On Tue, 30 May 2006 17:45:18 -0600, Jack Schmidling
wrote:

I get the feeling that someone is cheating on the old family recipe when
it comes to contemporary mums. No matter where or when we buy them or
what claims are made or where we plant them, they never survive the Winter.

I too am of the opinion that the more exotic the bloom color, the less
hardy the plant. And the "Belgian" varieties, the ones that are
self-branching? I'm not sure I've *ever* had one of those survive in
central Pennsylvania.