Swan Island Dahlias - Canby, OR - Flower Fields on Waymarking.com

Under no circumstances should the flowers be picked. During bloomtime flowers are available for purchase.

Swan Island Dahlias is located in the town of Canby, in the rich soil of the Willamette Valley of Oregon. The farm was originally located in Portland, Oregon, with some buildings on Swan Island, which is where the farm’s name was derived from. There was also a roadside stand in Sellwood, a suburb of Portland, so the business was known as both Swan Island Dahlias and Portland Dahlia Gardens at that time. Swan Island Dahlias was moved to Canby, Oregon on rented land in the 1940’s. Around 1953, twenty acres of farmland was purchased in Canby, and the business was relocated to its present site.

Nick and Margaret Gitts purchased Swan Island Dahlias in 1963 and moved their family to Oregon. Previously they owned a dairy farm in Laurel, Washington. Along with their dairy farm, they also owned and operated a small dahlia business on their farm know as Laurel Valley Dahlias. No longer just handling a small acre of dahlias, they were now farming 20 acres of dahlias as well as running the retail mail order and wholesale end of the dahlia business too. Under the Gitts family, the farm has expanded to a little over 40 acres at present. Nicholas and Ted Gitts joined their parents as partners in 1975 and then in 1991, their parents retired from the business.

Swan Island Dahlias has been in operation for over 85 years. The Gitts family has owned and operated the business for over 50 years. They offer the largest full color dahlia catalog in the industry. They hybridize their own new varieties, planting over 10,000 seedlings each year. From those original seedlings, it takes about 4 years to introduce a new seedling for sale. Each season anywhere from 5 to 15 new varieties are introduced. Over 350 varieties are grown on 40 acres that are open to the public during blooming season, and it is a beautiful sight to behold.

Species: Dahlia Habitat Type: Cultivated Parking Area: N 45° 16.789 W 122° 42.478 Terrain Rating: Best Viewing Time: From: 08/01/2014 To: 09/30/2014

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Date Logged Log User Rating   02/15/2014 dkestrel visited it