Shrub chrysanthemum is a real decoration of many household plots, but to maintain the decorative attractiveness of the culture, you should correctly select a variety depending on the climate and place of cultivation, as well as observe the rules for planting and caring for a garden or indoor plant.
Features of growing bush chrysanthemums as a perennial garden culture
Bush chrysanthemum is represented by a wide variety of varieties, the total number of which now exceeds ten thousand. All of them differ in the period and duration of flowering, which allows you to choose the best option for landscaping summer and autumn flower beds. When planning decorative plantings, the height and width of the bush crop should be taken into account.
Shrub chrysanthemums bloom even when many flowers have already wilted after the first frost
It is advisable to plant tall varieties next to fairly tall plants, and for undersized crops, small crops are selected in the neighbors.
The bush species of chrysanthemums has more than 650 varieties with differences in flowering time, structure, size, as well as in color, size of inflorescences
Shrub varieties of chrysanthemum belong mainly to perennial species and are often used in landscape design.
Even experienced gardeners are amazed at the variety of colors of chrysanthemums, their types and forms
In the open field, a decorative culture blooms long and plentifully, often for two months or more.
Bright colored hats of spray chrysanthemums add the necessary accents to the design, with which you can divide the zone into separate fragments or harmoniously combine several types of flowers into one composition
The beginning of flowering and its duration depend on varietal characteristics and the region of cultivation.
The sizes and shapes of the bushes and flowers of chrysanthemum vary in a huge range, so it will not be difficult to choose varieties for any flower garden - from the front and solemn to close to natural
Containerized forms of spray chrysanthemum have noticeable differences from garden varieties and are characterized by dense cushion-shaped bushes formed by pruning and planting varieties with high density. Numerous shoots with carved leaves serve as a kind of green background for blossoming flowers on the tops of shoots. "Home" chrysanthemums bloom in the summer and autumn.
Potted chrysanthemums can be planted in open soil, but then they will need to be dug up and transferred to pots for the winter
Shrub varieties of chrysanthemum are perfectly adapted for growing on a balcony, loggia or terrace. They are represented by standard standard, spherical, as well as squat and spreading varieties. A typical flowering period lasts from the last summer decade and throughout almost the entire autumn, until the onset of noticeable cold weather.
Chrysanthemum is rightfully considered the queen of autumn for long and continuous flowering
A significant part of the popular varieties bred by Dutch, Indian, Japanese and Korean breeders. Indian varieties are heat-loving, so they are more suitable for growing in closed ground conditions.
Indian chrysanthemum is most often grown indoors in cut soil
Dutch and Japanese varieties are also grown mainly in mild climatic conditions and also require quite competent, semi-professional care.
Beautiful bouquets of chrysanthemums symbolize joy, abundance, longevity
Korean varieties are incredibly durable. They take root well in risky farming regions, with cold winters and not too long summers. On the territory of most of the Russian regions, Korean varieties of chrysanthemums are grown, and in the southern regions almost any heat-loving varieties can be cultivated.
The root system of Korean chrysanthemums is quite powerful, so many varieties are able to winter in the open ground with little shelter
Photos and brief descriptions of popular varieties
To choose the most suitable chrysanthemums for your garden, you should familiarize yourself with a number of varieties popular with gardeners.
Minx
The height of the bush is 60-70 cm. The color of the feathery flower is 5-6 cm in diameter - purple or burgundy. It blooms during September.
"Minx" - a Korean variety of chrysanthemums
Alice
The height of the bush is 35-40 cm. The color of a half-double flower 2-3 cm in diameter is yellow. It blooms during August.
It is no coincidence that the chrysanthemum of this variety is called the "golden flower"
Bacardi
The height of the bush is 50 cm. The color of a simple flower 7-10 cm in diameter can be white, pink, yellow with a light green core. It blooms throughout September.
Chrysanthemum "Bacardi" is often used in bouquet compositions, because it has a strong stem and strong inflorescences.
Celebrity
The height of the bush is 70-90 cm. The color of a simple flower with a diameter of 3-4 cm is yellow. It blooms during September and October.
Celebrate is one of the most common varieties in the yellow chrysanthemum segment, the color of the petals is sunny yellow with a green core
Saba
The height of the bush is approximately 70 cm. The color of a simple flower with a diameter of 7-10 cm is pink or purple. It blooms during September.
Chrysanthemum Saba is distinguished by dense carved leaves with longitudinal grooves, white or burgundy inflorescences consist of tubular petals
Lolipop
The height of the bush is 40-50 cm. Semi-double pink flowers with a diameter of 6-7 cm. Blossoms during August and September.
The shape of the Lolipop chrysanthemum flower is pomponous, the inflorescences have a fresh aroma with a grassy hue
Reagan
The height of the bush is 75-90 cm. The color of the spoon-shaped flower with a diameter of 7-10 cm is orange, pink or red with a yellow-green core. It blooms throughout August and September.
The stalk of the Reagan chrysanthemum is quite powerful, the foliage is thick, saturated green, the color stability in the vase is high - up to 20 days
Mona Lisa
The height of the bush is 150-170 cm. The color of the flower is 6-8 cm in diameter - lilac-pink, white or lemon with a beautiful green core. A variety of medium late flowering.
