Our chrysanthemums are growing by leaps and bounds in this cooler weather and longer nights. We started the year with 30 plants, 20 of the coral charm and 10 of the Senkyo Kenshin. We’ve close to tripled that number as we have taken cuttings and rooted them! According to the National Chrysanthemum Society, there are seven classes of chrysanthemums. Some of the blooms are shaped like balls while others resemble spiders or have florets that look like the feathers of a bird. It’s really amazing to see all the differences in this species of blooms!
Did you know that chrysanthemums are members of the Asteraceae (Compositae) family and are related to dahlias, sunflowers, marigolds, zinnias, and cosmos? Each bloom, which looks like just one flower, is actually made up of hundreds of florets. They feature disk florets and ray florets. The outer petals, much like the yellow petals of a sunflower, are the ray florets and are super easy to see. The disk florets make up the center or eye of the chrysanthemum. These different florets are easiest to spot on the daisy-type chrysanthemums. The National Chrysanthemum Society divides bloom forms into 13 classes, and I’ve chosen just two of those classes to grow in this trial.
Our Coral Charms fall into Class 4 - Decorative blooms. They are grown into sprays and have an amazing vase life. Coral charm features blooms that range in color from soft coral to bright salmon and have blooms that are flatter than other types of chrysanthemums with some florets gently curing in towards the center disk and others opening up in a more relaxed way. They typically bloom for a couple of weeks in October and November and have a long vase life.
Our Senkyo Kenshin chrysanthemums fall into Class 11 - the spider class. They are tall plants with tubular florets in a dark bronze color that poke out from the center of the bloom. They bloom a little later than our Coral Charm chrysanthemums, but there is some overlap between the two, so look for them paired together in some of our upcoming designs.
I have really grown to like these fall blooms and plan on adding more to our farm for the 2021 growing season!
Until next time, keep spreading joy!
Jill
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