美国桦树湾大丽花 Birch Bay Dahlias – 美国大丽花育种苗圃

苗圃沿革与家族起点

史蒂夫·博利（Steve Boley）1980 年代末在西雅图买下一栋带大丽花的房子，由此进入大丽花种植圈。婚后，妻子桑迪·博利（Sandy Boley）原本是内布拉斯加林肯市的一位花艺师（Master Florist），两人于 1991 年定居西雅图后正式入行，1992 年加入普吉特湾大丽花协会（Puget Sound Dahlia Association）。苗圃最初叫 SB Gardens 或 SB Dahlias，1995 年迁至华盛顿州弗恩代尔（Ferndale）以北 5 英亩土地后改用现名 Birch Bay Dahlias，后期又搬到紧邻苗圃的苏马斯（Sumas），现址仍在华盛顿州霍特科姆县（Whatcom County）。

育种路线与品种命名习惯

苗圃的核心方向是杂交育种，专攻既适合展赛、又能丰富切花市场花色的新类型。为了留出试验空间，他们大幅压缩了商品花的栽培量，把精力放在杂交幼苗与未命名品系的培育上，淘汰易感病的母本，按”性状选定 + 自然隔离 + 多点试种”的流程稳定新品种。1998 年推出首个正式登录的大丽花品种以来，累计登记的品种约 90 个，另有数个处于试种观察阶段。源站按 A、BB、Miniature、球状/迷你球状/蜂窝、水莲/星形等多个花型分页展示，并保留 2026 年最新上线的 IRISH MOON 等入选品种。

四大命名系列与代表品种

博利夫妇为大丽花自育系建立了四个常用前缀：Sandia 来自新墨西哥州桑迪亚山脉，是博利家族有特殊情感的地方；Irish 来自史蒂夫的祖辈血统；SB’s 与 MS 则是夫妇本人或纪念对象的缩写。代表作包括水莲型的 Sandia Shomei、Sandia Isa、Sandia Can Can、Sandia Bliss、Sandia Bertha、Sandia Susan，球状/迷你球状的 Sandia Brocade、Sandia Pouffe、MS Kennedy，蜂窝与异型的 Irish Blackhart、Irish Speckles、Irish Miss，以及 2024 年最新推出的 Sandia Ruthie。苗圃还常年向普吉特湾大丽花协会的”幼苗挑战赛”提供种子与评审支持。

协会任职与行业贡献

博利夫妇长期活跃在美国西北大丽花圈：先后担任普吉特湾大丽花协会会员 25 年，史蒂夫曾任该协会理事十余年，并曾作为协会代表加入西北大丽花种植者联合会（Federation of Northwest Dahlia Growers）；迁居苏马斯后，两人一同进入霍特科姆县大丽花协会（Whatcom County Dahlia Society）的领导层，史蒂夫担任会长与联合会代表，桑迪担任副会长。夫妇两人长期以裁判、教师、撰稿人与演讲者身份服务西北大丽花联合会，并入选联合会名人堂候选。桑迪具备花艺师背景，负责苗圃切花应用方向的选种；史蒂夫则承担杂交与亲本筛选。

销售渠道转型与现状

随着年龄增长，博利夫妇逐步减少直接销售，把种薯交由华盛顿州的三重画眉农场（Triple Wren Farms）通过其”传承大丽花”项目（Legacy Program）规模化繁育、市场推广并向全美分销，由育种者持续获得版税分成。苗圃自身每年仍向四月的霍特科姆县种薯拍卖会捐赠约 1000 颗种薯，也会保留少量自育精品在自家网站展示。源站主页已明确写明 Birch Bay Dahlias 现在通过 Triple Wren Farms 销售，并提供 2026 年最新杂交种清单、本地指南目录以及针对普吉特湾地区气候的栽培要点链接。

官网: http://birchbaydahlias.com/

Founding and Family Roots

Steve Boley bought a Seattle property that already grew dahlias in the late 1980s, which drew him into the dahlia world. After marrying Sandy Boley, a Master Florist from Lincoln, Nebraska, the couple settled in Seattle in 1991 and joined the Puget Sound Dahlia Association in 1992. The nursery originally traded as SB Gardens and later SB Dahlias, then took the name Birch Bay Dahlias after the family purchased five acres north of Ferndale, Washington in 1995. They later moved closer to the fields in Sumas, where the farm still operates today in Whatcom County.

Breeding Direction and Display Practices

The nursery is built around dahlia hybridization. Rather than scaling up cut-flower production, the Boleys concentrate on seedlings and un-introduced lines, weed out disease-prone stock, and use spaced isolation plantings to stabilise new varieties. Since their first official introduction in 1998 they have registered about ninety cultivars, with several more still in trial. The source site groups the catalogue by form – A, BB, miniature, ball / mini-ball / pompon, waterlily and stellar – and flags new-for-2026 selections like IRISH MOON.

Four Naming Series and Representative Cultivars

The Boleys organise their introductions under four familiar prefixes. Sandia comes from the Sandia Mountains in New Mexico, a place that matters to the family; Irish honours Steve’s heritage; SB’s and MS are short for the Boleys or the people the seedlings commemorate. Notable waterlily releases include Sandia Shomei, Sandia Isa, Sandia Can Can, Sandia Bliss, Sandia Bertha and Sandia Susan; ball and pompon work includes Sandia Brocade, Sandia Pouffe and MS Kennedy; novelty and pompon introductions include Irish Blackhart, Irish Speckles and Irish Miss, and the most recent release highlighted on the source site is the 2024 introduction Sandia Ruthie. The nursery also supplies seed and judging support to the Puget Sound Dahlia Association’s long-running seedling challenge.

Association Roles and Industry Service

The Boleys have been long-standing members of the regional dahlia community. They belonged to the Puget Sound Dahlia Association for twenty-five years, with Steve serving as a PSDA trustee for more than a dozen years and as a representative to the Federation of Northwest Dahlia Growers. After relocating to Sumas they joined the leadership of the Whatcom County Dahlia Society, where Steve serves as president and Federation representative while Sandy serves as vice-president. Across decades the couple has acted as judges, teachers, writers and speakers for the Federation and now stands as a candidate for its hall of fame. Sandy’s florist background guides the cut-flower application choices, while Steve leads the hybridisation and parent selection work.

Sales Transition and Current Status

As the Boleys have moved into retirement, the retail side of Birch Bay Dahlias has been transferred to Triple Wren Farms in Washington State, which grows, markets and distributes the Boleys’ introductions across North America through its Legacy Dahlia Hybridizer Program and pays the breeders ongoing royalties. The Boleys still donate around one thousand tubers to the annual Whatcom County tuber sale each April and keep a small display of their work online. The source homepage states that Birch Bay Dahlias is now sold through Triple Wren Farms and provides the 2026 latest-list, current price list and Puget Sound growing-tip links.

Official Site: http://birchbaydahlias.com/