I highly, highly recommend the site below. I've been ordering mums from them for a few years now and have never lost one (I'm in MN and so are they, so winters can be tough).

The prices are for rooted cuttings, but don't let that discourage you. In my experience, by fall each cutting produces a nice blooming sized plant. The following year, they really take off.

Kevin

Here is a link that might be useful: Mums

Forgot to say, the only bad thing about that website are the photos. They really are kind of crappy and not very representative of how the mums will look. It's better to just go by the written descriptions. You'll get a better idea of what the colors will be.

Kevin

It is actually strange. Some of the varieties mentioned on that site are not even qualified as hardy in zone 8 in England , and they are not hardy in Denmark zone 7 and Poland zone 6(among others Sea Urchin, Starlet,Ruby Mound, Minnautumn)

Not sure what you have going on over there in Europe, but Minnautumn was developed at the University of Minnesota which is basically down the road from me. It would be pretty hard to develop a mum there which wouldn't be hardy in the zone in which it was grown and developed. Zones in MN basically run from 3 - 4 with a few pockets of 5.

Kevin

Sujiwan,
I bought several Mums from Garden Harvest Supply, their Perennial selection. All of them survived here in MD two years after planting. Garden Harvest Supply sends small, but potted plants. Very healthy.

at 2.50 a piece.. order them as annuals.. and whatever comes back .. is a bonus ...

thats what i did years ago ...

ken

I highly recommend chrysanthemums (or anythiing) from Bluestone Perennials in Ohio.

{{gwi:209604}}

In Z6 most must mums would be hardy. Garden mums bought in the fall really do not have the time to root before winter, and they have been forced into bloom. The Korean mums are much hardier and bloom later in the season...Sheffield Pink and Yellow, Sambo, Bolero, Cambodian Queen, Mary Stoker.

I've had very good experience with the mums I've bought from Bluestone too. They've all come back for me for at least the past 3 years or longer. I've also had good luck with plants purchased locally and planted in the fall. All of those I planted last year came back this spring. But, I agree that buying them in the fall locally, is just a chance you take. The nurseries usually can't even tell you if they are hardy or not.

My problem is remembering to trim them back at the right time. I'm determined to get it right this year. We'll see. (g)

Thanks for the links. I like the Minn website for the mums, The only thing that gives me pause is the minimum shipping charge of $18 so one feels obligated to purchase a bunch of starts.

I'd like to find a hardy mum that is pure white and has the outer daisy rayed shape but is mostly an anemone form except for those outer petals.

Shipping charges in general always catch me off guard. I was happily selecting some phlox from another website recommended on this forum and when I came to the shipping fee thing I kind of gasped - 35% of my order total. 35%!! That amounted to another $3-4 per plant.

Sometimes if I really want something, I just have to live with this. Other times, I really have to think about it.

Kevin

"How does one know if a chrysanthemum is winter hardy?"

Buy it. Plant it. If it comes back, it's hardy. :-)

I bought three "annual" mums on sale, the horticulturalist there admitted that at least 40% of them are winter hardy, but because they can't guarantee them, they sell them as annuals.

Oh.. all three proved to be winter hardy in zone5. :-D

So just buy what catches your eye.

I just ordered Sambo and Bolero from New Garden Plants and was very impressed with the size. The cost of shipping is very reasonable compared to other online companies.

Here is a link that might be useful: New Garden Plants

The Korean mums I mentioned earlier ARE hardy. They are not the standard garden mums bought in the fall. In fact, if you see them at nurseries, they are with perennials. I have never seen them sold in the fall with other garden mums.

i am surprised anyone still does shipping as a %'age of total ... i though that died a decade ago ... it is a ripoff ...

but come on.. 18 bucks?? .. that isnt that bad.. IF YOU BUY IN VOLUME ...

this is how a hardcore justifies it ...

18 plants at 2.25 is $40 ... plus 18 shipping.. or 1 dollar per plant ...

can you buy 18 different plants.. for 3.25 ANYWHERE????

i doubt it ...

besides.. you will blow 58 bucks on dinner in a flash of an eye.. just skip one good dinner out ...

lets see .. i used to have a bunch of others..

oh.. if you drove all over MD ... looking for 18 varieties ... you would spend $200 on gas ... ha!!!

and another.. its a late/early xmas/birthday/mother day gift ... who needs a potted plant for mothers or fathers day.. get me my freakin mums.. or i will kill you in your sleep ...

focus.. of which.. i think i digress .. lol ..

ken

ps: a true gardener.. can justify any cost.. lol ... apparently????

Well, as long as you put it THAT way, Ken. ((LOL))

I agree with mollydog's recommendations. "Sheffield" is rock-hardy here. I view all of the potted mums sold in fall in this area as annuals, especially if there is no growth visible at the base of the plant.

Last year I decided to give seed-grown Korean mums another try, and I have good-sized clumps this spring (true, it was a mild winter here). I'll be trimming them back in a couple of weeks which will give me material for cuttings and should result in more bushy, well-rounded plants.