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Make Fall Mumalicious!

© Susan Ward

When many plants have stopped blooming and some are looking quite bedraggled, the garden chrysanthemum comes into its own, providing a blaze of colour to rival the brightest maple. Right now, thanks to my collection of mums, my garden is as packed with blooms as it is in early spring, providing a welcome respite from the dull winter to come.

If you don't already have a large selection of mums colouring your garden for fall, here are five reasons why you should plant some in your garden:

1. Mums grow in almost any garden soil. They're not particularly finicky about growing conditions as long as they have adequate sun and adequate drainage. Here on the "Wet" Coast, I recommend growing them in raised beds.

2. Mums come in a dazzling array of flower forms and colours. The flowers of Chrysanthemums range from perfect ball shapes through blooms that look like brushes. And colours! With the exception of blue, you'll find that mum blooms run the gamut of the rainbow, from bold primary reds through delicate mauves and whites. This page of Chrysanthemum Classes from the National Chrysanthemum Society will show you more of mums' astonishing variety.

3. Mums are easy-care plants. While there are a great many things you can do to mums (and must do if you want to exhibit them), there isn't actually much that you have to do to them. They need adequate watering, of course, and the growing plants should be pinched out if you want them to reach their maximum bloom potential. Here is an excellent summary care sheet for mums from King's Mums (CA).

4. Pests don't bother them much (even deer). Even though I live on a deer trail, the deer leave my mums alone. Mums grown in poor conditions may be susceptible to fungal rot or powdery mildew. They may also suffer from the attentions of aphids, earwigs, and spider mites. But I've grown mums for years and haven't had to deal with any of these problems yet.

5. Mums bloom ferociously for a long period. Some of the mums in my garden have been blooming since mid-September, and show no signs of stopping yet. I deadhead them regularly to prolong the bloom season, but still, that's a pretty impressive record. And when I say ferociously, I mean it; some varieties of mums will turn into a 3 foot by 3 foot mound of blooms when they flower.

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