San Francisco’s Official Flower Turns 100. Celebrate With a Free Dahlia Show This Weekend
If you’ve ever wondered what hundreds of the most ornamental flowers with striking geometric forms would look like under one roof, there’s a free event in Golden Gate Park this weekend that can give you a pretty good idea.
The Dahlia Society of California’s annual Dahlia Show and Competition returns this Saturday and Sunday at the County Fair Building near Ninth Avenue and Lincoln Way. The show is free and open to the public.
More than a hundred growers are expected to enter blooms for judging, with ribbons and cash prizes awarded in categories including Best in Show, photography and floral arrangements.
“Thousands of people pour through these doors over the weekends, and there’s something for everyone,” said Jenna Kaiser, a dahlia ambassador with the society.
“There’s a photo booth, and the orchid people will have a table there as well. The arrangement category is a big hit with the general public because there’s a theme to it.” This year’s arrangement theme is San Francisco icons, Kaiser said.
And there’s an extra reason to celebrate. 2026 marks 100 years since the dahlia became San Francisco’s official flower.
The city’s Board of Supervisors designated the dahlia the official flower on Oct. 4, 1926. The flower had already been growing in Golden Gate Park since the 1880s, and its ability to thrive in San Francisco’s cool summers and moist air helped make it a natural fit for the city.
During the show, visitors can watch judges make their way through the entries with clipboards on Saturday, and by Sunday, the winning blooms will be marked by ribbons. There’s also a People’s Choice Award, where visitors can vote for their favorite flower. Voters can take part by visiting the society’s Instagram account and casting their vote this weekend, Kaiser said.
“It’s a room full of the most colorful, spectacular, perfect dahlias you’ve ever seen,” Kaiser said. “A sea of blooms.”
Think your backyard dahlia could be a contender? You don’t have to be a professional grower to enter the show.
To compete, exhibitors must be members of a dahlia society affiliated with the American Dahlia Society. The Dahlia Society of California’s individual membership costs $10 a year and includes eligibility to participate in the annual show. The society welcomes growers at all levels.
Exhibitors also need an exhibitor number and must follow the show’s classification and entry rules. The society’s show information said entries must be in place by 9 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 15. The full show schedule includes the different classes and requirements for individual blooms, arrangements and other categories.
Volunteers at the Dahlia Society of California, founded in 1917, help maintain the historic Dahlia Dell in Golden Gate Park, where more than 700 named varieties are grown.
For Kaiser, that community is part of what makes the flower so addictive. “You get your feet wet, and then you can’t help yourself,” she said. “You want one of each [type of dahlia].”
The Annual Dahlia Show at Golden Gate Park is free to attend and takes place this Saturday, Aug. 15, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, Aug. 16, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.