On 5/22/12 10:27 AM, mj wrote:
On May 22, 1:08 pm, Nanzi wrote:
When is the right time to do that for fullness and not falling over with blooms? Mine are over a foot tall and look spindly already. I'm in Delaware right in the middle of the peninsula zone 7. TIA

I have always heard and followed the fourth of July rule. Let them
grow until the fourth and then cut them back for a fall bloom.
MJ

I cut mine back as soon as they finish flowering. When new shoots
appear, I then pinch them back (see below) almost every week until the
4th of July.

Pinching involves removing just about 1 inch of the tip of a shoot. I
use my thumb nail against my middle finger.

Right now, however, my chrysanthemum is in full bloom -- out of season.
I might not get any opportunity to pinch it.

In the third year, I root cuttings in the early spring and then discard
the parent plant.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean, see
http://www.rossde.com/garden/climate.html
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary