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Why Chrysanthemums are popular
Chrysanthemums, known affectionately by many gardeners as mums, are a staple of any florists, a perennial most often treated as an annual, although there are also annual varieties, and such a good tempered plant it accounts for their popularity. Add to that the sheer variety of chrysanthemums that you can grow, you can be assured that there is a color, a flower, a type, to suit any garden. Because chrysanthemums are relatively easy to grow from seed, you will only see chrysanthemum plants for sale either in the spring for direct planting, as small mums, or early fall, a larger plant for flowering before the frosts. If buying plants rather than planting chrysanthemum seeds look out for hardy mums, florist mums will not survive a frost, and plant in the spring, it gives them more time to establish and toughen out the winter. They are perennial, but thrive best in zones 3 to 9 and when planted in tubs and planters are often treated as annuals.
Sourcing Chrysanthemum Seeds
If you have decided to grow your mums from seed, then you need to choose carefully where to buy chrysanthemum seeds. As there are so many varieties, it pays to read up about them until you are clear about the varieties you want to grow, and where in the garden, you are planting them. When nurseries advertise chrysanthemum seeds for sale, they will advertise them as both perennial and annual, so decide whether you want these to be a permanent fixture in your garden, or temporary color to brighten the late summer months. An easily available variety to buy online is Chrysanthemum carinatum or more commonly known as tricolor chrysanthemum as its blooms are a stunning mixture of color and the daisy like flowers grow 2 to 3 feet tall, perfect for cut flower arranging.
Types of Chrysanthemum Seeds
There are 13 classifications of chrysanthemum and the type of form the flowers take is defined from the way in which the disk florets and the ray are arranged. An interesting variety is the spider chrysanthemum, so called because the ray florets are tube like with barbed ends, which hang loosely around the stem, like legs, and the disk florets are completely concealed. They actually look quite a bit like sea anemones, but the colors are extraordinary and they bloom profusely. If buying spider chrysanthemum seeds choose a supplier that has a good variety, then you can mix and match, and if it is a good supplier they will have the rare lime green chrysanthemum seeds, although you may find it hard to get the spider variety, you can now buy edible chrysanthemums, the variety name is chop suey green. If you want a great herbal chrysanthemum, then choose Pyrethrum Chrysanthemum cinerariaefolium seeds. Plant them in the spring, and, by summer, you will have your very own natural insect repellant and fumigant, and they will protect the surrounding plants from insects. There are varieties of chrysanthemum seeds for any gardener and any need; flower arranging, brightening up a border, eating or for using, dried, as medicine.
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Author Bio Box: Patricia Wainwright
Get all the facts about seeds and gardening information at GreenThumbArticles.com!
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