Armstrong Growers wins biggest mum contest

Wendy Robinson from Armstrong Growers in San Juan Capistrano, Calif., won GroLink's “Biggest Belgian Mum” contest this year. The winning mum (a Belgian Mum Padre Yellow) measured 42” wide and 25.5” tall from the soil level in the pot.

Wendy, who is the grower at Armstrong Greenhouses, planted three rooted cuttings in 14” containers on June 4^th. She kept them inside the greenhouse for 5 weeks, maintaining 90% humidity to promote the vegetative growth. Plants were acclimated shortly before moving outside to finish in full sun. The Biggest Mum was fertilized with high rates of Peters Excel pHLow 18:18:18 from stick to finish. Wendy applied the green mum netting from GroLink in week 29 to prevent breakage and possible splitting for a plant of this size. The measurements and the picture of the Biggest Mum were taken on September 10^th.

For her winning entry, Wendy recived an iPad.

The first runner up is last year’s winner, Tyler’s Farm in Oberlin, Ohio, and Jeffrey’s Greenhouses in St. Catharines, Ontario, came in third.