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PLANTING AND EARLY CARE
This article is from the Advanced
Grower's Handbook.
Purchase the complete handbook online.
PLANTING DATE
Commercially, chrysanthemums are seldom planted earlier than is necessary to produce a crop with the characteristics desired. Standard mums may be grown to produce a stem of 30 inches and pinched pot mums to a height of 12 inches. A greater vegetative period with longer stems and the same bloom, as a matter of economics, may be far less profitable.
For home and garden decoration, there is little reason to obtain and plant cuttings any earlier than is necessary. To do so may necessitate an additional month or six weeks of care, including watering and spraying for pests. Further, in the case of garden-type cultivars, a greater height may be obtained which in turn might provide additional support problems.
In the growing of chrysanthemums for exhibition, such as disbudded blooms or terminal sprays, there are two schools of thought. Some of the most outstanding exhibitors in the United States wait until about four months before show dates before planting their cuttings in the beds. Other exhibitors, also with outstanding records, believe that a long growing period is essential, particularly for cultivars producing large reflexing blooms. It is common practice in Great Britain to root many of the large exhibition types, such as Duke of Kent, during December or January. Experience in the United States has shown that there are certain cultivars which develop superior blooms with a higher quality after a growing season of maximum length.
In general, most exhibition cultivars developed in this country may be planted by the first of July for late October or early November bloom dates. Some cultivars of Japanese or English origin may require a much longer growing season.
SPACING AND DEPTH
Cuttings or young plants should never be set out in beds or pots at a depth greater than they were positioned in the rooting medium. This limit may be easily determined by observation.
The problem of spacing requirements is more complex than planting depth. Some garden types, such as cushions, may grow with a spread of 30 inches. Many exhibition cultivars do very well with less than one square foot of space. Usually, garden types will do quite well spaced 18 inches apart in both directions.
Exhibition disbud cuttings may be spaced ten to twelve inches apart in a row
with a minimum of twelve to fourteen inches between the rows. The plants at
maturity should not touch or compete for sunlight. Fungus diseases such as
mildew and other problems develop more readily in plants if they are crowded so
as to restrict air circulation.
The rows and beds should be designed so that one need never step in the beds.
The impacting of the soil by the footstep will impede the movement of oxygen so
badly needed by the root system of your plants. The spacing of fourteen inches
between (he rows is recommended, although if one has the opportunity to make the
working space still wider, it will facilitate the job of pruning, supporting,
and other blue-ribbon care for your plants.
When planting cuttings which are intended to develop terminal sprays, it is wise to space them farther apart than the recommended spacing for disbuds, as sprays are judged from the standpoint of symmetry and form. It is even better to raise these cuttings in pots that can be given a one-third turn each day until the spray is fully open. This practice prevents the blooms in the spray formation from becoming permanently fixed toward the direction of the light source.
LABELING
The job of labeling is an all important one which is necessary and helpful to the grower as well as to a visiting viewer. Temporary small labels may be put in the rooting containers or flats holding small pots. When the plants are in the growing beds, the labels must be large, sturdy, and contain correct and adequate information.
At the time of putting each cutting in the bed, a label should also be inserted. A chart of the planting should be made immediately for your information; then the names of the cultivars are protected should labels be taken by animals, destroyed, or moved by birds, animals or storms. Unbreakable, flexible, plastic labels six inches long or longer that can be written on with china marking crayons are ideal. These labels may be reused after cleaning with detergent or scouring powder and will last a number of years.
The name of the cultivar, its source, the bloom type, color, and the planting date are all useful bits of information to be placed on the labels, especially when new introductions are being planted. Your notes of success and failure are very valuable to you. Keeping records in a notebook is to your advantage; this year and for years to come.
MULCH
There are many kinds of mulch which are satisfactory, and they differ in various parts of the country as to their availability and acceptance.
A few of these mulches are buckwheat hulls, ground corn cobs, pine needles, straw, and peanut, rice, cottonseed, cocoa hulls, licorice root and hardwood mulch.
A good mulch serves many useful purposes; it not only will help to conserve
moisture and discourage weeds, but will eliminate the need for cultivation which
may be injurious to the root system. A heavy mulch will prevent the heaving of
the soil brought on by sudden freezing and thawing in the winter months. A mulch
acts as an insulating blanket in keeping the soil cool in summer and warm in
winter. The mulch also prevents the leaves from being splashed, thus reducing
the possibility of a nematode infection.
When mulches decay, they provide the soil with humic acids needed to bind the
soil particles. The result is an improved soil which is friable or crumbly. This
condition is called "tilth". A good tilth is needed as a condition for
the greatest expansion of the root system. Lastly, some growers incorporate the
old mulch into the soil each spring when preparing the beds. This action should
be accompanied by additional amounts of nitrates to sustain the bacteria engaged
in the decomposition of the organic material. Other growers simply remove the
old mulch and replace it with new material.
STAKING AND TYING
After the new plants have been set out, stakes of bamboo, metal, or sturdy posts should be put in place, preferably on the north side of the plant so that light is not obstructed. It is wise to stake at an early date for several reasons; one, the damage to roots is far less severe and, secondly, if the supports are placed early they are more likely to be used at once. A final reason for early staking and tying is that growth that does not stand vertically is often spindly, weak, twisted and often develops abnormal foliage. As the plant grows, it may be tied to its stake and made to stay erect, using any suitable tie.
Plants to be grown as disbudded bloom specimens should be tied at least weekly to insure a straight stem. When more than one stem per plant is retained, it is desirable to use a stake for each stem, especially when a large-sized bloom is being grown.
Spray cultivars may require a different treatment, since the importance of properly-supported sprays cannot be overemphasized. A season of hard work can result in staggering disappointment if staking is inadequate or neglected. Three things are accomplished by staking sprays; support is provided, holding sprays erect in fair and rough weather; secondly, the means are provided for obtaining a straight main stem upon which the development of a symmetrical spray occurs; and, finally, good support holds a properly-pruned plant open to light and air in order to promote a good physical condition.
Bamboo stakes are adequate for sprays. They are unobstructive and easily obtainable at garden shops. Metal stakes may be used, but they are more expensive and more difficult to cut if they must be shortened. There is no substitute for meticulous staking and tying of sprays.
Garden types of chrysanthemums require different methods of support from those needed for disbuds and sprays since their height and breadth are quite different. A successful method for supporting garden mums uses cylinders made from plastic covered fencing in various diameters and heights. A cylinder is placed around a plant and the plant allowed to grow through and above the cylinder. Bamboo stakes woven through the sides of the cylinder anchor the cylinder to the ground. At bloom time, any stakes protruding above the plant should be cut so as not to detract from the display.
Locate a local chapter and join the National Chrysanthemum Society today.