 |
|
 |
| There is a wide variety of perennials available for every gardener's needs. Photo © copyright World Book 1998 |
In the United States and Canada gardeners plant many different kinds of flowers, including those that you regro from seed every year (annuals) and those that come back year after year without needing to replant them (perennials). Perennials require are convenient flowers to grow because they require little care, and give beautiful flowers each year. Perennials grow in all different sizes. The taller ones are often used as backgrounds for gardens, with shorter flowers planted in front. Some of the most popular perennials to grow include violets, delphiniums, day lilies, lupines, peonies, poppies, irises, primroses, and especially chrysanthemums. These flowers grow well outdoors in the northern climates because most of them need cold or cool weather each year to make new flower buds. Perennials that do not need cold weather grow in southern, tropical areas but many of them are kept as house plants in North America.
Mums Show Their Colors
 |
| This is a caption for the flower picture. |
One of the popular perennial flowers to grow are chrysanthemums, often called "mums." They come in all sizes, from 12 inches to three feet tall. They are beautiful and easy to grow. You can grow them in many ways - from seeds, by dividing the roots, and even from stem cuttings. They like full sun and they need fertile, well-drained soil. If the place they are growing gets really cold in the winter, or the kind of mum is sensitive you'll need to keep them warm by covering them with straw, leaves, or some other kind of mulch.
Mums have flowers in the autumn, when the days are shorter. In greenhouses, professional florists can make mums flower all year round, just by controlling the amount of light they receive.
Mums have an ancient history in the countries of the orient, where they have been grown by people for over 2,000 years! The name of the city Juxian in China means "City of Chrysanthemums." In Japan in the year 797 A.D. the ruler decreed that the emblem of the chrysanthemum could be used only by royalty, and in the fall the Japanese people still celebrate the Feast of the Chrysanthemums.
| On page 2: | Annuals Accelerate Your Garden | | | On page 3: | Getting the Most Out of Your Garden |