FAQs
Swan Island Dahlias employs family and friends who love dahlias, grow dahlias as a hobby, and who enjoy sharing their knowledge with others.
FAQ Topics
Why should you visit Swan Island Dahlias?
Swan Island Dahlias is the nation’s largest dahlia grower. Our Annual Dahlia Festival happens each year during August & September. The festival is stunning for people who love dahlias, flowers, gardening, and outdoor activities. You can visit the display garden, which showcases 3-5 plants, each of almost 400 varieties, in a spread-out garden area. Then you may stroll through almost 40 acres of dahlias in bloom on the designated pathways. Depending on the day’s events, you might have the chance to take a class, listen to live music, enjoy a drink or bite to eat at a food truck, visit the Sunday Market vendors, and shop in our adorable gift shop.
Summer Hours
June & July: We are in and out of the office preparing our fields for opening on August 1st.
The best way to reach us during these two months is by email and voicemail, allowing both you and us flexibility.
August & September: Fields, Gift Shop, and Office are open Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday 9am-5:30pm. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays during August & September.
Please understand that we are in need of field maintenance time and this closure was necessary for our farming purposes. Our property is now gated and fenced for security purposes.
Can you give me directions to the farm?
The farm address is 995 NW 22nd Ave, Canby, OR 97013. You may find detailed instructions via our directions page – Directions
When is the best time to visit your farm?
Although our fields are open in August and September, prime blooming is between mid-August and mid-September each year unless weather has delayed our planting season.
Do I need to make a reservation to visit the farm?
No, a reservation is not required to visit our farm. You are welcome to come anytime during our standard business hours.
Is your farm open to visitors?
Our beautiful dahlia fields are open for visitors in August and September each year. Our gift shop and office are open year-round. Please see our Visit Us page for current hours - Visit Us
Can I visit your fields in July or October?
Unfortunately, our fields are not open in July or October. Rarely are the fields in bloom in July. As for October, we begin prepping for fall/winter harvest and do not allow visitors into our fields at that time.
I am coming from out of town; where do you recommend I stay?
We recommend staying in the nearby town of Wilsonville, as there are many options. We are about 30 minutes from downtown Portland if you wish to stay there.
Are you near an airport?
We are about 29 miles from the Portland International Airport.
Do you have a restaurant on-site, or where do we grab a bite to eat?
No, we do not have a restaurant on site. We offer rotating food carts on specific days in August & September during our Annual Dahlia Festival. Please see our events calendar for details - Annual Dahlia Festival. As for locations nearby in Canby, there are many options, such as Wayward Sandwiches, Gwynn’s Coffee House, Backstop, Wild Hare, Nuevo Vallarta, and many other beautiful establishments.
Are dogs or are other animals allowed at the farm?
Yes, well-behaved dogs are allowed on leashes. However, they are not permitted in our gift shop or classes. Please be sure to clean up after your pet. All other animals other than dogs must be pre-approved before arrival. Service, Guide, or Signal Dogs accompanying an owner are always welcome. And please, do not leave your pets in your car.
Can I bring my own food and drinks to your farm?
Yes, you may bring a picnic in August & September to enjoy. However, no outside alcohol is allowed.
Is there a fee to visit your farm?
No, admission and parking are free to visit our farm.
Is your parking lot large enough to accommodate an RV?
Yes, but please call when you are 5-10 minutes away to allow our staff to meet you and direct you to the best parking spot for your vehicle.
When will the sprinklers in the dahlia fields shut off?
Please remember we are a working farm and must water the flowers to have beautiful fields for visitors. Once one irrigation line is done, it will switch to the following pipeline for watering. We try to water less when we expect a high number of visitors.
Is your farm handicap accessible for visitors?
Our farm is wheelchair and handicapped-accessible. We offer ADA parking on our farm. Our pathways/fields are grass or hard-packed dirt. Most of the parking area for ADA-permitted visitors is paved, along with our restroom and general seating areas. Most visitors in a wheelchair or walker can manage a wonderful visit. Mobility scooters for accessibility are welcome on our farm.
Do you offer wheelchairs or scooter rentals?
No, we do not offer wheelchairs or scooters. Please bring your own.
Is the Indoor Display of flowers happening this year?
No, since COVID, we have discontinued the indoor display, and the future of the indoor display is unknown at this time.
Are there restrooms on site?
Yes, we offer portable or farm restrooms, as we call them, for visitors to use. We do our best to provide “farm restrooms” or portable restrooms that are clean and user-friendly. We do offer ADA-accessible restrooms as well as standard units. We do not have other restroom options. We thank you for your understanding.
