6 Tips for Choosing the Best Mums, According to Gardening Pros

Mums are a popular fall flower—they come in beautiful fall-inspired hues from rusted orange to sunset red. They also start to bloom in fall, when all the summer flowers disappear.

We chatted with flower experts to find out how to identify the best mums, so the flowers last throughout fall. Here are their pro-approved tips.

Shop Local

Not all mums can handle every environment or USDA zone. Hence, it’s important to find out what varieties of mums do best in your locale.

According to Tammy Sons, a horticulturist and the founder of TN Nursery, shopping at your local nursery or plant shop is an easy way to accomplish this.

“Choosing mums in your area often means they are the varieties that will thrive there, so always try to shop locally for this reason,” she says.

Although stores like Lowes or Home Depot will have wider selections of mum varieties, many of them might not be suited as perennials in your USDA zone.

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Look for Buds

If you want your mums to last as long as possible, don’t buy them when they are fully in bloom. Instead, Sons recommends getting mums with bloom pods that are not blooming.

“The flowers last longer in your landscape if you do not buy those with ‘exhausted blooms’ or in ‘full bloom,”’” she says.

Look for mums that appear to be just budding or are about to open their flowers. According to Lindsey Chastain, a homesteader, gardener, and founder of The Waddle and Cluck, you also want to avoid any plants with wilted or falling flowers.

“Gently touch the blooms to make sure they feel firm and healthy. If they feel crumbly or slimy, the plant is not healthy,” she says.

Skip Florist Mums

There are two separate mum types: florist mums and garden mums. While both are chrysanthemums, both types are used for different purposes. Florist mums, while generally bred to come in more vibrant colors, are grown as annuals and thus don’t return yearly, Sons says.

On the other hand, garden mums, also known as hardy mums, are perennials and will return if you plant them in your garden. Florist mums are also smaller and are less likely to thrive in your outdoor displays, she says. Thus, you want to pick garden mums if you want mums to last as long as possible, especially if you would like them to return next year.

Avoid Faded Mums

This might seem obvious, but just like you don’t want to buy mums already in bloom, you don’t want to buy any that have already started dying. If the mums you have your eye on are already drying out or have multiple deadheads, don’t buy it, even if it has plenty of other blooms going, Sons explains.

Sons recommends deadheading any leftover blooms to extend their life. However, this should be something you do as your plant ages with the season. You don’t want to start with a plant that needs multiple rounds of deadheading.

Check for Sunlight

All mums need many hours of sunlight—six hours to be exact. Too much shade and the mums will be less likely to bloom at all or as often. So, when selecting a mum plant at your local nursery, choose one that has been getting enough sunlight. You will be able to tell this by the amount of healthy foliage on the plant, Chastain says.

“Look for plants that have a lot of green leaves below the blooms. If the plant has spotted or yellowing leaves it’s not a good choice,” she says.

However, when you take your mum home, be sure to take your plant in when the sun starts to go down, so you avoid killing your mums.

Chastain recommends taking your mums indoors at night if temperatures fall below 40 degrees. Too much cold and shade can stress mums, preventing them from blooming.

See If the Mums Have Water

Just like how mums need sunlight to thrive, they also require lots of water. Gardeners and horticulturists selling the mums should be watering the plants in the mornings.

“Mums are full-sun plants that get super thirsty,” Sons says.

If the mums appear dried out or are starting to brown, this could be a sign that they haven’t gotten enough water. And without water, the mums are unlikely to bloom or survive the entire fall season.