Mums

[Nyboy]

Is there any way to tell florist from hardy in mums? A friends church had a mum sale to raise money, I purchased a lot of mums. I don't want to go though all the work of planting them if they willn't come back. I also don't want to chuck them if they are hardy. My friend has no clue what kind they are.

 

[journey11]

Yeah, I want to know too! I've been skunked so many times... Or else there isn't a mum hardy enough to prevent me from killing it.

 

[catjac1975]

If they are low cost they are probably not hardy. A nursery owner that I know told me that even a hardy mum had to be in the soil before blooming in order to be winter hardy. I don't know if it's true. I do find her to be very knowledgable.

 

[thistlebloom]

From what I've been reading Cats friend is right.

Here's an interesting article I found about it:
http://landscaping.about.com/od/landscapecolor/p/chrysanthemums.htm

....And here's an excerpt that copy/ pasted... but the whole article is a quick read.

[Types of Chrysanthemum Flowers: Hardy Mums Versus Florist Mums:]
"As mentioned earlier, there are "hardy mums" and "florist mums." Hardy mums put out stolons. Florist mums put out few or no stolons and are less likely to over-winter in cold regions. I also mentioned above the classification of chrysanthemums by flower form. But adding to the diversity are differences in growth habit between cultivars. For instance, the "cushion" type is a popular group; they exhibit a compact growth habit."

 

[lesa]

I have always dreamed of growing lots and lots of mums... Do you start from seed? I thought it would be fun to start them early and have them ready for the garden, late in the summer. Anyone try this?

 

[digitS']

oh!

I have, Lesa!!

The seed was from Stokes, I'm fairly sure but I don't see it in their catalog. A nice bronze and I started the seed in the greenhouse - easy peasy.

The plants were tall and that was a bit of a problem here in the yard. I put them in a place where they didn't get a great deal of sun (& less after the neighbor's tree grew taller). Still, they bloomed very well, year after year. Very late - some years they were just opening when the 1st frosts came but they were some nice (fall) color and can take a little frost.

Thompson & Morgan has some seed for cushions (link).

Here's another idea . . . . Show up at the "after Memorial Day sale." Buy those florist mums that didn't sell; they'll be cheap. Cut the plants way back and plant 'em with the annuals like petunias, or something. Along in late summer - they will bloom! They won't survive the winter here but, what the hay!

Steve

 

[lesa]

Perfect, Steve! I will keep a look out in my seed catalogs... I love your little guy with his hand raised!!

 

[catjac1975]

I have grown them from seed and they last forever. They do not look like the greenhouse grown plants. They must be trimmed back around the 4th of July to have them set buds in the fall.

 

[Smart Red]

I haven't grown mums from seed, but I find them very easy to propagate. In fact, leaving mums to spread each year will result in smaller flowers anyway. Each year, once the hardy mums begin growing, divide the plant into many parts and replant. Each section should grow. Keep pinching the growth on each one and they should all flower well that first year and each year after.

 

[ducks4you]

ducks, EVER the experimenter, has experimented YET AGAIN! Since 1/6 mums survived the winter of 2012-2013, I ventured to the clearance mum aisle (which I have often frequented) and bought 6 more, which were planted in late October. THIS time, I dug up the soil, mixed it with loose compost, then I added fresh horse manure to the bottom of each hole before planting with the loose mix. As you know fresh manure decomposes and creates heat. I am hoping that my little flowers enjoyed a longer fall and root growing time before the first real freezes lulled them to sleep. IF they grew the kind of roots my onions did in their fertile and very loose soil this year, they should have dug fairly deep. Guess we'll see you lives in the Spring. This is my form of "Survivor."