How to Care For Mums in Winter

Mums add color to any landscape, and with proper care can survive dormant through the winter to re-bloom the following year. Many gardeners like to include these perennials in their gardens as they are hardy and low-maintenance once established. Some varieties, the less hardy ones, do better in pots indoors but are harder to bring back in subsequent seasons. Here's how to care for mums in the winter.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. 
    
   Blooming mums

   Ensure that mums are well watered and fed during the spring and summer months, in order to build up their nutrient stores for winter dormancy. Do not fertilize mums after mid summer in order to prevent too much energy going into new growth instead of blooming.

2. Deadhead the mums after flower blooms begin to fade and droop. Pinch off blossoms just behind the flower bases, and toss them in the compost. The next spring, use the composted garden material to enrich the soil for new and established plants.

3. Leave foliage on as fall turns into winter, to help protect the plant as it goes dormant. The leaves will give the plant some added warmth and protection from extreme low temperatures as it transitions to dormancy.

4. Prune old growth in late winter or early spring to prepare the plant for new growth in the spring. Trim the stalks to about a foot or 18 inches in length, slightly shorter for a bushier look.

5. Begin watering and fertilizing the mums again once they come out of dormancy in the late winter or early spring.

Tips & Warnings

• Don't prune mums once new growth has begun.

Resources

• Blooming bulb flowers and garden supplies
• Yardiac online garden center