I don't buy mums any more; the 2 or 3 kinds that have worked well for me as perennials, which I guess are thugs, are so much easier than what's available now in nurseries. There's another thread here where someone(s) said that you really need to plant mums in spring for them to survive through the winter. I DO love the deep red ones, but I haven't tried planting them in spring - too many other things to think about, I guess - and they've never lasted more than 2 years when I've tried planting them in fall.

Pansies are awfully pretty, blooming all winter in some places. My sister always has them in flower at Christmas in a sheltered spot in her courtyard. At that point, it doesn't matter if they're the ideal color or form, just having flowers outside is wonderful. I usually buy them on impulse if they show up at our local grocery store, so I'm not picky about the variety, color, or whether they're floppy. I do especially like the orange ones, though, just because they're so visible in winter.

DtD...I bought a threesome of mums from Bluestone two years ago. They are perennial too and do pretty well. I was disappointed with what I chose once I received it though. I like to see a plant in bloom as often as possible before I buy it. I also have one of those Sheffield Chrysanthemum's that is a thug but is in too much shade, so it doesn't take over. I am not planning on keeping it once I redo that bed.

I have had a few chrysanthemums that I bought in the fall and planted pretty late, come back for me. One very pretty red one. Also have had asters come back that I bought locally just for a container for the fall. Mums are impulse buys for me in the fall. I just need more color as long as I can get it. Usually you can find them pretty reasonably priced so it doesn't cost you too much.

So what do you have blooming in your garden in the fall?

pm2

Dtd,
Is this the thread you were thinking of " Best Hardy Mums Locally - 9/2007/prairiemoon2"
I stopped buying mums a few years ago after I finally realized regardless of mass marketing telling me mums are as much a part of the fall garden as poinsettias are to Christmas and roses to Valentines, I frankly (with the exception of the close relative Nipponanthemum Montauk Daisey) just donÂt like anything about them. I donÂt know if it is the smell, choice of colors, or the size/shape of the flower, but with dahlias, sedums, salvia, kniphofia, angelica, eupatorium, geraniaceae, persicaria, vernonia noveboracensis, silphium (to name just a few) that are still going strong in the fall I donÂt feel the need to spend the money. Kt

I found some very nice pansies today at New England Nurseries. Better to me than McCues, and Wilson's in Lexington. They are called 'Snow Angels' and are a new line. I just found a link to them below. It would seem that in addition to NE Nurseries, Lake Street Garden Center in Salem NH has them as does Grigg's in Billerica. They were $6. for a large pot but NE Nurseries has a 20% off one coupon on their website. They are guaranteed to come back in the spring. Hmmm...

Wilson Farms had some prettier mums than others I have seen.

I guess we are very different kt, I love everything about Mums. :-)

Here is a link that might be useful: Snow Angel Pansies

I was just looking at photos, trying to drum up a little motivation to finish a few jobs in the yard tomorrow and ran across these photos I took last week after I made purchases of Mums at Wilson Farms...Best mums I found in my area...

A nice soft yellow....

And a pretty typical purple I guess, but I like the two tone shading and the buds are particularly bright.

Huge bushy plants.. 4/$25. Not cheap but other places cost about the same for smaller plants that were not as well grown as these. Sorry for the foggy centers, I just noticed that. It was very humid that day and I may have taken the camera from the air conditioning to the humidity too quickly and the lens fogged up.

pm2

I think there are a lot of beautiful mums. I wanted to plant some in the spring so they would be well established by the fall. Darn if I could find any seeds though!

I really love spider mums! I love all those mums with the bright strips on them that never come back.... EVER! Even regular old mums add some nice color for a long time.

Here is a link that might be useful: Mums and Asters

Evonne...

Thank you for that link. Nice blog. I also love the spider mums. My Mom loved them too. You don't usually see them too often any more.

I sympathize with the author of the blog. I don't know if anyone realizes it or not, but Bluestone Perennials has a great selection of mums and I was just looking at the hardiness information and those I checked out were reported to be hardy to zone 5. My only complaint is that you have to buy three of one variety and to get the selection that I would like, I would be having to buy a whole lot of mums. They do have 'collections' but of course, the varieties I like are not part of them. [g] Link is below...

Here is a link that might be useful: Mums @ Bluestone Perennials

They do have a lot of mums and available in the spring! That way they have the season to establish in the garden and some fighting chance to winter over... if they are hardy enough.

I did want to plant hardy mums from seed though.

My favorite part of the article is the photo gallery of now dead mums. Lol. I never thought of putting the beautiful photos of mums that never come back together!

Evonne...I also found the parade of dead mum photos hysterical. [g] She had some very pretty mums, too bad they didn't come back. I am in total agreement, that after spending the money on them and the effort to plant them, if they fail to come back year after year, there is no motivation to get them at all. Sometimes, though you are ready for a new splash of color this time of year.

Someone mentioned asters. I just took a photo of an aster that just started blooming for me. It was actually a purchase for a window box two falls ago and I was fully expecting it to be a throw away. I even left it all winter in the window box and was surprised to find it had come back the next spring. Funny thing is that it was a gorgeous electric blue when I was growing in a pot but this year to my surprise, having moved it to a perennial bed, it is a very saturated purple. I wonder if it is effected by PH, like a Hydrangea is?

