Chrysanthemum Flower
All About the Chrysanthemum Flower
The chrysanthemum flower, commonly known as a mum, is a beautiful wide flower that comes in many different colors. Most chrysanthemums either have a white center with white petals around the outside of it, similar to a daisy, or a pompon-like appearance. The chrysanthemum flower symbolizes the sun and meditation, and mythology says if you place a chrysanthemum flower at the bottom of a wine glass, you’re asking for a long and healthy life.
There are two basic types of mums. The garden hardy variety belongs to the perennial family, and they can survive colder winters in the northern part of the world if taken care of properly during the winter. Perennials are plants that can live for longer than two years. Proper winter care for mums includes mulch and some type of airy covering to protect them from bitter cold temperatures. Garden hardy mums are meant to live outside and can withstand more difficult handling. They also require less pampering.
Exhibition mums require a lot more care than the garden hardy variety. You may have to use stakes to help them grow flowers, and you’ll have to keep them in a cool, dry place over the winter. Some exhibition chrysanthemums even require night lights! However you can use the exhibition variety to create some beautiful plant forms in your garden.
The U.S. National Chrysanthemum Society has divided this type of flower into 13 different bloom forms. When working with this type of flower, many florists group them according to these basic shapes of the flowers. Mums grouped by the shape of the bloom make for some astonishingly beautiful floral displays.
If you decide to plant a chrysanthemum flower, do so in full sunlight and make sure the soil drains well. You can either start from a seed or use a cutting to start your plant. If you know someone who has chrysanthemums in their garden, you can also start your plant by dividing their plant if they’re willing. Mums do well if they get fertilizer once a month, and if you compost, use some of it on your mums to help them grow. Mums bloom whenever there is enough light, so avoid planting them in areas where bright lights will keep them blooming all night long. This can disrupt the plant’s cycle and kill it prematurely.
About every three years, you’ll need to divide your mums. This will not only give you more of the beautiful flowers, but also help keep your plants alive longer. Mums need a lot of air, so if there are too many blooms crowding the space, they can start to die off.
Chrysanthemums make a great addition to any flower garden because they bloom in the fall, giving your garden more beautiful colors in addition to the changing colors of some trees. If you travel to China, you may even try a cup of chrysanthemum tea. It’s a traditional beverage that also has medicinal uses, especially to help influenza patients recover more quickly. The Chinese also sometimes boil the plant’s leaves and use them as greens in some dishes.