GARDEN COLUMN FOR THE SALISBURY POST

 

Darrell Blackwelder

 

September 16, 2004

 

     Chrysanthemums are a Rowan County favorite providing a splash of color to drab, fall landscapes. Chrysanthemums, also known as "garden mums are now being sold by local garden shops and other retail outlets.

     Mums sell well because they are a great buy.  Heavily budded one gallon containers may be purchased for less than $4.  The bloom will provide beautiful color for at least four weeks.  Later blooming varieties may last until frost.

     Mums can be used in a variety of situations in the home and landscape.  Taller varieties make excellent cut flowers. Mums are often used as accent, plants providing color between shrubs or as a border. These plants can be massed in beds or used as simple pot plants as focal points on terraces or decks. Mums can also be placed as potted plants indoors as specimen or accent plants.

    There are two basic types grown by local growers-the Belgium type and Yoder varieties. Both types are bred for different colors, color combinations and shapes, far too many to list here.  However, the preferred blossom color of Rowan County residents is yellow.  It comprises about 60% of all sales because it’s adaptability to many different design situations. Other colors and combinations include: red, purple, pink, purple, lavender and white. 

     Chrysanthemums are photoperiodic; their blooms respond to short day lengths, similar to the bracts of a poinsettia. Choosing different varieties gives homeowners the option of continuous bloom during the fall.

     Garden mums are often grown as annuals; once the blooms are spent, the plants are removed making way for another flowering plant. However, mums are perennials and the plant can be saved for next season.  Winter damage may occur or the plant may be killed if temperatures plunge below 10 degrees. 

     In order to provide an attractive compact plant, mums must be pinched in the spring when the plant reaches a height of 6 inches. Pinch the new shoot 3/4 of an inch. Pinching terminal shoots will cause side shoots to develop.  When side shoots develop to 3-4 inches make another pinch.  Two pinches in April and May are usually adequate for most varieties.  Vigorous varieties may a third pinch. Mums may bloom sparsely in the spring but the majority of the blooms occur in the fall during short day lengths.

     Actively growing chrysanthemums have no tolerance to droughts, so be sure to keep them well watered.  Apply at least one inch of water per week during dry weather.   Avoid periodic light sprinkling, especially on the foliage. Leaf diseases are common problem in chrysanthemums so irrigate early in the day to avoid spreading of fungal leaf spot diseases. 

 

Darrell Blackwelder is an agricultural agent in charge of horticulture with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service in Rowan County. For archived garden columns or other information, visit the Rowan County Master Gardener web site at www.rowanmastergardener.com , e-mail Darrell_Blackwelder@ncsu.edu