Johnsons's Garden Centers Text File document - copyright 2003 
PDF file available at http://www.johnsonsgarden.com/newsletter/flowers.html

Half Century of Mums from the Johnsons
September/October 2003
Karen Hull, Johnson's East Greenhouse Manager

    Fall is my favorite time of the year. Summer is winding down, and
like all previous Kansas summers--it was HOT. Temperatures are getting
cooler now. The kids are back to school. There is anticipation of the
coming holidays.

    As the days get shorter, the colors of trees and plants are
changing, developing their beautiful fall reds, yellows and bronzes. The
fall garden is so vibrant and fresh. For gardeners this is the time to
plant. Mums play an important role in the fall garden. Every garden
should have mums for their beautiful show of color. Mums are perennial,
so once planted, you will have this beautiful fall display every year.

    At Johnson's Garden Centers, we've grown our own mums for the past
53 years. Back in 1950, Orie Johnson (Marty's grandfather), started
growing field mums. These are mums that were actually grown in the
ground. Shoppers would pick their choice of mums from the field, then
the mums would be dug up for the customer to take home. What a way to
shop! In 1980, Harold Johnson (Marty's father) started growing mums in
fiber pots. We still grow our mums this way today at the West 13th
location. Mums have always been special at Johnson's, and again this
year we have many varieties and colors to choose from.

    Mums are easy to grow. They require six hours of sun daily.
Fertilize regularly for continuous blooms. I recommend Daniels Plant
Food, which can be used on all plants. To keep mums tidy, snip off faded
blooms. Mums may also be planted in pots for your porch or patio. If
planted in pots, mums will need to be planted in the ground before frost
if you want them to return next year. After a hard frost the mums will
die back. You may leave the spent foliage to be used as a winter mulch
or cut back the spent foliage and use a more attractive mulch such as
cedar or cypress. When spring arrives, your mums will start to return
from the root system. Keep mums pinched back to five inches until July
4th, for bushier mums with more fall blooms.

    There is a fairly new mum called Belgian Mum, with a multitude of
blooms on a compact plant. The Belgians have the same growing habit as
"My Favorite Mum" which is highly advertised on HGTV. Stop by Johnson's.
We have the perfect mums for you. Just as we have for the past 53 years.