How to Propagate Mommies for an Endless Supply of Fall Flowers

Looking for a new garden project? Try multiplying the number of your mothers.

It’s just not fall without an iconic presence. moms. These bright and colorful flowers not only add fun to the fall landscape, but are also very hardy. Since mums are beautiful and practical during the colder months, you may want to consider adding even more to your garden – luckily, it’s easier than you think.

Propagating mums is a quick and easy way to plant more of these orange, yellow and pink flowers. Below, our experts share three different methods for caring for garden mums, as well as how to care for them once they’ve taken root.

Meet our expert

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From the department

First, let’s look at division. “The easiest and most successful way to propagate garden chrysanthemums is through division,” says Laura Irish-Hanson, a horticulture professor at the University of Minnesota. “You simply need to dig up the plant and place the root ball on the ground, then use a sharp shovel to cut the entire plant in half or thirds, depending on the size of the original plant.” Once separated, the young mothers can be transplanted into soil.

From stem cuttings

Another way to propagate mums is to cut stems from an existing plant. While this method can be effective, it is also more complex and may be less successful than propagation by division.

“Garden chrysanthemums are difficult to propagate from stem cuttings,” says Irish-Hanson. Propagation from stem cuttings is generally not recommended by gardening educators for several reasons, including disease and lack of success.

In any case, if you want to try this method, it is best to do it in early summer, before your mother’s flower buds form. If you can, create a miniature fog room too – a potted forsyth works particularly well. Most importantly, be sure to use clean, sanitized pruning shears to take cuttings with stem tips of 6 to 8 centimeters. From there, follow these steps as described by Irish-Hanson:

1. Wrap the cut ends

Immediately wrap the cut ends in a damp towel or glass of water. Remove all leaves from the bottom half of the cuttings. Dip or roll the base of the cuttings in the rooting hormone indole butyric acid (IBA) at a concentration of 1,500 parts per million (ppm).

2. Plant cuttings

Immediately stick the cuttings into the rooting medium. Make sure the substrate, e.g. vermiculitestays moist, but not too wet, until roots form. Be prepared for the fact that many cuttings will never take root or die, since garden chrysanthemums are notoriously finicky when propagating from stem cuttings.

3. Replant the roots

Once the roots reach 3cm or longer, you can replant them in regular potting mix to give them more fertilizer and rooting space. Slowly introduce plants outdoors, just as you would when hardening off seedlings in the spring. Finally, move these well-rooted plants into your garden. Be sure to water them well.

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From seeds

Planting from seed is relatively easy, but you’re in for a surprise when it comes to the color of the flowers. When propagated by divisions or stem cuttings, you know exactly what the genetics are and what flowers to expect, but when planted from seed, the result is a unique chrysanthemum, not a clone, so your new flowers may be very different!

“Last year I had three garden chrysanthemums planted in my front garden bed, and this year I have hundreds of seedlings,” says Irish-Hanson. “Currently, I choose the ones I want to keep based on the color of their flowers. So, if you don’t mind getting something different from the original plant, try seeds! If you want a specific color and shape, stick to asexual plants. reproduction is like division.”

If you don’t mind a little chance, definitely try this method. Follow these steps and in no time you’ll have a garden full of colorful mums.

1. Keep an eye on the seeds

First of all, don’t be stupid your mothers in the fall at the end of the growing season. Instead, let the flowers dry. Once the seeds are brown and dry, they are ready to harvest – they are very small!

2. Store carefully

In winter, keep the seeds dry, out of direct sunlight, and at normal room temperature (or a little cooler).

3. Transplant

If you live in an area with a short growing season in the spring, you can sow the seeds indoors in trays. Fill the trays with seed starting mixture and sow one seed per cell. Keep them in a warm and bright place. Once the last frost has passed, you can transplant the new mothers into a permanent garden or container.

How to care for multiple mothers

Ensure your new mothers’ success by providing the ideal environment and care. For example, if you are working with stem cuttings, be sure to use a rooting hormone. “To help them root faster, dip the stem in water and then soak it in a small bowl of rooting hormone,” says Jan Johnsen, landscape designer and director of Johnsen Landscape and Pools. “This improves rooting success and rooting occurs faster.”

Moms love a lot of sun, so place them in an area where they will be exposed for 4 to 6 hours each day. Thorough and regular watering is necessary to maintain soil moisture. “As with any new plant, you need to make sure it is planted in the right environment,” says Irish-Hanson. “Don’t let the roots get too dry between waterings.”

Think carefully about which varieties you propagate. “If you live in a harsher northern climate with cold winters, make sure you only breed hardy mums,” she adds. “Mothers alone will most likely not survive.”