Every fall the nurseries are filled with mums of various colors. Usually they are pretty for a short period of time and then just take up space.

I would encourage you to instead plant New England Aster. They come in numerous sizes and colors and their booms seem to last much longer than mums. They are also great nectar plants for many butterflies and theoretically are the host for Pearl Crescent and other butterfly species.

New England Asters are also easy to transplant, cut apart and move to other locations in your garden. They give off thousands of seeds and you can usually count on finding a few volunteers next spring.

So, the next time you think of giving a mum as a gift, try giving a New England Aster instead and the butterflies will thank you with their appearance next year.