Chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemum sp. is the genus (scientific name) of all pompons, mums, and disbuds.

Chrysanthemums were first cultivated in China as a flowering herb as far back as the 15th century BC. An ancient Chinese city was named Ju-Xian, meaning “chrysanthemum city”. The flower was introduced into Japan around the 8th century AD, and was adopted by the Emperor as his official seal. There is a “Festival of Happiness” in Japan that celebrates the chrysanthemum. The flower was brought to Europe in the 17th century.

Modern chrysanthemums are much more showy than their wild relatives. They occur in various forms, and can be daisy-like, decorative, pompons or buttons.

In addition to the traditional yellow, other colors are available, such as white, purple, and red.

Some commonly used terms are defined as follows:

• POMPON – spray type of chrysanthemum; each stem has several flowers.
• CUSHION POMPON – flower is of medium length petals without button in the centre.
• DAISY POMPON – flower with button in the centre.
• NOVELTY POMPON – any chrysanthemum besides white, yellow, pink, and bronze cushions, any novelty colours. All novelty shapes.
• SPIDER POMPON – flower with very long outer petals without button in the centre.
• BUTTON POMPON (dots)- Holland/Dutch type novelty poms.
• DISBUD – one single large flower per stem produced by removing all side buds when plant was young.
• FUJI – synonym of spider, except it is not a spray flower.
• MUM – flower with very soft and long petals; no button in the centre of flower head. Flower is very soft and cushiony to touch. Commonly produced as a disbud; sometimes referred to as football mum.