‘My mums didn’t come back!”

Mums can be tricky little plants, though they are stunning well into the cold weather they don’t particularly love the cold. We have a lot of people whom have come in and said the unfortunate five words, “My mums didn’t come back!”

So with a few tips your mums will come back year after year and be beautiful!

1. They need to be in the ground, the longer they are before the first frost the better. The reason for this is that the roots need to establish before they freeze. 
2. They still need water when it is cold! When a mum is planted you should water it to keep it moist for the entirety of the fall.
3. They like LOTS of sun! You should plant them somewhere where they will get at least a half-day of sun.
4. Leave the dead branches for the spring! This way you know that you mum has given its self as much energy as possible to start its self up in the spring.
5. After there has been a few hard frosts you should mulch your mums with straw, evergreen branches, or even extra mulch!

For the following spring :

Take away the dead growth from the previous season, also once your mum gets to be about 4-6 inches you should go through weekly and pinch back the shoots by about half the length. This will encourage the plant to bush out. By doing this from spring into the first weeks of July you will have a “fresh from the greenhouse” looking mum!