The Mystery and Magic of the Yellow Mum Plant

 

The Mystery and Magic of the Yellow Mum Plant:

 

A Month–Not Just a Day–of Thanks, Week 3

 

by Alice Jane-Marie Massa

 

 

Are you ready for a Thanksgiving mystery?  Are you ready for a little autumnal magic?  Like so many people who want to stretch the season of outdoor flowers, I, toward the end of each of the past several or more summers, have purchased chrysanthemum plants to add some cheery notes to this time of year when days are growing shorter.  I am partial to the yellow mums; and this year, I carried home from Metro Market the most beautiful mum plant that I have ever nourished.  As Goldilocks would describe the plant, it was not too large nor too small:  it was just right.  Unlike some mum plants of the past and my two basil plants of this season, my perfect yellow mum plant withstood all of the strong winds and never fell over.

 

This hearty chrysanthemum touched my heart in another way:  my Leader Dog Willow and I walked home with this plant purchase on August 24–the second-month anniversary of the day Willow, my little Black Labrador Retriever, came home to Milwaukee with me from Leader Dog School (Rochester, Michigan).  These beautiful yellow mums were our celebration plant.  Since that August 24, Willow and I checked out the cheery budding blossoms each day as we passed the plant on our front porch while we began and/or ended a walk.

 

Then, two months later, on October 28, Friday of Halloween weekend, the perfect yellow mum disappeared!  On Saturday, the 29th of October, when I went to reach for the cheery and bright yellow blossoms, I felt only the extra plastic saucer (really a plastic bowl) in which the container had rested for eight weeks.  To my knowledge, there had been no wind during the previous night; nevertheless, I examined all areas of my porch, as well as the stairs and sidewalk area–just in case a gust of wind had somehow caught my favorite plant of the season and rolled it away.  No luck!  My purple sage plant was sitting there alone; on the other side of the bench were the two varieties of pink geraniums and one of the basil trees; but the anniversary chrysanthemum plant was missing.

 

Since the disappearance occurred on Halloween weekend, I did hope that someone was enjoying the gorgeous plant and had not destroyed it.  Our unusually warm weather of this autumn had kept the blossoms in perfect shape.

 

Still missing the plant after more than a week, I mentioned the plant’s disappearance to one of the maintenance workers at my large apartment complex.  Although he maintains the grounds of the complex, he said that he had not seen the mum, but would let me know if he did.

 

A few days later, on November 10 (last Thursday), despite some wind, I decided that I had to clear my porch of most of the dry autumn leaves.  As usual, my plan was to sweep all the leaves off the porch, down the stairs, down the sidewalk, and off to the west lawn.  When the four stairs were heavily covered with crispy leaves, I detected with my broom a large object on the lower stair.  “What in the world is this?” I wondered as I probed the base of the object which I had unknowingly covered with leaves.  I knew that the object had not been there when Willow and I had recently come up the stairs.  Examining the object more, I most happily realized that this leaf-covered object was my perfect yellow mum plant!

 

After I cleared away the leaves from this special plant, I was filled with gratitude to welcome home this still cheery yellow mum which, despite its absence of two weeks, was nearly in as good shape as when it disappeared.  Although we had no rain around that time, the plant really did not need water.  Someone had taken good care of my chrysanthemum.

 

I placed the container of the mum plant back on its little table; then, I moved the mum and purple sage into the cubbyhole area of my porch for safe keeping.  Eventually, I watered the mysterious mum which continues to thrive in these most unusually warm November days.

 

Last Friday morning, I called the office of my apartment complex and asked the manager if J. P. had found my mum plant.  The answer was:  “I wish I could take credit for finding your mum plant, but I did not find it.”  Of course, I did not think that anyone who knew me had found the plant and returned it because no one I know would have placed the plant on the stair where I could have tripped over the plant’s container.  Even though the mystery remains, Willow and I continue to enjoy the magical wonder of this perfect mum which is so special to us.

 

As I continue with this month of thanks, I am especially thankful for the return of my yellow “anniversary” mum and am thankful for my entire container garden which has brought me so much relaxation, peace, and happiness this summer and autumn.  Also, on this November 16, as I think of my treasured dad, who had his cerebral hemorrhage on this day in 1997 and who then lived only two additional weeks, I remember  and am ever thankful for his bountiful and beautiful gardens from which we all grew strength and nourishment, as well as respect and love of the land and gardening.  Still today, I appreciate and am thankful for my family’s tradition of good gardening through the generations.  From my grandparents’ gardens and grape arbor to my dad’s gardens, from my meager container gardens to my nephew’s bountiful garden this year–a good gardening tradition thrives without any mystery–with just the magic and wonder of nourishing plants and flowers.

 

In the comment section of this blog post, you are invited to leave a note about gardening or about something for which you are thankful today.

 

Wishing you a cheery day and a bountiful Thanksgiving,

Alice and Willow

 

November 16, 2016, Wednesday

 

Advertisement