Meetings & Events

2026 Calendar of Events

February

PBS GARDEN EXPO – Friday, February 13-Sunday, February 15. An email has been sent out to members including a sign up link for volunteer shifts.

March

MEETING – Sunday, March 15, 1:00-3:00pm IN PERSON (Willy St. Co-op East, 1221 Williamson St., Madison). This will be the first BSDS meeting of 2026! This meeting will be in-person and also have a virtual option.

Meeting topics include:

• Hands-on demonstration: waking up tubers and preparing for the sale.
• Business meeting: Discussing the Garden Expo, sale logistics, “Flower of the 2026 Show”, member survey results.

May

ONLINE DAHLIA TUBER and STARTED PLANT SALE – Saturday, May 2 – Tuesday May 5

Get tubers from award-winning “parents” at very reasonable prices. We have hundreds of tubers and plants from scores of exotic and gorgeous cultivars!

The list of dahlia varieties that we will have at our sale will be posted a few days before the sale opens.

When: Saturday, May 2 at 9am – Tuesday May 5 at 6pm.

Pick-up: No shipping. Pick-up on East side of Madison on Saturday, May 16. Pickup times are 9:00 am to 11:00 am for last names A-L and 11:00 am to 1:00 pm for last names M-Z. The specific address for pick-up will be included in your sale receipt.

Please email us at badgerstatedahlias@gmail.com if you have any questions about the sale.

July

MEETING – Saturday, July 25, 10:00am-noon IN PERSON. We will be discussing and demonstrating dis-budding, staging dahlias for the show, and floral arranging.

August

DAHLIA SHOW – We are planning on having our 80th annual show on Saturday, August 22 and Sunday, August 23 at the Goodman Community Center, 149 Waubesa St., Madison, WI. This is half a mile from Olbrich Gardens. FREE admission.

We are open for the public to view blooms on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. On Sunday at 2 p.m., we give away all the blooms, so bring a vase or bucket to carry away some beautiful and FREE cut blooms for your table.

September

CLUB PICNIC/GARDEN TOURS- Sunday, September 13, 1:00-3:00pm. 

Our annual picnic at the home of one of our growers. See new varieties and learn about different cultivation methods. Members only.

October

DAHLIA ARRANGEMENT WORKSHOP – DATE TBD. Allen Centennial Centennial Gardens, 620 Babcock Dr., Madison Wisconsin 53706. Pair dahlias with other blooming beauties to create a lovely arrangement to take home.

MEETING – Sunday, October 18, 1:00pm-4:00pm IN PERSON at Aubergine (Willy Street Co-op community space across from the Co-op. 1226 Williamson Street, Madison 53703). We will be discussing and demonstrating how to divide and store dahlia tubers. This meeting will also be available to attend via Zoom – link to be sent out to members closer to meeting date.

November

AWARDS BANQUET – Sunday, November 8, 1:00-4:00pm, Sugar River Pizza in Sun Prairie. Our annual buffet brunch and joint awards banquet for the Badger State Dahlia Society (based in Madison) and the Wisconsin Dahlia Society (based in Milwaukee). Members only, pre-registration is required.

See our Join/Contact Us page for information about becoming a BSDS member.