Admirers of the colourful dahilas that have been blooming at the Niagara-on-the-Lake Campus have a generous community donor to thank – master grower Ralph Suttell.
The dahlias he donated this year are standing tall and in full bloom in gardens steps away from the College Greenhouse. Yellow. Orange. Pink. White. Red. Each one is a result of meticulous care this particular type of flower demands.
“They’re a lot of work,” said the Beamsville resident – and he would know. Suttell has gained recognition as one of the best dahlia growers the field. His dahlias have won numerous awards over the years at shows and competitions that have led him and his wife Elizabeth across Canada and the United States for the past 60 years. In addition to showing dahlias competitively, he has judged competitions across North America. He’s been a senior judge for most of Southern Ontario for about 25 years and judges across Canada and the U.S. He has even served on the executive of the America Dahlia Society.
For Suttell, growing dahlias has been a labour of love for more than 65 years. Before he retired from Stelco about 27 years ago, he would use the gardening as refuge from his work day. “I’d go work in the garden so I can forget all about it,” he said with a chuckle.
His passion for growing dahlias is one with meaningful roots. “My mother was a dahlia grower,” he recalled, noting that he has since passed the joy onto his son, who has also begun to show them competitively.
Ralph Suttell shares a laugh and a few growing tips with Matthew Orr and Greenhouse co-op students.
Suttell has been sharing his love for dahlias with Niagara College staff and students for the past 20 years. He first became acquainted with the College and the NC Greenhouse through his involvement with the Lincoln Garden Club – a longtime supporter of the College’s horticulture programs as well the annual plant sale at the Greenhouse, formerly known as the Showcase.
For the past two decades, it has become his annual practice to bring a selection of his cuttings to the College each spring. This year, he donated 36 different varieties from the 600 cuttings he had at home. Once they arrive at NC, the Greenhouse co-op students plant them in a campus garden and learn to tend to them throughout the spring and summer months.
Suttell finds it rewarding to know that students, staff and visitors at the College can enjoy his dahlias, and that students are also learning to care for them.
“It still amazes me that a lot of people don’t know what dahlias are,” he said. “They are very unique and so many different colours. I really like the idea of others enjoying them.”
Greenhouse manager Matthew Orr noted that Suttell’s donation is a demonstration of the College’s relationship with the community. “Ralph is an award-winning grower that feels it is important to share his ideas, knowledge and experiences with us,” he said. “We are to thankful for Ralph’s long-time generosity.”
To the Greenhouse’s co-op students who have been tending to them during the summer months, the flowers which are known for being as high maintenance as they are beautiful, are a learning experience, an example of hybridization.
“I think they’re beautiful. I didn’t know much about them at first,” said Connor Meegan, Greenhouse Technician student who has been working a co-op position for the Greenhouse. “We’ve been watering them all summer since they were really small. It’s impressive how big they’ve grown.”
Ralph Suttell (middle) and his wife Elizabeth (front) visit the garden at the NOTL Campus where their donated dahlia cuttings were planted. They are pictured with greenhouse operations supervisor Matthew Orr (right), supervisor of landscape operations Judy Johnson (left) and co-op students Sidharth Kunner, Griffin Farr, Katrina Haas and Connor Meegan.
