Dahlia Yankee Doodle Dandy Mix

Dahlia × hortensis 'Yankee Doodle Dandy Mix' Collerette Dahlia 'Yankee Doodle Dandy Mix'

The two-tone dahlia with a collar — a Collerette type producing large 7cm flowers in pink, white, yellow, red and mauve, each with a distinctive inner ring of shorter petals in a contrasting colour that frames the open centre. Compact and bushy at 50–60cm with no staking needed, and open flowers that make it one of the most valuable dahlias for bees and butterflies in any cottage border.

Collerette dahlias are the rarest and most distinctive form in the dahlia family — instead of fully double or single flowers, each bloom has two rings of petals: a large outer ring of broad flat petals, and an inner "collar" of shorter, often differently-coloured petals that frames the central golden disc. The result is a two-tone flower of genuine character — each blossom looks like it's wearing a little ruffled collar around the centre. 'Yankee Doodle Dandy' produces flowers in pink, white, yellow, red and mauve, all with contrasting inner collars. Compact and bushy at 50–60cm, the plants need no staking — making them ideal for the front of borders or pots on the patio. RHS Plants for Pollinators recognised — the open central disc is fully accessible to bees and butterflies, unlike fully double dahlias that lock pollinators out.

A note on growing

Sow indoors from February to April. Surface-sow onto moist seed compost and cover with a fine layer of vermiculite. Maintain 20–25°C; germination 7–14 days. When seedlings have 2–3 pairs of leaves, prick out into individual pots, handling only by the leaves. Harden off and plant out only after all risk of frost (late May or June) in full sun and deep, rich, fertile soil. Dahlias are hungry plants — dig in plenty of organic matter and feed weekly with potash-rich (tomato) fertiliser once buds form. Pinch out the central growing tip at 10–15cm for bushy growth. Deadhead religiously. Tubers can be lifted after the first frost and stored frost-free for replanting the following spring.

Where it shines

At the front of cottage borders, where the compact 50–60cm height and distinctive collerette form earn proper attention. In patio containers, where a single packet's seedlings can fill multiple pots with two-tone interest. In wildlife gardens, where the open-centred form is properly valued by bees and butterflies. As a conversation-piece plant for garden visitors who haven't seen collerette dahlias before. In cottage cutting gardens for distinctive, characterful cut flowers.

Plant alongside

For a compact cottage front-border scheme, combine 'Yankee Doodle Dandy' with Calendula 'Oopsy Daisy', Cornflower 'Polka Dot Mixed' and the dwarf Dahlia 'Early Bird Mix' for layered colour at a similar height. For wildlife gardens, pair with the open-faced 'Bishop's Children' and Verbena bonariensis for a comprehensive pollinator-supporting border.