What type of mum do I have?
Chrysanthemums are classified according to shape and arrangement of petals. The major types of hardy mums include:
Daisies or dingles: Daisy-like flowers with yellow centers
Anemones: Like single mums but with a rounded crest of deeper color
Decoratives: Double or semi-double flowers and usually grow to more than 18 inches tall
Pompons: Small ball-shaped flowers on plants that are usually less than 18 inches tall
Cushion mums: These are not a flower form but a name used for early-flowering, low, bushy mums
Chrysanthemum: Information about the flower from the Clemson University Extension
After a hot summer, I'm ready for fall. And a sure sign of fall will soon be at a garden center near you.
The arrival of garden mums (Dendranthema morifolium) means that fall is on the way. Chrysanthemums provide bursts of autumn colors such as white, yellow, bronze, pink, lavender, coral, salmon, purple and deep burgundy red.
Use mums to replace summer annuals and bring new fall colors into the landscape. Mums provide color until freezing weather arrives, and they will fill the gap between summer annuals and winter pansies.
Select sturdy, shapely plants with healthy foliage and bright, clear-colored flowers. For longest bloom time, select plants with tightly closed buds. Avoid plants with diseased or yellow leaves and check leaf axils for insects such as aphids.
Although garden mums are hardy perennials in Georgia, many people treat them as short-season, fall-planted annuals. Chrysanthemums grown as perennials will spread rapidly and should be divided every year or two. Mums grow between 1« to 3 feet tall depending on the cultivar, growing conditions and whether they are pinched regularly during the growing season.
Chrysanthemums prefer fertile, highly organic, well-drained soil in full sun. Mature plants set in a shady area will give nice color the first year but do very poorly the following year. Mums also look excellent in planters or pots for a moveable color feast.
Success with chrysanthemums depends on the right amount of water. Too little water will slow their growth or stop it completely. Mums especially need plenty of water when they bloom.
Mums growing in pots need daily attention since they can dry out quickly, especially during hot September days. Mums are heavy feeders, too. A weekly application of water soluble fertilizer is a good idea. Mulch around mums planted in the landscape to help retain soil moisture, control weeds and improve appearance.
Disease problems can include powdery mildew, Botrytis blight, aster yellows, leaf spots, viruses and foliar nematodes. Insects that commonly infest chrysanthemums are aphids, thrips and spider mites.
If you decide to keep your mums as perennials in the landscape, pinch the tip growth of the second-year mums regularly to cause them to branch and bloom well. Remove the top half to 1 inch of new growth every four weeks from the time the plant is 6 inches tall until early July.
Billy Skaggs is an agricultural agent and Hall County extension coordinator. Phone: 770-531-6988. Fax: 770-531-3994.