Plant Talk

Inside The New York Botanical Garden

The Many Faces of Chrysanthemum

Posted in Exhibitions, Kiku on October 29 2009, by Plant Talk

Jessica Blohm is Interpretive Specialist for Public Education.

kiku10_29A chrysanthemum blossom, which appears to be a single flower, is actually made up of hundreds of tiny flowers.

Chrysanthemums are members of the Asteraceae (aster or daisy) family. All plants in the aster family are composites. They have flower heads made up of many tiny individual flowers. Other composites include asters, sunflowers, black-eyed Susans, dandelions, marigolds, and zinnias.

There are two types of composite flowers, ray and disc. Some composites have both ray and disc flowers; others have only ray or disc flowers.

The National Chrysanthemum Society defines 13 different classes of chrysanthemums with varying flower forms: irregular incurve, reflex, regular incurve, decorative, intermediate incurve, pompon, single and semi-doubles, anemone, spoon, quill, spider, brush and thistle, and unusual. Many of these 13 classes are on display at Kiku in the Japanese Autumn Garden. To see examples of each, click here.

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