07/11/2026
What’s up with KELGAI ANN???
I know that a lot of people struggle with this particular waterlily, so I decided to do some investigating!
2 seasons ago, I purchased Kelgai Ann from six different sources and planted them all in my *very* unofficial “Kelgai Ann experiment”. What I found was that some Kelgai Ann just don’t perform as well as others, while some perform spectacularly true to its original form! I kept the tubers that seemed true to the original bloom, while tossing the rest.
If you’ve struggled with Kelgai Ann and can relate to this post, I absolutely hear you and I have experienced this myself!! This variety is a bit of a conundrum, but let’s remember that every Kelgai Ann available to this day originated from one single plant in Australia in 1992 by Don and Molly Kelly…so that’s quite a few “copy and prints”, as they say in the dahlia world. Still, that’s no excuse since we have varieties from decades earlier that still survive, right!?
Let’s face it: Some varieties just start to break down, and I think that what we’re looking at with some strains of Kelgai Ann. We would hope that people would cull these strains, but unfortunately, they continue to be re-sold again and again, muting the beauty of the original Kelgai Ann. That said, there are still beautiful strains out there that are true to form, so please don’t give up on this beauty if you’ve been the victim of degraded genetics with this strain.
That said, I’ve seen a few people report that they’ve given their Kelgai Ann tubers an extra punch of nutrients and this simple remedy has pumped them up! I did not do this in my little experiment (I treated them all the same) so if you have had luck with this, let us know! I’d be interested to hear if extra nutrients helps this variety along!! 
Another thing I see people complain about is its short vase life. 🚩 I find this completely unfair as it’s a waterlily type and waterlilies are notorious for their short vase life. So if you purchase a waterlily variety expecting the same vase life as a pompon, mini ball or ball, you’re just not going to get that! They are short-lived in the vase, but please believe me~ they are still worth growing and dropping into a vase, if only for a special event! There’s nothing more spectacular than a dozen guest wedding tables filled with Kelgai Ann dahlias as their centerpiece! *swoon*
Kelgai Ann, my beautiful girl, you are an ethereal, dreamy and magical dahlia… I will ALWAYS have you in my garden! 
