Chrysanthemum, a plant that is simply beautiful

Chrysanthemum is a magnificent flower to embellish gardens and terraces.

Core Chrysanthemum facts

Name – Chrysanthemum
Family – Asteraceae
Type – annual and perennial

Height – 15 to 40 inches (40 to 100 cm)
Exposure – full sun
Soil – ordinary

Flowering – June to November

Planting and advice on caring for it, here is how to grow beautiful chrysanthemum.

Planting chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemum is planted ideally in spring. Indeed, blooms at the end of summer or during fall, it will have developed a great root system and will resist the harshness of fall and winter much better.

• Position the young plants in spring in soil that has been amended and that drains well.

Plant Chrysanthemum purchased in pots in fall directly to the ground. Also possible are larger pots and garden boxes, preferably with soil mix, but hardiness won’t be as good.

• You’re advised to find a sunny spot that will embellish the blooming.

Perennial chrysanthemum

• 

  Sow Chrysanthemum from March to May in a nursery. Another option is to sow directly in the flower bed in spring.

• Propagate perennial chrysanthemum through crown division in spring.

Annual chrysanthemum

These are the typical All Saint’s day chrysanthemum.

• Annuals that are called daisies can be sown as early as February-March in a nursery.
• Transplant them to the ground in spring with a spacing of about 20 inches (50 cm).
• You can also sow directly to the ground early May.

Pruning, caring for and watering chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemum requires relatively little care and attention, mostly only watering regularly if there’s no rainfall.

• Remove wilted flowers as they appear, since this increases production of new flowers.
• Water when the soil is dry, especially if using a pot, because chrysanthemum call for moist soil to grow properly.
• You should endeavor not to wet the leaves. It’s the surest way to avoid appearance of diseases such as rust or powdery mildew.

Diseases often seen on chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemum falls victim to several diseases and parasites. These are nonetheless avoidable, especially if you take care to avoid wetting the foliage. Space each plant sufficiently so that they don’t touch each other.

• Powdery mildew – a whitish growth covers leaves and stems.
• Rust – blisters appear on the underside of leaves.
• Aphids – leaves curl up and fall off.

Learn more about chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemum is native to Korea but is has reached cult status in Japan. It has become the Japaneses’ favorite flower.

Over there, Japanese call it the Autumn flower and it symbolizes joy and pleasure.

There are a great many chrysanthemum varieties.

They are famous for their pink, red, orange, yellow or white hues. Flowers always resemble those of the more humble daisy.

Chrysanthemum has the advantage of blooming late, until the month of November. It thus appears to decorate our gardens right when other flowers start becoming rare.

They are also planted in pots to adorn balconies and terraces.

• For that, choose good flower plant soil mix over any other, because it has the advantage of retaining the moisture that the plant needs.

Chrysanthemum is very versatile and will fit in perfectly in a flower bed, in a pot or garden box, and also simply to decorate any portion of the garden.