How To Make An Inexpensive Flower Arrangement With Chrysanthemums

Chrysanthemums (mums) are about $4.50 per bunch at Trader Joe’s. Though I have taken Ikebana flower arranging classes, I wasn’t sure what to do with the bunch I purchased. I keep glass vases of various sizes in the house so decided to make several simple chrysanthemum arrangements. I was amazed by how many one bunch yielded–I filled four 4″x4″ vases and a little 2″x1″ vase. Here’s a fast and easy method to arrange these fall flowers.

How To Make A Simple Chrysanthemum Flower Arrangement

Cut the stems off the main branch so each flower is on its own stem if that makes sense. You’ll get various lengths so be prepared to use varying vase heights or cut the tall ones down.

Pull off the leaves. Just pinch your fingers and run them down the stems. The leaves will fly off.

Grab a vase and stems that are about the same length (you may need to cut but no need to get crazy perfect about it). Criss-cross the outer flowers in the vase.

Add another inner circle of flowers using this method until you get resistance from the stems. Then just neatly plop others in to fill where necessary.

It’s so easy and the bonus is that the stems don’t look sloppy. Use cut flower food and the arrangement can last a long time. This yellow arrangement is almost three weeks old. I picked off a few droopy petals though.

Do fill the vases as full as you can, because this is a long-lasting arrangement. You might need to change the water though. With the orange mums it got a bit funky after 10 days but I used a different flower food. I also think that the shorter cut flowers last longer. My tall vase of orange flowers is 12 days old and getting droopy. The shorter ones are still OK.

Chrysanthemums are a whimsical flower so if the stems aren’t exactly the same length in the vase, it doesn’t matter. So what if one flower sticks up higher than the other?

This is so inexpensive, quick and easy. Use vases of varying sizes around your house or on your Thanksgiving table.