Fall Color: Mums and Pansies

Fall is almost here and with that comes a palette of colors like no other. Shades of yellow, brown, orange and red make our gardens bright during the cooler days of fall. What plants better to use than mums and pansies? With all the new varieties that Fairview carries, you’re sure to find colors that meet your every need. Whether you’re changing out your annual beds from the summer or just want to have a nice fall scene with a scarecrow, wheat straw, corn stalks and mums, we’ve got you covered!

Maybe you are looking to jazz up your container gardens. Mums and pansies do well in containers as long as they are kept watered and fertilized. A good fertilizer to use with mums and pansies (in containers) is Osmocote with a side of Plant-Tone. When winter arrives, do not stop watering your containers! The plants you use in containers for the fall and winter need to have good moisture and nutrients to perform well, but to avoid harming your containers and the plants in them try to water about mid-day when it’s the warmest and the plants are most active.

Mums
Fairview has a variety of mum colors: yellow, orange, red, purple, white and burgundy. Different varieties of garden mums bloom at different times during the fall. The mums we carry are in bloom early September, mid September and late September to October.

*Early September Mums:
Yellow- Diana
Orange- Urano Orange
White- Tiffany

*Mid-September Mums:
Yellow- Atlantico Yellow, Elana Gold
Orange- Fancy Ursula, Hannah
Red- Bonnie
White- Helen, Padre White
Purple- Beth

*Late September to Early October:
Yellow- Cesaro, Okra Yellow, Mary
Orange- Miranda, Ashley
Red- Sly Jenna
Purple- Darlene

*(Readiness Times and Availability May Vary)

Fall mums prefer to be planted where they will receive a full day of direct sun, although at least 6-8 hours of direct sun will be fine. Plant them in well draining, fertile soil for the best results. Most of us in the Raleigh area have clay soil, so amending your soil with a soil conditioner is an excellent step to achieve drainage. For optimum growth of young plants, plant them 18 to 24 inches apart. Larger, more mature plants may be planted closer together but far enough apart so they do not crowd each other. Never allow your garden mums to wilt, especially newly planted young plants. New plants should be checked every day to be sure they are receiving enough water, particularly if they were planted during a dry spell. Water your new plants thoroughly after planting and add Biotone for increased root production and decreased transplant shock.

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