If you’re like many people, you buy mums every fall to brighten up your porch. Then, maybe you plant them later in the season, thinking they’ll return next year, only to be disappointed when they don’t. But if you rethink your strategy, you may be able to bring back those colorful flowers.
“Although they are a perennial in Virginia, large, showy garden mums planted in-ground after flowering in fall are unlikely to make it through the winter and come back next year,” said Ashley Appling, a Virginia Cooperative Extension agent in Culpeper County. “To ensure these perennials thrive and come back strong each year, proper winter care is essential.”
What can you do? Virginia Cooperative Extension experts offer some tips — some for now and some for the future.
- Plant as early as possible. The later you get the mums in the ground, the less likely they are to survive. The best time frame has passed, so remember this for next year. Put your garden mums in the ground in late August or early September.
- Select smaller mums that aren’t flowering yet, like those in 1-quart containers. Smaller plants that haven’t bloomed send energy to root-making, not to their flowers like they do when in full bloom.
- Your planting spot should get six or more hours of direct sunlight. Make sure it’s a spot where the sunlight reaches the plants in the summer and isn’t blocked by leafy trees.
- Add 3 to 4 inches of light mulch over the plant’s crown to keep the roots from being exposed during winter winds.
- Water your mums until the first hard frost. Reduce the watering as it becomes winter.
- Keep the leaves and stems on until after the first frost. This helps insulate the mums.
“An alternative to planting this fall is to keep the plant protected while still in its original container,” said Ed Olsen, consumer horticulture specialist and Extension Master Gardener program director.
“You can move the plant to a cold frame or greenhouse structure. You can also keep the plant in the corner of an unheated basement or insulated garage where it will not freeze.”
Feature image by Steve Samoyedny/stock.adobe.com
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