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Question about mums

11 years ago

I have, what you all might think, is an easy question. I have a bunch of mums that I planted last september. They did well and I was successful (for the most part) in getting them to over winter and come back this year. I was hoping to get them to bloom nice and full for this fall again but I missed trimming them back in the spring due to an illness. The majority of the mums have now sprouted small flower buds.

So, I guess I have a 2 part question.

1. Is it too late to trim them back?

2. What is the proper process to trim mums to get them to look like the ones you buy in september at the nurseries? I have googled that question and the hundreds of websites that come up seem to offer hundreds of different techniques. I trust you all here alot more than other forums. I guess what I am asking is when is a good time to first trim back? How much should I trim back? When should I do a second pruning? How much should I prune off? Are these even the right questions to be asking?

Again, I apologize for asking what might seem to be rookie questions but I guess I would consider myself a rookie that wants to learn the correct way to take care of plants. Thanks for any advice you can give!

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Comments (2)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
11 years ago
no.. its not too late.. if the are ONLY budded ...

trace down the stem ... and where a leaf attaches to the stem.. you will see tiny buds.. real tiny ...

cut all the way back.. until .. three to 5 are left on the plant ... and i will guess ... that will make them 3 to 5 inches tall .. it will be severe ... [and do a different number on each plant.. experiment]

in another month.. do the same thing.. NOT ALL THE WAY BACK ... but to a few buds on the new growth only ...

and do the same thing in august ...

so you will trigger 3 to 5 new stems.. and on the second cut.. will encourage that bunch to add 3 to 5 new stems on each stem.. now having up to 25 .. and then if you do it again.. over 100 .. and that is how you generate that big ball of mum ... [the math gets a little fuzzy there .. lol but i am sure you get the idea]

then after the august pinch ... leave them be.. to rebud.. and bloom in sept/oct ... they will NOT be on the same schedule.. as when bigboxstore offers them ..

wait until somebody confirms such ... and i am presuming. they are still buds.. rather than already open ...

a pic would sure help ...

or.. the easy way.. just enjoy the show.. and mark the calender for next year ... in Mi.. i seem to recall doing it once in june/july/ and august..

like many things this spring.. these have bolted.. and are way ahead of schedule..

ken

PS: mums root INCREDIBLY EASILY ... so stick the cuttings.. sans buds 4 inch cuttings].. into damp media.. and they will probably root in a week .. and those might even bloom by fall .. if you can nurse them thru the heat of summer as new rootings ...
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btalarczyk
Original Author
11 years ago
Great advice! Thanks! I'll snap a picture and post it but yes, they are still really small unopened flower buds. No cracked collars yet.
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