Post Thanksgiving which at this farm is known as the Chrysanthemum holiday I take a minute to evaluate which varieties within our mum collection were my top performers.

While growing mums for Thanksgiving can be a more laborious project depending on your location, it’s totally worth it. We grow in tunnels in the Virginia mountains, ensuring late-season availability for sales and delightful table displays alongside our Thanksgiving turkey.

Maintaining temperatures above 36 degrees until the holidays is essential for protecting the plants. There are many different methods to doing this from growing in heated greenhouses, to using quilts and blankets to add insulation to garden beds; each gardener will have their own dynamic set of challenges

These are my very favorite November Chrysanthemums that stole the show this Thanksgiving season for different reasons

Cream Jessie Habgood

This new addition was a surprising top contender for me.  While strong white blooms tend to be hard to keep pristine and don’t work as easily in fall designs this soft creamed undertone bloom seems to work perfectly with the fall colors we all seem to love.  The bloom size was impressive but not overly stately and feels comparable to a tennis ball with nice strong stems making it easy to find homes in bouquets.  This variety was easy to harvest and had moderate growth all season leaving little to be second-guessed. 

Jane Sharpe

Totally worth the wait.  I don't know that I've seen color quite like this bloom. a dome of petals on strong stems with Deep burgundy to orange coloring on the underside. The blooms grabbed attention late in the season and were sought after for their perfect seasonal novelty. A harder-to-source mum, this one is worthy of a spot in any collection.

Zinfandel

Okay, this one stole my breath.  I mean, who doesn't want a great wine-hued mum at the holidays?  This beautiful red with undertones of purple is impressively large blooming with strong long stems.  She continues to open in design well and draws a lot of attention to her impressive size and interesting color shades.  This one was the talk of my table.

Seatons Ruby

She’s always worth the wait.  If there was a regal-looking chrysanthemum this would be it.  I could imagine Seatons Ruby being used as a brooch for Queen Elizabeth.  No, seriously it feels that formal.  And for Thanksgiving dinner, my table wouldn't be complete without this beautiful bloom included.  The mid-size blooms resemble that of a crimson anemone however it’s the gilded tips in the center that scream black tie.  It's almost as if gold leaves have been applied to each bloom and it ages flawlessly.  The spray stems add the right texture to seasonal mixed bouquets and designs and the bloom is a great transition into the Christmas season.  This is one I could see paired with Christmas greens as an early holiday season precursor. And last but not least-

River City

There probably isn't a list this lady isn't on but when it comes to Thanksgiving there is just something so magical about her shimmery magic and the unfurling of her impressive blooms.  This coppery irregular incurved bloom packs a visual punch and is always the quick flower to sell out at the holidays.

While there are so many good mum varieties to grow, these Thanksgiving superstars are without a doubt staples for us.