The photo doesn't really give a good representation of the color, but it definitely is purple and not blue at all. The plant to the left of it in the first photo, is one of the Chrysanthemums I bought at Bluestone last spring. It came back fine this year and is just opening a couple of buds.

I wonder if anyone else notices that when they post photos, the photos showing up on GW are not as bright and the colors are not the same as they are on your own photo software on your computer?

Anyone else have aster or mum photos?

pm2

I love mums! I'm really enjoying the photos here - thanks!

I bought some mums called Debbie's Daisy from Bluestone several years ago, and they lived quite nicely in pots for about three years. I finally got them in the ground this spring, and they look awful, lol! Geez, I should have procrastinated another year.

But it seems to be the same problem my friend is having - something seems to be eating them, but something small - insect type eating, not critter. Either that or the critter is dieting and taking very small nibbles, lol. My friend bought three different varieties from Bluestone, and between the nibbling and the stomping by deer going through that bed, it's amazing they are still alive. I'm hoping that both hers and mine make it through the winter for another chance at life next year.

Evonne, last year I bought seed from Thompson and Morgan for two different types of mums. One was chrysanthemum Koreanum Fanfare Improved F1, and the other was chrys. Early Dwarf Charm Fashion Mixed F1 Hybrid (catchy names, huh, lol?). I had very good germination with both through winter-sowing last winter, although I was a bit underwhelmed with the blooms themselves. Perhaps I need to give the plants a chance to get bigger and older before judging.

Ooh! A quick look at T&M's website shows a few more kinds of mum seeds!... Oh darn, a closer look shows most are annuals. Oh well, take a look anyway!

:)
Dee

Here is a link that might be useful: T&M - scroll down for chrysanthemums

Dee and Evonne, I had not thought of trying to grow these from seed. Interesting idea. Dee, your link actually shows some annuals and a couple of 'hardy perennials'. The last three I clicked on were labeled that way. I liked Primrose Gem.

So far this year, I purchased one large mum to go in a late season planter. Due to some back yard construction, it was a new addition. It is still in full bloom, but has flopped a bit from all the rain. I am hoping that missing center look will still grow out.

I only discovered T&M in recent months. They had their half price sale, and then their 99 cent sale!!! I stocked up with goodies I want to try, but the mums never got marked down. By that time, I had purchased carnation and crazy daisy seed to plant instead.

I will probably try some of their mums next year from seed and see if more of them last in this area.

http://www.tmseeds.com/product/7497.html
Chrysanthemum Charm Early Fashion Mixed
I love these big pillow of mums! They go down to zone 4 too!

http://www.tmseeds.com/product/2796.html
Chrysanthemum maximum Northern Lights
This is for a big display of what looks like daisies to zone 5.

http://www.tmseeds.com/product/2430.html
Chrysanthemum x koreanum Fanfare Improved
A mix of colors to zone 4.

That is it for hardy mum seeds on the US site. Probably planting a mix of all three will be a nice fall color addition to the garden. I do think they will be weeney for the first season, I know my carnations are, but that is how it goes in gardening. :)

I broke down and purchased my second mum! I could not resist this one. It was called something like the Christie Mum. My original mum has gone by and it actually growing a second lot of blossom buds.

My neighbor dropped off two more mums as a nice gift. Woo hoo!

I saw the name the other day. It is called a Stacy Mum not a Christie Mum!

Evonne...that is a very pretty mum too! It's nice to see a different color from the usual.

We are getting a freeze tonight so I took the last photo of the fall garden in case they are all mush tomorrow morning. [g]

I have really enjoyed these Mums and Asters for over a month now and it would be even better if they come back next year. The Yellow is a local purchase and the pink is Medicine Bow Chrysanthemum that I bought from Bluestone last year, so they have already made it through a winter. I think I will have to cut them back more next year, because they were really top heavy.

Evonne, that mum is beautiful! And so are yours, PM2. I also love the pansies you have. I love pansies but mine never seem to last that long so I don't usually bother with them.

Both my and my friend's mums survived the little nibbles and bloomed rather well, although the plants themselves look terrible. Hopefully they are healthy and strong enough to survive the winter. Unfortunately, my friend's plants survived the nibbles only to have the blooms devoured by deer. There is a tiny bit of secondary bloom now, which is pleasantly surprising.

:)
Dee

Thanks Dee.. :-) I didn't know deer ate Mums?! Glad you have at least a little bloom for this season. I feel for all of you dealing with Deer. Very disappointing after waiting all year for something to bloom to see it chomped down. I know I have read posts about a successful deer repelant somewhere on GW. Maybe something like that would help for next year?

pm2

PM2, I don't usually have a deer problem. A nearby farm has been sold and is being developed, sadly, and I think that is why I have a sudden deer problem. My friend (in the same area) has always had a few nibblers, but never this bad.

But you can rest assured next year I will be prepared for battle, lol. The last few years, I have recommended things to her, but she has kind of hemmed and hawwed. Well, I think this year's damage has convinced her to give some repellents a try.

Keeping my fingers crossed!
:)
Dee