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Chrysanthemum morifolium, better known as the florist’s mum, has long been a favorite of autumn decorating. One can not go into a garden center, supermarket or farm stand starting in August through to November without seeing multitudes of these in all those luscious harvest shades of bronze, bright yellow, burgundy, orange and rust plus all the spring colors like pink, lemon yellow, mauve, white, purple, cream and lavender. Unfortunately, these have been hybridized to death and frankly, they bore me.
With all the many varieties of mums all we see are the same tired flower forms the decorative, the single and if we’ve been very good girls and boys we sometimes get the Pompom. There are only a dozen others like the semi-double, incurve, Laciniated, spoon, brush, anemone, reflex and spider mum. But I suppose those huge commercial nursery growers care little that I’m bored. I’m the only one that complains, no doubt. I see hundreds of people tossing away their money year after year on these same plants which they stick into containers and then throw out at the end of the season as if that’s the end of it.
They don’t seem to realize these plants are perennials and relatively hardy. If they like them so much shouldn’t they, instead of letting them die, plant them in their gardens to winter-over? I know I would. All they need is 2-3 inches of mulch over their roots to make it through the harshest climates. Their care couldn’t be more simple. All they require is a good, rich soil improved with added organic matter such as shredded leaves and lawn clippings. They like to be fed and watered regularly. To propagate use rooted cuttings or single stem divisions and set them out in early spring. When taking divisions from an established clump only use the outer portion. The woody centers should be thrown away for they never do well.
The toughest part is keeping up the continual pinching back to ensure more branching and more flowers. I never pinch back the few mums I have and they flower fine.
There are also different kinds of Chrysanthemum that should be mentioned such as Marguerite, Ox-eye Daisy, Pyrethrum and the Shasta Daisy. But no one really considers these mums. They just happen to be of the same family is all. I must say I like these a whole deal better. They are much less fussy, bloom profusely and are prettier.
If you would like to add to your collection of Chrysanthemum you might consider grabbing a seed catalogue such as Seymour’s selected seeds. They provide seeds for the cottage garden enthusiast. You won’t find many of these rare varieties in stores and you might get a real appreciation for the grandeur that is the Chrysanthemum family.
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Author Bio Box: Glory Lennon
 For more garden talk, funny short stories and romantic novel excerpts visit http://www.helium.com/users/32782
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