December 6: Mums

Potted mums are kind of odd; you have to water well all summer so that you can get to the blooms in the fall. It's worth it, though, I think. I maximized my effort this year by co-planting coleus with the mums, but the height of the coleus may have discouraged me from pruning the mums back well enough. As a result, by the time the big, heavy flowers developed, the stalks were too tall and leggy, and the flowers just bowed over, especially in the rain.

I don't usually do this, but so that I could enjoy the flowers, I cut most of them and put them in vases. They really are quite pretty this way, and there are still some outside to enjoy in all weather.