New Chrysanthemums Questions

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by Deborah L. on August 04, 2006 10:34 AM

A neighbor just gave me one of those small florist- type bright yellow chrysanthemums.
I was already thinking of doing a massive color bowl planting in a huge, huge, huge clay bowl I have on the patio.
What kind of care do mums need? And most of all, what keeps them blooming alot?
I'm thinking of doing the bronze mums mixed with the ruby ones.
The small gift one just got planted in a clay pot with butterflies on it. Cute, but not the huge display I want to do in the bowl.

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by alankhart on August 05, 2006 04:49 AM

Mums prefer full to partial sun and good drainage. They have shallow roots and need regular watering. They bloom best and longest in cool weather.

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by gardenfairy on August 06, 2006 01:56 PM

Mums are about the easiest plant to root from cuttings. I really expanded my mum collection from cuttings off of the ones I have.

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Monica

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away."

God gave us memories so we can have roses in the winter.

by Deborah L. on August 06, 2006 03:57 PM

Rooted in water?

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by dodge on August 13, 2006 02:07 PM

Deb

It suprises me Mums grow in your warm climates.

I have spider mums blooming now, and the bronze arent far behind............We have long cold winters and they came back so pretty.

dodge..;o) [gabby]

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''''Those who live in the Lord Never See Each Other For The Last Time!''''

by patches1414 on August 13, 2006 10:18 PM

Four years ago, I was working at a Garden shop & Greenhouse and I was able to buy 50 tiny starter plants very cheaply, so I did! [nutz]

I really didn't need or want that many, but I had to order that quantity to get that price. [Roll Eyes]

I raised them from spring until early fall in pots and they were awesome!

Of course, I ended up giving most of them away because I didn't have room to plant all of them. [tears]

I had five different varities (10 of each) and this is what I found out from the all information provided me and from my experience.

The Chrysanthemums grew best when placed in a sunny location, and they needed to be planted in soil that provides good drainage (so I used pots with Pro-Mix). If they do not get adequate sunlight the plants tend to get taller and spindly and have weaker stems. They like to be feed with a complete fertilizer (e.g. 5-10-10 or 5-10-5) in the spring, so I used 5-10-5. I watered them when the soil got dry, especially in the summer when it was hot, but avoided watering them at night because of powdery mildew. [Frown]

Chrysanthemums will make a bushier plant if you keep them pinched regularly until about the middle of June for those that are the early bloomers (August), late June for the September bloomers, and early July for the late bloomers (October); for our area (zone 5) I was told not to pinch them after July 4 [Frown]

(but I pinched some of them as late as mid-July without a problem) or they may not bloom before the first frost. The extreme hot summer temperatures like what we've experienced this summer may cause the blooming to be delayed.

I was told when planting the Chrysanthemums to allow plenty of space between the plants (usually about 18 - 24") and avoid overcrowding them, so they get plenty of air circulation because they are susceptible to powdery mildew. Mine were in pots so this wasn't an issue.

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"Lord, I love you and I need you, come into my heart, and bless me, my family, my home, and my friends, in Jesus' name. Amen!"

by dodge on August 14, 2006 02:57 AM

patches

Your correct ......

Are you going to put the potted ones out in the bed to winter over? You may be able to keep them in your unheated garage in pots????

Just thinking.

dodge [grin]

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''''Those who live in the Lord Never See Each Other For The Last Time!''''

by patches1414 on August 14, 2006 09:31 AM

Dodge, this was four years ago and I did plant the ones I kept in the ground.

I left them in the ground over the winter after mulching them well. They all survived the winter and came back every year, except last year because I dug them out in the spring [Big Grin]