Mums are a popular fall flower—they come in beautiful fall-inspired hues from rusted orange to sunset red. They also start to bloom in fall, when all the summer flowers disappear.
We chatted with flower experts to find out how to identify the best mums, so the flowers last throughout fall. Here are their pro-approved tips.
Not all mums can handle every environment or USDA zone. Hence, it’s important to find out what varieties of mums do best in your locale.
According to Tammy Sons, a horticulturist and the founder of TN Nursery, shopping at your local nursery or plant shop is an easy way to accomplish this.
“Choosing mums in your area often means they are the varieties that will thrive there, so always try to shop locally for this reason,” she says.
Although stores like Lowes or Home Depot will have wider selections of mum varieties, many of them might not be suited as perennials in your USDA zone.
Want more gardening tips? Sign up for our free gardening newsletter for our best-growing tips, troubleshooting hacks, and more!
If you want your mums to last as long as possible, don’t buy them when they are fully in bloom. Instead, Sons recommends getting mums with bloom pods that are not blooming.
“The flowers last longer in your landscape if you do not buy those with ‘exhausted blooms’ or in ‘full bloom,''’” she says.
Look for mums that appear to be just budding or are about to open their flowers. According to Lindsey Chastain, a homesteader, gardener, and founder of The Waddle and Cluck, you also want to avoid any plants with wilted or falling flowers.
“Gently touch the blooms to make sure they feel firm and healthy. If they feel crumbly or slimy, the plant is not healthy,” she says.
The website greengrove.cc is an aggregator of news from open sources. The source is indicated at the beginning and at the end of the announcement. You can send a complaint on the news if you find it unreliable.
Want to make hummingbirds see red? Plant a firebush in your garden. Also called scarlet bush, it is not only among the easiest of plants to grow, but it also stays in bloom throughout the growing season with clusters of tubular red buds and flowers. Because the Southern growing season overlaps the spring and fall migration times of the ruby-throated hummingbird, and red is by far their favorite color, these blossoms will summon them to your garden.
Whether you travel often, are convinced that you don't have a green thumb, or simply do not want to worry about maintaining live plants day after day, you may wish to incorporate some faux green friends into your home. Today, there are so many incredible, realistic-looking fake plants on the market, making it easy to enjoy a natural feel in your space without having to worry about a watering schedule.
It can be tempting to whip out some paint to refresh an old piece of furniture that's been sitting around your home, however, it may be better off left alone than painted. We asked pros to share what types of furniture should never be painted, so you know which ones to avoid giving a quick DIY makeover to.
Whether you call them woodchucks, whistle pigs, ground pigs, or groundhogs, these large ground squirrels can be a real nuisance in your yard and garden. “Groundhogs eat whatever is available and most nutritious,” says Sheldon Owen, PhD, wildlife extension specialist at West Virginia University. “They consume large quantities of herbaceous vegetation, especially fruits and vegetables. But they’ll also eat clover, bark, and landscape plants.”
If you plan on setting up an entertainment system in your garden, there are many ways you can go about it, and there are many things to consider to ensure you get the most out of your space.
Seeing hummingbirds delight at backyard feeders is one of the many joys of birders across the South, but making sure they are kept happy–and staying at your feeder–can be an overwhelming thought.
You've likely heard that burying banana peels in your garden is a good way to add important nutrients to the soil to grow healthy plants. Banana peels do contain nutrients, but not as many as you may think. Plus, it's not as simple as placing them in the soil and skipping fertilizer or compost.