November birth flower: chrysanthemum
The traditional birth flower for November, what it meant in the Victorian language of flowers, and how to grow it.
Chrysanthemum (in the US, often called a mum)
Chrysanthemum × morifolium
A bushy perennial with aromatic, lobed leaves and flowerheads of many forms, from single daisies to full pompons, from late summer into late autumn. (RHS)
In the language of flowers
“Cheerfulness under adversity” (Greenaway, for the Chinese chrysanthemum). A red chrysanthemum meant “I love”, a white one “Truth” and a yellow one “Slighted love”.
Growing it
Grow in a warm, sunny, sheltered spot in fertile, moist but well-drained soil. Hardy types flower outdoors in late summer and autumn, and most survive to at least −5°C, but in much of the UK it’s safest to lift and store plants somewhere frost-free over winter.
Sources: RHS
Some modern lists add the peony, but most give the chrysanthemum alone.
About birth flowers
Birth flowers are a tradition, not a rule: lists vary a little, and no one body sets them. The meanings here come from two Victorian flower dictionaries, Kate Greenaway’s Language of Flowers (1884) and Henrietta Dumont’s The Language of Flowers (1851). Both are free to read on Project Gutenberg.
How each flower looks and grows comes from the Royal Horticultural Society and the Missouri Botanical Garden, linked under each flower. Where US and UK names differ, the US name comes first.