Fall is my absolute favorite time of the year! I love it when the leaves start to change, the days get noticeably shorter and the kids go back to school. I also adore the fact that we get to start breaking out sweaters and jeans and scarves and boots. I always find beauty in the fall.
I spent most of my life on the West Coast, where we didn’t have such a distinct changing of seasons. After living in the Midwest for a few years, I’m all about the seasons! One of the things that really threw me for a loop, though, was all the people planting mums when autumn rolled around. I mean, people that rarely cut their grass are out there transplanting these huge, gorgeous mum plants and doing fall gardening.
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One of the benefits is that everywhere you look, there’s a house or a store bursting with these amazing fall colors. Heck, we even use them in our streetscapes in our town. Wanna know why? Alright, I’m gonna let you in on a little secret.
Mums are ridiculously easy to care for. Like, stupid easy. They basically need water and a little bit of nutrients. You can give them some plant food to help boost their growth. Filling a large planter of these beauties really makes for a stunning display of fall.
How do they get all the flowers to bloom at once and put on their showy displays? Another secret – mums react to the light. You can put them under daylight bulbs to expedite the slow poke bloomers. And to extend their showy blooms, just deadhead the spent blooms. This encourages the plants to put their energy into creating new flowers rather than creating seeds.
Mums inside
Mums are also great for indoor decorating, too. They are pretty, showy, and will look great for a long time indoors with just water and good light. They really add a festive fall flair to your decor, but they’re good for you, too.
How so, you ask? Easy! One of the best things about having mums inside is that they’re one of the best plants to purify the air. At a time of year when it is too cold to open windows to let out harmful gases, adding a few mums to your indoor decorating will help clean the inside environment. They remove VOCs (volatile organic compounds) from the air. VOCs are pollens, mold, and other gases that emanate from furniture, painted surfaces, cleaning products, etc. Who knew that one of our favorite Fall flowers could work so hard inside, too?
Feed and grow your mums
• Miracle-Gro® Garden Soil for Flowers & Vegetables
Specially formulated for annuals, perennials, and vegetables
Improves existing soil to build strong roots
Feeds up to 3 months with Miracle-Gro® Continuous Release Plant Food
• Miracle-Gro® LiquaFeed®
Makes Feeding as Easy as Watering
Feeds plants through leaves and roots
For use with all flowers, vegetables, trees and shrubs
Mums are hardy, so they can be planted directly into the landscape rather than just kept in pots. And they’re reasonably priced. So you can have a huge, impressive display for not a lot of cash.