Pale pink chrysanthemum of the noble variety "Mona Lisa" consists of a large bush with many small flowers
Baltic (Zembla)
The height of the bush is 65-85 cm. The flowers are white, yellow, pink and greenish. It blooms from September to October.
Baltika is a success among gardeners; flowers of this variety are suitable for bouquets as well as for landscape design
Landing methods
Bush chrysanthemums can be grown by sowing seed material, planting cuttings, as well as dividing an adult plant. The soil for planting should be nutritious and loose, with good drainage properties.
If there are heavy clay soils in the flower garden on the site, preliminary cultivation is mandatory with the introduction of a sufficient amount of organic fertilizers. Otherwise, there is a poor growth of ornamental culture and freezing of bushes in the winter.
Seed cultivation
Correct sowing in January allows seedlings to grow, grow stronger and bloom in the first year of cultivation.
- Seeds of decorative culture are not embedded in the ground, therefore, their surface sowing is performed. Different varieties should be labeled.
To grow chrysanthemums from seeds, a container is required, on the bottom of which gravel, expanded clay or any other material is laid as drainage
- Germination temperature is maintained between 17-18 ° C, and the first sprouts appear after about a couple of weeks. Strong seedlings gently dive into individual landing tanks of sufficient volume, filled with nutritious soil mixture.
The soil for seedlings must be constantly moist, so it must be systematically sprayed from the spray gun so that it does not dry out
- Plants are planted in open flower gardens between May and mid-June. It should be remembered that bushes grown from seeds may well form flowers that do not have an external resemblance to the parent plant.
Chrysanthemum is planted on open ground on a cloudy day, after planting, pinch the bush, significantly shortening all the stems, and pinch it again 3 weeks after planting
Planting Chrysanthemum Cuttings
- All varieties of chrysanthemums are easy to cut. This method of reproduction is the most popular and simple. For cuttings, a healthy and well-developed root shoot is used, which should have about 2-3 internodes.
Lignified stems poorly rooted and too soft shoots prone to decay are not suitable for grafting.
- Rooting is carried out in a nutrient substrate, including a couple of parts of fertile soil, one part of humus and half of medium sand. Cuttings are deepened by 25-30 mm and kept at a temperature of 18-20 ° C. To maintain an optimal microclimate above the finished landing tank, a polyethylene "dome" is surely made to provide the necessary level of air humidity. After a couple of weeks, young plants are fed a weak solution of fertilizer "Ideal" or "Rainbow".
Before planting, the lower cut of the shank is best moistened in a solution that stimulates the growth of roots
- Four weeks after the start of rooting, a powerful root system develops on the cuttings, and new plants are planted on open-ground flower beds around May-June. The flower bed for planting should be well-lit by sunlight, represented by nutrient and permeable soil. All annual varieties are planted only in the spring, but perennials can be planted both in spring and autumn.
In the first week after the cuttings are planted, high humidity of the air and soil is especially important
Reproduction by dividing the bush
The peculiarities of agrotechnics of shrub chrysanthemums include the need to dig up a plant every three years, divide it into parts and planting, which prevents the degeneration of ornamental culture. Violation of this rule makes bushes rare and flowers small.
The plant is dug with care so as not to damage the root system, and if there are excessively long side shoots on them, they are cut off
The plant is carefully dug out, the root system is freed from the ground, old shoots are removed, after which the fresh branches are separated and planted in pre-prepared planting holes located at a distance of a quarter meter from each other. The event is carried out in late spring or late August.
Care in the garden from the moment of planting in the open ground until the fall
Shrub chrysanthemum is unpretentious, but only proper care allows you to keep this decorative plant healthy appearance and long flowering. The main, standard measures that should be provided to the chrysanthemum include watering, top dressing and pruning.
How to care during growth and flowering: watering, fertilizer, pruning
Chrysanthemums belong to photophilous ornamental plants of short daylight hours, but for abundant flowering it is necessary to provide diffuse lighting. When grown in indoor floriculture, a flowerpot or pot with a plant is installed on the windowsill of an eastern or western window. Air humidity is also provided at a level of 40-50%.
Chrysanthemums grown at home are not demanding to care for, grow well, bloom profusely and propagate easily
Spraying the aerial parts is carried out mainly in the summer. Despite the fact that chrysanthemums are resistant to drought, irrigation measures are carried out regularly, but not too abundantly. Humidification of the soil is done after the topsoil has dried. For watering, it is recommended to use warmed up in the sun and settled water.
If you plant chrysanthemums of different varieties, suitable for the color of inflorescences, in one pot, then during the flowering period they will look very impressive
Chrysanthemums respond well to timely top dressing, and for abundant flowering, such a plant should provide a soil rich in humus and minerals. For the first feeding after planting in a permanent place, organics with the addition of superphosphate is used. The second top dressing is carried out a couple of weeks after the growing season. The third top dressing is introduced at the stage of bud formation and should contain 45 g of potassium and 25 g of phosphorus.
