MARYSVILLE – Dahlias are good for marriage.
Nancy and Hills Collins have grown dahlia tubers into showy flowers at their Marysville home for several years.
The hobby helped them spend time together and nurtured their relationship, they said. They were high school sweethearts and have been married for 42 years.
“It’s been a full-time hobby,” Nancy Collins said. “It’s something we enjoy doing together.”
They joined the Snohomish County Dahlia Society in 1998.
They’ve made friends, exchanged tips and improved their gardening skills. Now the couple is excited to be part of the group’s biggest event in history: to host the National Dahlia Show at Forest Park in Everett in August 2009 to celebrate the group’s 100th anniversary.
The group of about 90 people is hosting the annual tuber sale this weekend to raise money for the event.
The group has saved about $30,000, but it still needs to raise $20,000 more over the next two seasons in order to host the national show, which draws visitors from foreign countries, Hills Collins said.
“It’s a lot of money for a small group,” Nancy Collins said.
The fundraising event not only sells tubers, but also offers workshops that teach people how to grow the showy blooms, which are available in a seemingly endless number of types, sizes and colors, she said.
“So colorful; so easy to grow,” she said.
But growing big, beautiful blooms takes attention, patience and love from growers, the couple said.
Just like marriage.
Reporter Yoshiaki Nohara: 425-339-3029 or ynohara@heraldnet.com.
Dabble in dahlias
The Snohomish County Dahlia Society’s annual tuber sale is set for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday at Stocker Farms, 10622 Airport Way, Snohomish.
Proceeds will be used by the group to host the National Dahlia Show in August 2009 in Everett to celebrate the Snohomish County group’s 100th anniversary.
For more information, call Hills or Nancy Collins at 360-659-8687.
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