As fall nears, thoughts turn to chrysanthemums

The chrysanthemum - queen of the autumn garden - has been around for well over 2,000 years, and is still beloved around the world.
What started as a less-than-imposing scraggly daisy in China is now an elegant flower, blooming naturally in the fall but also year-round under the skillful ministrations of commercial growers.
Colors range from white through yellow, bronze, apricot, red, pink and purple.
By nature, the chrysanthemum is a short-day plant, blooming when daylight hours decrease as the year winds down. Buds form when day length is less than 14½ hours.
Temperature is also a factor. In late summer, ideal daytime temperatures are 75 to 80 degrees, with nighttime temperatures of 50 to 60 degrees. This doesn't always happen here in our area, which often means smaller flowers, sometimes less brilliant colors.
Experienced growers counteract this tendency by pinching out most of the buds in a cluster, keeping only one or two. This is done easily by rolling the unwanted buds between the fingers, leaving only the most promising to develop.
Chrysanthemums love the sun, needing at least 80 percent of sunshine every day in order to grow in a compact style and flower well.
Avoid planting them where drainage is poor. They hate wet feet, but love a uniformly moist, loose soil, rich in nutrients, with a pH of 6 to 6.5. Working about an inch of compost into the bed before planting helps to accomplish this.
Windswept locations should be avoided if possible, but if there is no other choice, staking the plants will help.
There are so many forms of the chrysanthemum to choose. The National Chrysanthemum Society lists 13, based on flower size and form. There are incurves, pompoms, daisy-types, large exhibition mums, spoons, spiders, reflexes, anemones, exotics and even garden types to provide mass color.
Gift pots of mums can be planted outdoors after they finish flowering, but for the second season, they'll bloom in the fall rather than at the forced time.
Chrysanthemums are greedy feeders, thriving on regular fertilization, often at half strength. Avoid too much nitrogen as buds form. It will encourage lush, soft growth of foliage rather than blooms.
Some experts prefer to stop all fertilizing once the buds show color. Others rely on fertilizers with phosphorous and potassium rather than nitrogen.
Keeping your chrysanthemums healthy and free from insects and disease requires constant vigilance. That old ounce of prevention really pays off.
It is based on good cultural practices, suitable soil and fertilization, adequate spacing and avoiding garden debris that may be contaminated with fungus, spores, insect eggs or virus infections.
In "The Chrysanthemum Book," Roderick W. Cumming notes that it is important to keep down weeds, since they attract insects that transmit disease. And when you spray, he says, don't forget walls, fences, hedges and wild growth around the garden, for all can mean trouble.
Whether you choose dust or liquid spray, check the label carefully to be sure it is intended for chrysanthemums. Dust guns are easy to handle and any unused material can be left in the gun, However the dusts blow off or wash off with irrigation, and must be repeated.
Sprays have greater permanence, especially when a "sticker" is added. In either case, be sure to reach the underside of leaves where insect eggs and fungus spores often hide.
With sprays, use a gentle misty application, which will reach the crevices of the plant structure, rather than blasting a jet stream.
Helen Bale can be reached at htbale@infostations.com.