How to Care for Dormant Mums

If your mums are hardy in your climate -- most are hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 to 9 -- they can be grown as perennials. With a regimented pruning and fertilizing schedule during the spring and summer, you can grow beautiful mums that flower just like a horticulturist's. However, you first must keep your mums alive and unscathed during the winter. Fortunately, just a little bit of extra attention in the fall will do the trick.

Things You'll Need

Rake

Mulch

Instructions

- 1
  Apply the last scheduled fertilizer in midsummer so it will stop growing new growth. Also, continue to water your mums regularly and deeply with 1 inch of water through the fall, about once a week until just before you expect your first freeze. This will get your mums well hydrated for winter.
- 2
  Rake any leaves and debris around the mums in the fall after the plants stop flowering and the plant dies back. Do not remove the foliage until spring.
- 3
  Apply 4 to 6 inches of mulch, according to Iowa State University, after the top of the ground freezes. Use straw, pine needles, shredded leaves or another organic mulch you can easily remove in the spring.

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