pink and purple mums

Well- even though I was disappointed in chrysanthemums last year, I decided their burst of color when everything else is going dull in the colder weather, is kinda nice. So I bought a few more to fill in blank spots in the front row.

You can tell which ones are new because they have dense masses of flowers- and the ones I previously had in the ground are all loose and fallen-over. (There's the end of outdoor coleus behind them. I'm about ready to pull those up, they're starting to look sad due to night chills).

In fact all my older mums have fallen over so much it's embarrassingly unattractive for something so bright in the front yard. It's my own fault because I completely forgot to pinch their greenery in spring- I was so pleased to see them growing like little shrubs. I propped them up a bit on stones but it looks silly.

So I cut a ton of the leggy flowers- especially the pink ones- and made indoor bouquets.

The largest is in my living room.

The flowers look so perfect close up.

I must really try to remember next spring, when the mums are calf-high, to start pinching them back. I don't need dense masses of flowers like they came straight from the shop- I like to see some greenery- but I don't want them flopping over, putting their pretty faces in the dirt, either. I have to put some effort into it next year, see if they're worth the trouble of keeping.