgeous purple flowers and does not slow down at the end of the season.
It is very heat resistant in my 100°F, arid weather. I have grown it without shade cloth with great success, though all the dahlias I grow in Colorado benefit greatly from shade cloth, some need it and Thomas Edison is not one.
There are not a lot of dahlia varieties that have thrived since 1929, but this one shows you why it has. Early blooms, constant blooms, beautiful and unique color, strong stems, produces lots of tubers, it checks all the boxes. Vase life is average for an informal decorative dahlia. It won't last as long as a tulip or a rose in a vase but you will get more than just a day or two from this one even without cutting early.
4' tall, Formal dec, B, Pr, 1929 US origin, hybridized by dahliadel
