Chrysanthemums: The Underrated Stars of Autumn

When autumn arrives, the flower market changes colour.

The soft summer pinks give way to terracotta, copper, rust, burgundy, bronze, caramel and warm blush tones – and one flower is particularly good at capturing all of these colours: the chrysanthemum.

For many people, chrysanthemums still have an old-fashioned reputation. But as a florist, I think they deserve a different look.

Modern chrysanthemums are incredibly sophisticated.

Their extraordinary range of colours, shapes and flower forms makes them one of the most versatile flowers for autumn floristry. Decorum's collection includes disbud and spray chrysanthemums, as well as spider and pompon forms, with some varieties producing flowers up to 18 cm. Decorum

Often mistaken for dahlias

One of the reasons I particularly love the modern chrysanthemum is that some varieties can easily be mistaken for dahlias.

With their densely packed petals and dramatic forms, chrysanthemums can create the same sense of abundance and luxury – but they have one major advantage:

They last much longer.

Dahlias are notoriously short-lived as cut flowers, whereas chrysanthemums are known for an exceptionally long vase life. Depending on the variety and how they are conditioned and cared for, chrysanthemums can give you well over a week of enjoyment and often considerably longer. Wikipedia

For florists working on weddings, events and installations, that reliability can make a huge difference.

The colours of autumn

What I find most exciting about chrysanthemums is their colour palette.

Look beyond the traditional yellow chrysanthemum and you discover an extraordinary world of deep burgundy, wine red, copper, burnt orange, blush, antique peach, caramel and dusky pink.

The varieties photographed here demonstrate exactly why I think chrysanthemums deserve more attention in contemporary floral design.

Tusca, for example, has a deep, warm colour and compact flower form, making it particularly interesting for both modern and classic arrangements. Florca

Fuego is another wonderfully autumnal variety. The name means fire in Spanish, and the warm, fiery colouring makes it particularly appropriate for autumn arrangements. Freddie's Flowers

And then there are the softer chrysanthemum varieties – beautiful shades of antique peach, dusty pink and champagne – which can completely change the way we perceive the flower.

A flower with a very long history

Chrysanthemums are not a new trend.

They have been cultivated in China for centuries and have a particularly long history in East Asian horticulture and culture. From China, chrysanthemums travelled to Japan, where cultivation and breeding developed into an extraordinary art form.

They eventually arrived in Europe, where their popularity grew throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. The first chrysanthemum grown at Kew in England dates to 1790, and specialist chrysanthemum exhibitions followed in the 19th century. Wikisource

Today, breeding has created an enormous diversity of forms and colours.

And this is where I think chrysanthemums become particularly interesting for contemporary florists.

A flower with a long history

The chrysanthemum has a fascinating history. It has been cultivated in Asia for centuries and became particularly important in Chinese and Japanese horticultural traditions. Its name comes from the Greek words chryso, meaning gold, and anthemom, meaning flower. Decorum

Over time, breeders developed an enormous range of forms — from simple daisy-like flowers to pompons, spiders, sprays and enormous disbud chrysanthemums.

This diversity is exactly what makes them so interesting to florists today.

Decorum's current assortment includes spray and disbud chrysanthemums as well as spider and pompon forms, with some blooms reaching up to 18 cm in diameter. Decorum

Some of my autumn favourites

Among the varieties I selected are Tusca and Fuego, both beautiful examples of how far removed modern chrysanthemums can be from the traditional image of the flower.

Tusca has a compact, rich flower form with deep, warm colouring and is particularly beautiful in autumn arrangements.

Fuego is quite literally a flower of fire. Its warm orange, red and golden tones create a dramatic, almost flame-like effect — perfect for autumnal floral design.

I also love the more unusual blush, copper and two-tone varieties. They demonstrate how chrysanthemums can move effortlessly between romantic, naturalistic, contemporary and highly sophisticated floral styles.

And this is perhaps what I find most exciting about them: the chrysanthemum is no longer simply a traditional flower. It is a material with enormous creative potential.

Why I love using chrysanthemums

For florists, chrysanthemums offer a combination that is difficult to beat:

Beautiful colour
Interesting structure
Huge variety
Excellent vase life
And exceptional value for money

They work beautifully on their own as a statement flower, but they are equally effective combined with dahlias, grasses, berries, roses, foliage and seasonal branches.

For me, they are one of the most underrated flowers of autumn — and definitely one worth rediscovering.

Love Julia

All photographs in this article are my own, taken from my selection of chrysanthemums from the Berlin Flower Market.