German Flag Chrysanthemums

Hi,
I would like to grow the German Flag Mums this year. I have never grown mums from seed before, only purchased plants in the fall. Can anyone give me some starters tips on these seeds? My average last frost date is May 10th here in Colorado. I would like to know when and where I should start the seeds for fall blooms and a little about pinching. Thanks for your help!

J

J, German Flag is a beautiful annual mum. You should start the seeds soon, as mums are inclined to bloom a bit later than some plants. These will not come back next spring, but may reseed in your area. I plant mine indoors under lights in mid-February and set the seedlings out in early June. They bloom later in the summer. The foliage is a lovely silvery green and the stems are quite stout. They are one of my favorite annual mums, along with paludosum and multicaule. Plant them about a 1/4 inch deep in sterilized starter mix if planting indoors.

Ah!
I knew I could count on you Wezzin. thanks! Now, any idea on a soil temp I should be shoting for? I also sowed the this morning, three per cell. Should these be thinned out later on, or can I keep three per cell/pot? Also, my packet said to sow at 1/4", is this what you do? This is my first year with seeds and I am not having much luck! And one more question, I am having trouble keeping my soil temps at their targets. Like my columbines and dahlias all say I need 60-65F. But, under the lights and covered, I can't get my soil temp below 80F! And that's without a heat mat! If these seeds are 1/4" deep, can I just turn off the lights until they sprout to keep my temps down? Its not like the little seeds are getting light anyway, at 1/4" deep.

Thanks so much!
J

Light and dark don't matter with germinating this seed. The lower temp is critical though. Once they have sprouted then you can remove them to light shelves without the lid. I would keep them on the lowest shelf or floor since that would be the coolest for growing on. Jessamine

Jessamine has given you good information, J. Be sure keep the lights low enough to keep them from getting leggy. I generally leave the dome lid on until the plants get their true leaves so that they are less likely to dry out, but that's not written in stone.

Weezin...luv your garden mums. Never seen any like that here.
:) Donna

They're an annual mum, but put out lots of blooms in the late summer.

I'll have to find some seeds now. Look what you did now.....lol.
:) Donna

Here's the PlantFiles entry for them: http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/53610/index.html I think Stokes carries them.

Yep. They are all overthe place up here. You just have to look in the diff. catalogues or seed racks. I've never grown them though.
Inanda

You can get the seed through Thompson & Morgan: http://seeds.thompson-morgan.com/us/en/list/full-index/c/13

Thanks for the info.
:) Donna

You are more than welcome!