Red Barn Farm's Mary J shows you how to winter over your potted mums. You can pinch back the plant to just a few inches tall in July and August to enjoy hardy flowers again in the fall. If it is, the root systems will rot over the winter months. If you want to try overwintering your potted mums, plant them by themselves in a container that is easy to move indoors when freezing temperatures arrive. Water mums daily while they're blooming. Experts also recommend waiting until fall weather arrives to buy them, as the plants do best when temperatures are 60 degrees or colder. When planting your mums, also consider planting them in a somewhat sheltered location where they will not be exposed to winter winds that can decrease their chances of surviving the winter. Lewis holds a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from the University of Maryland Baltimore County. Melissa Lewis is a former elementary classroom teacher and media specialist. Also, check the drainage hole in the pot to make sure it’s not clogged. The goal is to allow them to go dormant without freezing. Leaving pots outdoors, even when labeled as a “hardy mum” is a recipe for disaster. Cut the brown foliage and stems, leaving 1 inch above the soil line. After the last hard freeze of the spring, plant the mum in the warm soil or move the pot back outside. However, even the strongest plants wilt and begin to die without proper care. Top the soil with shredded wood mulch or straw about four-inches thick and cover the entire pot with a piece of burlap or an old sheet. They grow in a variety of shapes, as well, such as daisy-like mums with yellow centers, small round pompoms, spiky quill-like blooms and “spider blooms” with long, thin petals. Pick plants with moist soil and lots of tight, unopened flower buds, as they will blossom for you over the next several weeks, giving you a continual display of bright, fresh flowers. One option is to try to overwinter the mums by burying the pots in the garden. Mums are spectacular fall plants that can be brought indoors and used for decorating. Alternatively, you can keep them in an enclosed area, … Florist mums planted outside are most likely being used as short-term bedding plants that will be removed when the blooms are spent or frost kills them. If you lack a spot on a cool, bright windowsill, try using a grow-light to supplement the natural light. © Copyright 2020 Hearst Communications, Inc. If you bring home some mums to decorate your home or garden for fall, a few simple steps can help the pretty plants bloom all season long — and you can even enjoy them again in the spring. Potted mums are usually treated as annual flowers because they cannot tolerate the cold conditions during the winter months. She has also written for various online publications. The leaves of the plant will die back and become brown after a few hard frosts have hit your area. Copyright © Simplemost, All Rights Reserved. Bring plants indoors, pots and all, once the first hard frost hits. Sign-up to get a daily batch of tips, tricks, and smiles to, How To Keep Your Herbs Thriving Indoors All Winter Long, 7 Reasons Houseplants Turn Yellow And How To Fix Them, This ‘Starburst’ House Made From Shipping Containers Is On The Market For $3.5M—and It Hasn’t Even Been Built Yet, Eddie Murphy Returns To New York In Long-awaited ‘Coming 2 America’ Trailer, Website Lets You Listen To The Sounds Of Forests Around The World. Follow these steps to increase the chances that your potted mums will survive the winter: 1. You will want to water them from time to time through the winter, but only lightly every few weeks. If temperatures could drop below 32 degrees Fahrenheit, wrap the bottom and sides of the pot with three or four layers of newspapers. Buy plants that look full and bright. The best way to protect is to bring plants indoors before the first hard freeze. However, because potted plants are more susceptible to cold damage, bring your mums indoors for winter safekeeping. Keeping Them Healthy Indoors. Don’t oversaturate them, but avoid letting them become too thirsty. Chrysanthemums, commonly called by the nickname “mums,” are a popular fall flower that begins blooming in late summer or early autumn and can last until the frost hits. The potted mums you buy in the fall dry out quickly since they are usually top heavy with bloom and have a relatively small amount of roots. Known for having the ability to withstand long bouts of direct sunlight, chrysanthemums, or mums, make good flowers for the garden and the house. Plan to bring any hardy mums that were gifted to you or that you purchased in the fall indoors in the winter. Prune the plant periodically, pinching off dead blooms to make way for new growth and to keep it looking lovely. Jim Jenkins Lawn and Garden Center: Caring for Fall Mums, The Old Farmer's Almanac: Mum Madness Invites Plant Disaster, University of Illinois Extension: Pinching and Pruning – A Perennial Primer, How to Care for Fall Mum Plants in Containers, How to Care for a Potted Yellow China Mum. In cold-winter climate areas, many container-grown perennials, trees, and shrubs can’t be left out in the elements — even if the same plants growing in the ground are perfectly hardy. A basement or unheated closet might work well. In fact, they will fare better in a cool, dark area than in your well-lit, heated living room. Move the plant indoors to a dark area that is between 32 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit. The nice thing about geraniums is that they will go into dormancy easily, meaning you can store them in a similar fashion to storing tender bulbs. Mums love the sunshine, so let them get a good four hours of light every day. After the last expected frost, keep mums outdoors and begin their regular growing season care. Potted mums are not the same as the hardy varieties that go into garden beds. What Do I Do With My Potted Mums After They Die? If you have an unheated garage, shed, or basement that has temperatures between 30-40℉, you have the perfect environment for overwintering perennials in containers. Before bringing indoors, cut the mum back a few inches above the potted soil line. You can plant them in the ground the following spring if you wish to do so. The plant should begin showing growth within weeks. The plants need to be in a south or west-facing window to get as much light as possible. I planted them in a large pot. How to Winter Geraniums by Making Them Go Dormant. Keep mums outdoors until the foliage and flowers die back after the first frost. Tender, potted mums can survive the winter months with proper care and protection from frost, … Be careful with placing them so floor heating ducts or doors opening or a fireplace or wood stove don't give them a dose of cold or hot temperatures. Overwintering these types of hydrangeas indoors is difficult and usually not successful. You can leave your garden mums in the ground during winter, especially with a layer of mulch in the cooler zones. Feel the soil about 1 to 2 inches deep two or three times a month and irrigate the plant when the soil feels dry. If temperatures could fall below freezing, wrap the pots with several layers of newspaper to protect the roots. The next step in winter care for mums is to properly insulate them in the fall. After harvesting freshly picked blueberries all summer, it’s time to put your plants to bed for the winter. Keep mums outdoors until the foliage and flowers die back after the first frost. 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