Potted chrysanthemum seedling cultivation methods and temperature and hormone treatment techniques

Hormone-cultivated potted chrysanthemum flowers grow no taller than 20 cm, with flower pots no more than 15 cm in diameter, making them very suitable for placing on desks and tabletops, hence the name "desk chrysanthemum." In cultivating desk chrysanthemums, the following three key steps should be well managed.

Variety selection: It is advisable to choose large-flowered strains with full flower shapes, thick and sturdy stems with close nodes, and broad, spreading leaves of dwarf or medium-growing varieties. Attention should also be paid to selecting excellent varieties that show significant response to hormone spraying.

Timely seedling cultivation: In northern regions, when winter begins, place the selected varieties as old plants in their original pots in a cold room for storage, or remove them from pots and heel them in in a sunny seedbed. In the following spring, plant them in ground beds at a spacing of 45 cm between plants and rows. Apply good base fertilizer in the beds. When the new shoots from the perennial roots grow into new plants 10 cm tall, thin out the dense, excess, and weak branches, then remove the flower center to encourage more new branches. After removing the flower center once more at the end of June, apply fertilizer once to promote vigorous growth of new branches.