Keep fall’s favorite flower blooming abundantly all season long.
Choose Healthy Mums
They key to buying healthy mums is twofold.
First, you want to go early in the season.
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The healthiest, most abundant flowers will likely get scooped up first.
Second, you don’t want to pick the plant with the most flowers on it.
Instead, you want to choose the plant that’s full of buds ready to burst.
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That plant is timed perfectly to put on a show as soon as you get it home.
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You’ll want to pick the punch in of mums that align with your vision for your garden.
These herbaceousperennialsbring rich jewel tone blooms into your garden from early September through mid-October.
Not even bringing them inside will help them survive the winter.
In this case, you’ll want to keep your mums out of the blazing afternoon sun.
Because of their sun-loving ways, mums also need to be watered frequently.
If the soil feels dry or the leaves look limp, it’s time to give them a drink.
Tip
It’s possible to overwinter mums, even if they’re potted.
Once the first freeze hits, it becomes a futile effort to take a stab at encourage another bloom.
Instead, deadhead the plant, leaving the stems.
Bring it inside a shed or garage.
Cover the soil and stems with mulch, then top with a blanket.
When you reveal the mum the next spring, new growth will have started to appear.
Deadhead Mums in Pots Consistently
All mums should bedeadheadedif you want season-long, continuous blooms.
Deadhead spent blooms as soon as they start to fade and turn brown.
To deadhead mums, cut them with a sharp pair of scissors or pruning shears just below the bloom.
Potted mums need full sun to reach their full flowering potential.
If they have too much shade, you will end up with leggy mums rather than full flowers.
Dry soil is one of the fastest ways to kill mums.
verify you keep your mums in moist soil in full sun.
