Mum’s the word as we transition our gardens for the fall season

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As we consider transitioning our patios for the fall season, today’s stunning selections of outdoor chrysanthemums can provide us with some of the most significant pops of colour.

Years ago, mums were grown to add a nice fall touch in September gardens, but today, they have been repositioned to refresh heat-weary annuals in August.

Hundreds of thousands of chrysanthemums, in all sizes, are produced by our local growers and sold across Western Canada and into the U.S. From four-inch pots to giant 14-inch tubs, there is a wide range of pot sizes to suit the specific needs of many different styles of gardens and patios.

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I recently spoke with Jack Rozendaal of DeVry Greenhouses in Chilliwack, one of B.C.’s largest and most innovative growers, about some trends in late summer chrysanthemums. He has always maintained that outdoor chrysanthemums provide more individual blooms than any other plant. If you look at a 12-inch or 14-inch container of mums, they have hundreds of individual buds ready to explode into colour.

Rozendaal said colour trends are changing, and while yellow is still dominant, cooler colours are now more important, particularly during periods of hot weather. Pinks, purples and other bright colours are also becoming more popular. Bi-colours are very much in demand, and newer varieties, like Dummen Orange’s Tiger Eyes, a red and yellow combination, are creating quite a buzz.

The demand for whites, he said, remains about the same, in B.C. particularly, which surprised me as it seems to be one of the top designers colours. Rozendaal also mentioned that lots of new colours are on the horizon.

He expressed a little surprise and also delight about the sales of larger sizes of chrysanthemums. Smaller sizes are giving way to the larger, showier 10- and 14-inch pots. Used as porch pots, they make an instant statement that changes the whole nature and tone of a late summer patio.

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Depending on the summer weather, mums can last between three to four weeks. Rozendaal recommends purchasing them in the tight bud stage in order to extend that time frame even further. As for care, all they need is to be kept moist. They have lots of nutrients already provided by the growers. Only a daily water check is needed, but it is important to never overwater or let them dry out completely.

Most folks treat chrysanthemums as they do annuals and compost them when they are completely finished blooming. However, in Zones 6 and higher, they can perform as a tender perennial and survive a moderate winter as long as they have some protective mulching. The real secrets to winter survival are to remove them from their pots and plant them in the ground, and to let the flowers shrivel naturally rather than pruning them back.

Chrysanthemums combine nicely with other late annuals, and the fact that they come in so many different sizes make them an ideal plant for combination containers. Ornamental grasses are especially attractive combined with mums. Purple fountain grass and other pennisetums, which are just beginning to develop their plumes, are great companions. Dwarf miscanthus, like M. Yaku Jima, are just the right size for partnering with chrysanthemums to create that classy late summer and fall look.

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As we move into early September, designer pumpkins are maturing, and nothing looks more welcoming than fall mums surrounded by the soft blues, pinks, yellows and whites of specialty pumpkins. Try mixing and matching the many stunning mum colours with these unique pumpkin varieties for a very sophisticated look.

Rozendaal loves the vibrant colours of celosias; they stand up nicely in late summer weather and in mum combinations. Both annual and perennial rudbeckias, with their rich fall colours, will enhance any bronze, red or orange mum plantings. Late flowering perennials, like sedums, heleniums, echinaceas and heliopsis, will also add a nice touch to any mum container or garden planting.

At this time of the year, chrysanthemums are ready with fresh colour to revitalize our heat-weary gardens and patio pots. We are fortunate to have local companies, like DeVry Greenhouses and many other great growers, that make chrysanthemums so readily available in such a wide range of colours and sizes.

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