Monday, September 15, 2014

Magical Mums


 

The leaves on the trees are beginning to thin and bright sunlight is flooding the garden again. The tiny self-sown seedlings are emerging and the mornings have become pleasurable. Fall awakens the gardener's soul and we begin to emerge from the lull of late summer as almost overnight the garden becomes a mass of overgrown exuberant final flowers.

It is impossible to escape the lure of the cheerful Chrysanthemum now making her appearance and memories of this extraordinary flower are embedded in the mind of everyone who has ever viewed an autumn garden. They come in many varieties and are best recalled as a staple in your grandmother's perennial beds.

The natural Autumn colors of red, or bronze, golden, and all of the hues between have kept the Mum ever-popular since her introduction in the late 1800’s. They are unfussy, tend to spread freely, and are both hardy and drought tolerant with the added plus of a long life expectancy. Once they become established, they often become wild and leggy by mid-summer and if so they need to be cut back by the Fourth of July to ensure a spectacular show from early September through the month of October.

In Europe the Mum has long been associated with funerals, grave sites, and mourning although I can hardly understand this use for such a cheerful flower. In Asia however the Chrysanthemum is symbolically and decoratively respected and adored with a cult following. For thousands of years the Chinese have celebrated the Double Ninth Festival which occurs on the ninth day of the ninth month and honors longevity. This festival is the final celebration before the rigors of winter sends people to their homes until spring. On this day the Chinese people eat mum cakes, drink mum tea and attend flowering displays of every variety of Chrysanthemum available. This lovely flower is revered in Japan as well where long ago it reached mania status, meaning there was a national obsession with owning, growing, and displaying Mums for status and respect. A person of modest means could advance in society by merely possessing horticultural talents.

The size of the blooms ranges from precious buttons to the large spider or ‘rag-mums’, which are three inches across. As with all popular flowers, hybridization has produced some fantastic varieties, one of which will be perfect for your Fall garden or placed in a charming pot as part a Halloween display. Happy Autumn.

*Photo: Can you see the visitor hiding in my Mums?

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