Top dressing should begin 10 days after emergence
Pinching and pruning stimulate the formation of new lateral branches on the spray chrysanthemum, and also positively affect the development of the root system. Small-flowered varieties can be pinched over the fifth leaf, which will allow you to get a lush crown. To form large and beautiful inflorescences, all side shoots are cut, as well as all buds, except the main one.
Care after flowering. How to prepare a plant for winter
The preparation of spray chrysanthemums for successful wintering in most regions should begin in late August or September. In the open ground in the southern regions, preparation for winter involves the application of phosphorus-potassium fertilizers, pruning after flowering at a height of 10-15 cm above the ground, hilling and mulching with dry foliage. As a mulch, it is quite possible to use spruce spruce branches or dry straw.
Mulching - covering the soil with mulch to protect it and improve its properties; the role of mulch can be performed by a wide variety of materials, for example: straw, lapnik, bark, sand
Insufficient winter-hardy large-flowered varieties and European hybrids for digging in the cold season are dug up together with an earthen lump, after which they are placed in wooden boxes that are installed in a bright room at a temperature of 2-6 ° C and air humidity in the range of 75-85%. The earthball should be moistened periodically. Also, storing chrysanthemums in the basement or cellar gives a good result.
If you have a choice where to store chrysanthemums in winter, give preference to a bright room. It is believed that without light during the cold period, the chrysanthemum is depleted, becomes pale and powerless
Indoor plants after flowering should also be properly prepared for winter. Dried buds are removed, and all dry and damaged branches and leaves are cut. The frequency of irrigation measures is gradually reduced, after which the pot with the plant is installed in a cool place, but without excess moisture and drafts. During this period, indoor decorative culture is rarely watered, it is kept without fertilizers at an air temperature of 5 ° C. In the spring, the overwintered plant is transplanted. Before flowering, it is better to use nitrogen fertilizers for top dressing, and at the time of flowering, nitrate formulations are used.
If limited to spring pruning, the plant will become too elongated and will look unattractive
Flower Growth Video: Expert Tips
What problems do gardeners with growing
Despite the fact that chrysanthemums are highly immune and resistant to many diseases and plant parasites, many gardeners have some problems with the cultivation of this decorative culture.
Table 1: Diseases and Pests of Bush Chrysanthemums
| Disease | Signs | Control measures |
| White rust | The appearance of round yellow spots on the foliage, which eventually turn light brown | Removal of affected areas of the plant and spraying with fungicides |
| Gray rot | The appearance of brown watery spots on the petals, with subsequent spread throughout the aerial part | Optimization of growing conditions, removal of all affected areas of the plant and spraying with fungicides |
| Septoria, or leaf spotting | The plant weakens, leaves turn yellow, spots with fungal pycnids appear | Spraying with copper chloride or Bordeaux |
| Powdery mildew | The formation on the flower and leaves of a white spore coating with a lack of calcium in the soil, an excess of nitrogenous fertilizers and in extreme heat | Maximum cutting, spraying with a copper-soap liquid or soap solution with soda ash |
| Greenhouse aphid | The foliage is deformed, but the buds do not open | Processing with Bi-58 New, Aktellik or Karate |
| Brown chrysanthemum aphid | Leaves contaminated with excrement and larvae | Processing with Bi-58 New, Aktellik or Karate |
| Spider mites | The web is covered with leaves, it turns yellow and dries, after which it falls | Treatment with Actellik and Fitoverm |
| Meadow bugs | Foliage deforms and swells; flowering is absent | Treatment with Actellic or Karate |
Particular attention requires the correct application of fertilizing. Oversaturation of the soil with nitrogen fertilizers causes the plant to stretch, the buds to lose color and the leaves to fade. The lack of such top dressing is accompanied by yellowness, as well as falling leaves, chopping flowers. Phosphorus is necessary for the plant at the flowering stage and during the growing season. Phosphate fertilizers are recommended to be applied in the early spring with organic matter.
Most often, a garden and indoor plant becomes ill, and also partially or completely loses its attractiveness with inadequate care or in conditions of non-compliance with the maintenance rules.
Table 2: errors in care, their manifestations and options for elimination
| Changes | Causes | Elimination |
| Leaf blackening | Fungal diseases, unbalanced feeding, overly dense landing, lack of air circulation | Planting, observing the feeding regimen, spraying with 0.4% copper chloride, 0.2% baseazole or 0.2% Topsin-M |
| Lack of flowering | Thickened landing, lack of sunlight, improper feeding | Landing on a site with adequate lighting, seating every three years, nutritional balance |
| Withering of the aerial part | Damage to diseases or pests, improper watering | Disease prevention, regulation of the regime of irrigation measures, the use of irrigation water |
| Yellowing foliage and stunting | Burn of the root system, the so-called strangulation of the root, high acidity of the soil | Conducting soil aeration, complete exclusion of fresh manure from top dressing, neutralization of flower bed soil |
In most cases, garden bush chrysanthemums begin to bloom lushly and abundantly when many other decorative crops are already losing their attractiveness and are preparing for a winter holiday. The plants, incredibly varied in height, size and shape of the bush, are not too demanding to care for, but following the rules of growing allows you to get not only plentiful, but also the longest flowering.