Where is the designated smoking area?
Swan Island Dahlias is a smoke-free environment. Smoking of all types (including vaping) is prohibited on our private property.
Do you offer fresh cut flowers?
Yes, we offer fresh-cut dahlias in our cut flower stand during our blooming season. This is the best option if you do not need a specific variety or color. However, if you are needing a specific color or variety, we recommend placing a particular order for cut dahlias to guarantee availability. We do not offer same-day requests. Special ordered bunches are a little more than our cut flower stand bunches. Please see our cut flower page for more details - Fresh Cut Dahlias
Can we take family photos or have a photo class at the farm?
We offer after-hours photo sessions for a small fee on specific dates and times. As for classes and details on availability, please see our photography link - Photographer Class - Session Request
Do you take credit cards?
Yes, we do. We accept Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express, and Apple Pay. We also sell and accept Swan Island Dahlias gift certificates which may be purchased online or in person.
Do you offer a catalog?
Yes, our main catalog is mailed each winter to current customers who have ordered within the last 3 years. We also mail a smaller version of the catalog at the beginning of August for early ordering. Catalogs are mailed to U.S. customers only for free. All Canadian customers will need to purchase our main catalog sent in the winter due to postage costs.
Our Guarantee to You
We sell only top-quality 1st grade A single division tubers (price is per tuber), fully guaranteed to grow, be true to name, and free from disease.
We replant our fields each spring from the same stock we are selling. The Guarantee covers the current season's orders, and we are not responsible for customer negligence, weather conditions, rodent damage, winter storage, or the performance of plants in the following seasons. Each tuber will produce a full-size plant. All dahlias should emerge from the soil within 3-5 weeks after planting. Please see the Our Guarantee page to learn more.
What Will I Receive?
Dahlia Tubers
We offer single-division dahlia tubers. All of our tubers come with a 100% guarantee to grow beautifully for you.
Each price is based on the amount of stock available and is for 1 single dahlia tuber. Each single division tuber will produce a full-size plant with many flowers and many more tubers for the following seasons. Please make sure to give them lots of love and care so that they can grow properly for you. If you want to learn more about how to care for them visit our How to Grow Dahlias page.
Grown in the USA!
All of our tubers that we offer have been grown at our farm located in Canby, Oregon, USA. We are our very own supplier, unlike many companies in this industry. Buy USA-grown dahlias first!
Pot Roots vs. Single Divisions
A single division tuber (99% of what we offer and what are planted each year in our fields) is a tuber that has been field grown to maturity divided, stored, and then packed with love and shipped out to you. A pot root is a dahlia cutting that has been forced in a greenhouse, partially grown, and then dug up and sold. US growers/domestic grown dahlias will mainly be a single division. Imported dahlias will be pot roots. Both will produce and grow beautifully for you. There should be no difference in growing one over the other.
What Will My Tubers Look Like? What Am I Purchasing?
Swan Island Dahlias has a unique way of labeling the tubers. You will find the variety name stamped on each individual tuber you receive, as seen in the photo. Your tubers will be packaged in the same bag, and you will be able to identify each tuber with the name on it. Some tubers will show sprouted eyes and others may have dormant eyes when you receive them. All tubers are guaranteed to grow and produce beautiful flowers.
What Will My Order Look Like?
Check out the video below to see what to expect when your dahlia order arrives.
Packaging
Each dahlia tuber that is sent out is hand stamped with its name directly on it. Tubers will arrive packed together in the same bag so please be sure to open your bag and inspect your dahlia tubers carefully upon arrival. Any concerns must be reported within 10 days or receiving your order.
Shipping
We begin shipping dahlia tubers from March 1st through May each season. No dahlia tuber orders are shipped before March 1st.
Please see our Shipping Information page for more information.
Pick-up Orders
For our local customers, we offer cash and carry sales beginning April 1st through May each year.
All orders placed in advance by mail, fax, and online will be shipped out automatically and unavailable for pick-up. We are open for walk-in sales 9 am – 4:30 pm Monday-Friday, 10 am -3 pm Saturday. Closed Sunday.
Order Processing & Payment
Orders are processed by the date received. Payment must accompany all orders.
We accept Check, Money Order, Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express. Credit cards are charged out upon receipt, just as your checks are deposited. This reserves your order as of this date. Please order early as our dahlias are sold on a first-come, first serve basis. Non-sufficient funds – bad check fee is $25.00 for any checks returned to us by our bank.
