Janie’s Dahlias
Fort Bragg’s Dahlia Queen Keeps Blooming
story by Torrey Douglass
photos by Nik Zvolensky
Janie Larsen-Notmeyer may well be to dahlias what Johnny Appleseed was to apples. For the last 30 years, everywhere she has lived, Janie has planted her favorite flower. It might be just a pot on the porch or a little corner of the yard, but if she was there for any length of time, dahlias went into dirt.
Dahlias are not shy. They come in all sorts of colors, from hot hues like oranges and pinks to purple and even black. The petals might be rolled, fringed, flat, or even mimic cactus spikes. Shapes vary as well, including balls, starbursts, pompoms, and more. Blooms can be 11⁄2 inches in diameter all the way up to a whopping 10 inches, like the Dinnerplate Dahlias. In some varieties, the number of petals is sparse, like an orchid. In others they are abundant, with a multitude of small petals gathered in a tight spiral. Some have the charming look of a child’s drawing, with petals the shape of fat teardrops attached to a central circle.
With such an impressive array of colors, sizes, and shapes available, it’s no wonder the showy dahlia stole Janie’s heart—the same heart she followed to Fort Bragg a decade ago. She met Barry Notmeyer in 2008 while living in Petaluma and raising four daughters on her own. For seven years they visited each other whenever possible. Once her girls were launched, Janie moved up to Fort Bragg and they married.
The pair started their new chapter together on a three-acre property three miles inland from Fort Bragg. Suddenly Janie had a lot more space for planting dahlias, and she did not waste the opportunity. As her number of plants grew, so did the idea of selling them at local farmers markets. She kept the notion to herself until one day she finally admitted to Barry, “I’m going to have all these dahlias, and I have a dream of selling them at the farmers market.” Not only would it provide an outlet for her dahlia passion, it would get her away from her desk—where she works remotely for an education nonprofit—and out around people. “It’s not easy to come [to Fort Bragg] at my age and make friends up here,” Janie reflects. “Selling is a way to get connected into the community.”
Barry was immediately supportive. He enlisted a friend with a backhoe to dig the first two rows in 2019, and a couple hundred tubers went into the ground. By the second year they expanded the garden to 500 plants. Over time they’ve worked hard to get the soil just right “The size and health of the plants have exploded since that first year,” Janie remembers. She did a lot of reading, and learned to use a hand vacuum to suck up cucumber beetles as soon as she saw them. “They are not an issue if you get on them early,” she shares. While the farm is not certified, they do grow organically, water with well water, and compost everything.
They also have a market garden where they grow crops like snow peas, broccoli, cauliflower and chard. “But dahlias are the main thing,” Janie confirms.
The property’s distance from the coastline locates them out of reach from the chilly fingers of coastal fog. The flowers love the sun and heat, and by mid- to late-July, they are ready for market. On Saturday mornings during her selling season, Janie sets up a table in the parking lot of Adventist Health Medical Center on Fort Bragg’s Main Street. There she sells pre-made arrangements for $20 each. “People heading to a party will grab a bouquet,” she says. “I really love getting creative and putting different colors together, then adding a little greenery.” She favors yellows, pinks, and whites in the summer, while fall offerings include more oranges and reds.
Janie also sells a few pre-made arrangements at farmers markets in Mendocino (Fridays) and Fort Bragg (Wednesdays), but the main attraction is always the build-your-own option. Customers select their stems and take them home in a cellophane envelope with water in the bottom and tied with raffia. Regulars often bring their own vases to skip the plastic.
Selling to the public has had the desired outcome of connecting Janie to her new community. She’s known as a local dahlia expert now, teaching workshops at the Mendocino Coast Botanical Garden—dividing tubers in the spring and tending dahlias in the summer. With their long growing season, dahlias are a great choice for events many months of the year. Janie’s Dahlias have graced birthdays, funerals, and weddings.
Growing and tending a ginormous dahlia garden is a dream come true for Janie. “When it’s dahlia season I have them all over, vases in almost every room. I have withdrawal in the winter,” she reflects. “There are so many colors and textures—I just love them. Some bloom into November!”
One of Janie’s favorite aspects of her garden is the abundance of wildlife that has evolved with it, including frogs, spiders, and bees. ”I absolutely love that we got a beautiful bumblebee population we never had,” she says. “The bumblebees cover themselves in the pollen, then sleep inside of the big dahlias overnight. In the mornings they don’t move, so I can’t cut those in the morning. They only wake up when the sun heats them up.”
Dahlias exude delight as they turn their multicolored faces to the ever-generous sun. It’s like they are happy to be where they are and can’t help but express it. The same goes for Janie, who loves where she is and what she’s doing.
Janie’s Dahlias
janiesdahlias.com | janiesdahlias@gmail.com
Buy dahlias at the Fort Bragg (Wed) and Mendocino farmers markets (Fri) and on the corner of Cypress & Main Street on Saturdays through October.
Torrey Douglass is a web and graphic designer living in Boonville. Current life joys include garden puttering and escaping into a good book.