Details
The Garden Mum is an herbaceous perennial with a mounded form. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other garden plants with less refined foliage.
This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. Deer don't particularly care for this plant and will usually leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.
The Garden Mum is recommended for the following landscape applications:
- Mass Planting
- Border Edging
- General Garden Use
- Container Planting
Features
The Garden Mum is covered in stunning red flowers at the ends of the stems from early to late fall. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its fragrant leaves remain dark green in color throughout the season. The fruit is not ornamentally significant.
Care
Planting & Growing
The Garden Mum will grow to be about 15 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 18 inches. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years.
This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid. It can be propagated by division; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.
The Garden Mum is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. It can be used either as 'filler' or as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, depending on the height and form of the other plants used in the container planting. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.