Chrysanthemum morifolium

don’t leave your outdoor planters empty for over half the year! after summer annuals are spent, create your own cool-season flower beds or mixed pots & hanging baskets with an array of cold-loving plants to brighten those long winter days.

choosing a site & planting mums

plant mums in full sun to part shade for best flowering. hardy mums prefer rich, fertile, well-drained soil for healthy root development. to ensure well drained soil at planting time, amend with pine soil conditioner & compost. one bag will plant 3-6 mums or work one bag into 15-20 sq.ft. of bed.

• it’s important that mums develop strong roots before winter. to encourage strong root development use 1/4 cup bone meal per mum when planting.

• space mums 18-24” for the fullest effect. always plant mums at the same depth which they are planted in the container they come in or 1” higher.

• mulch mums with grade ‘A’ cypress mulch or pine mulch. mums may need to be divided every other spring.

feeding

• use bone meal at planting time.

• osmocote slow-release fertilizer should be used at planting time.

• supplement osmocote with water soluble fertilizer such as jack’s all-purpose or monty’s joy juice.

pinching

• in spring, begin tip-pinching your emerging mums when the new growth is 4-6” tall. keep pinching off half of the new growth when new shoots are about 3-5” long. this will encourage more compact, bushy plants with more blooms. stop pinching in mid to late july so that the plant will set buds.

• feed and water mums regularly throughout the growing season (may thru august).

*helpful hint:

mums dislike wet roots during the winter & spring. always watch for moisture collection under the mulch, particularly after winter snow melts & very early in spring during thaws & rainy periods. if the soil seems very wet, you should pull back the mulch around the mums to allow the soil to dry and avoid root rot.

with a little creativity & knowledge of cool-season plants, you may extend the "colorful season” by several months. mums bloom anytime between august & november and may be planted into flower beds, between shrubs & trees, in containers alone or mixed with other cool season grasses, perennials, annuals, & herbs.