Question
hello and thank you. I always thought mums were perennials. now, after ive spent lots of money, ive heard some mums are annuals and some are perennials. is this true? is there some place I can look and determine if my mums are either or? please help and thank you very much for your time.

Answer
Almost all mums that garden centers sell are perennials, but a lot of people do not know that, or they just treat them like annuals because:  they require a lot of cutting back up until July 15th to get them to stay bushy and bloom in the Fall.  Because when left alone they will get long and lengthy and bloom early summer.  So a lot of people have convinced themselves and others, that they are annuals.  So who told you that they are annuals?  They probably, just think they are, or heard that from someone else, that treats them as such.  They definitely don't winter over very well in containers, and that is where a lot of people plant them in the Fall, on their porch in containers.  I have an A-Z plant encyclopedia, that lists a lot of particular varieties of mums, but it DOES NOT say that they are NOT cold hardy.  If you have the tags for each variety that you purchased, you can get on Google and look up each one and find out each one's particular cold hardiness.  But I would make sure to put them into the ground. Before the ground freezes solid, and if you don't mind them blooming earlier (summer) then go for it.  Or keep cutting them back until July 15th (at the latest).  Here is how to prune them according to my encyclopedia: Stop plants at 6-8 in tall, by pinching out the growing tips to encourage the early production of flowering lateral branches.  A second stop will produce great numbers of smaller blooms.  For exhibition purposes, select the required numbers of strong lateral branches and remove the remainder of branches.  Disbud gradually, removing unwanted flower buds as lateral reach about 3/4 in long.  The timing of stopping and disbudding varies with climate and growing conditions;  generally, pinching should be discontinued by July 15 in cooler climates and by July 25 in in warmers ones.  Water freely in dry weather, and apply a balance liquid fertilizer every 7-10 days from midsummer ( but I prefer to use a slow release granular Osmocote, because you just sprinkle it around the base of the plant and work into the soil with a rake and it releases as you water)until buds begin to show color.  After flowering, cut back flowered stems to 6-9 in.  I hope this helps, I would hate for you to not try and winter them over in the ground, especially if you spent a lot of money.  If you purchased them from a reputable locally owned nursery, they should provide you with all the info you need on wintering them and if they are the perennial variety.  But if you got them at Lowe's, Home Depot, or some other big box store, they most likely can't give you the info you need, because they usually do not hire people that know anything about plants.  Give it a try,  also make sure to mulch them in the winter with Hay, to help insulate and protect the root system, and it will really help them make it through the winter.