Order Additions
Once you have placed an order online, it may not be amended by placing another order online. The only way to revise an order placed through the online ordering system is to call us toll-free at 1-800-410-6540.
All orders placed online will be invoiced and shipped separately. We are unable to combine online orders. Please make any additions or order changes before February 15th to avoid additional shipping charges.
Canceled Orders
Canceled orders are subject to a $15.00 cancellation fee or 15% of your order, whichever is greater, to cover processing and restocking fees.
Once an order has been sent to our warehouse, we are unable to make revisions and or cancellations.
Returns/Refund
We stand behind everything that we sell and want our customers happy and satisfied.
Returns
If for any reason you would like to return an order or items that you have received please contact us within 10 days of receipt of your order for return instructions & a return order number. If an order or items are returned to us without this information or returned past 30 days of receipt of the order – we will issue a merchandise credit. Once your order or items have been received by us we will issue a refund or merchandise credit for the amount of product purchased within 7-10 business days. A 25% re-stocking fee will apply, shipping and handling is non-refundable.
Refunds
In most cases your refund will automatically go back to the original form of payment used for the purchase. If you used multiple forms of payment, your refund may go back to all payment methods used or a check may be issued and mailed. When there is a partial refund issued on an order that has a split tender (gift certificate and another payment method), a check will be issued and mailed to you for the refund amount up to the gift certificate amount. Gift certificates are non-refundable and will be reissued. We are unable to refund original credit card payments past 90 days from the original date of purchase and may have to issue a check for any necessary refund.
Refunds processed to your credit card may take 7-10 days to be processed by your credit card issuer. Please contact your credit card company if you have questions regarding the processing of your refund once you have received confirmation from us that the refund was processed and initiated.
Substitutes
Please let us know when placing your order if something is unavailable if you would prefer a refund or substitution. Make sure this is noted on your order at the time it is placed as we are unable to call or contact you later. We only substitute with a similar variety of dahlia, same or greater value. Refunds will be automatically issued if a comparable substitute is not available.
Sold Outs
Once a dahlia has sold out for the season it will not be available again that same season as we are our own supplier.
Bonus Gifts
Bonus gifts are available while supplies last.
Please note that bonus gifts are subject to change due to availability and do change each season. Please visit our Bonus Gift Gallery page to see the available options.
Only available while supplies last. No rainchecks, backorders, or substitutions.
Unavailable Variety
When a dahlia is taken off the market for a year to increase our retail stock, it is called Unavailable.
Canadian Orders
We are no longer able to ship chemicals to Canada (including but not limited to fertilizers, sprays, pellets, etc.)
All orders must be placed at least 14 working days prior to the shipping date.
Please see our Shipping Information page for more information.
Catalogs
Our Spring Catalog mails out each winter and continues to mail through spring or while supplies last. Request a Catalog Here...
U.S. Customers who have ordered from us in the past 3 years will automatically receive a catalog each growing season. Due to high postage costs, our catalogs are only mailed within the U.S. for free.
Canadian customers may order your International color copy for $15 or shop online. Canadian customers placing an order will automatically receive a catalog in your dahlia tuber order.
Cut Flowers
We offer fresh cut flowers August through September each year for local pick up shipping. To order cut flowers please call us at (503)-266-7711.
We do not offer U-picks. If you are not specific on colors we have a great selection at our fresh cut self-serve stand for you to just drop by and purchase, limited to stock on hand, during our open hours. The self-serve stand is open Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 9am-5:30pm. We are Closed Mondays and Tuesdays in August & September.
Fresh cut dahlias may be shipped out for events. Minimum order for shipping is 12 bunches (120 stems/blooms). Please call us for details at (503)-266-7711 or see our Fresh Cut Dahlias page for more information.
Bloom Times
In general, the larger the bloom, the longer the time for them to bloom.
- 8-12" blooms will take approximately 120 days from planting to bloom time.
- Low-growing and dwarf dahlias will take approximately 75 from planting to bloom time.
- All others will be blooming approximately 90 days after planting.
Once they begin to bloom, they will continue to bloom through frost. However, this time frame will vary depending on the weather, water, and fertilizer.
Collections
Collections are a great way to save money - We offer pre-packaged collections for you to select from.
These collections are packed up in advance in order to save you money - they cannot be changed. Please note that collections are subject to change due to availability and change each season. Shop Collections Here...
Privacy Notice
Information to the Swan Island Dahlias Privacy Policy, can be found here.
Copyright Notice
Information on the Swan Island Dahlias Copyright Policy, can be found here.
