and passed along from every mum-growing mum to mum-growing daughter,
hopefully a speck of something new will be provided in this rendition. With that
I’ll add that I don’t pinch my mums anymore, but rather cut them back by half in
early June. I also use what I consider special mums, not your typical
garden-center varieties. These special types are extremely hardy and some don’t
even need to be cut back. They look more natural to me than most, either
because of their single flowers or their overall habit and appearance. Chrysanthe-
mum ‘Venus’ is a nice, single pink that becomes leggy unless cut back by half,
which can create a full, rounded plant to 2–3 ft. Two other hardy mums that I love
are ‘Viette’s Apricot Glow’ and ‘Mei Kyo’. ‘Viette’s Apricot Glow’ remains a
compact 18–24 in. without pruning, and ‘Mei Kyo’ grows to about 2 1/2 ft. but
remains full and rounded with nice burgundy double blooms, without cutting
back or pinching.
Nevertheless, if pinching is the pruning method of choice, then
spring-planted garden mums should be pinched for the first time a few weeks
after planting. If the plants have buds on them when you buy them in the spring,
pinch these off. If you have overwintered your mums, pinch when shoots are 4–6
in. long and then again 2–3 weeks later. The last pinch date depends on the
climate and the type of mum being grown and the individual objectives. Gener-
ally pinching should be stopped in about mid-July in midwestern and northern
gardens, whereas pinching may continue until late July or early August in
warmer regions. Most mums benefit from 3 to 4 pinches for height control,Eutrochium maculatum
‘Gateway’ pinched stem on
the left, unpinched stem on
the right.
124 PruninG Perennials