Chrysanthemums Undergo Image Change as ‘Mum’; Color, Blooming Varieties Increase Appeal

By Sanae Nokura / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

7:00 JST, December 14, 2024

Chrysanthemums are usually called “kiku” in Japanese, but they are enjoying fresh popularity among the young and stylish under the English-derived nickname “mum.”

A greater variety of colors and blooming forms of chrysanthemums have become available, making them easier to incorporate into Western-style arrangements.

The Aoyama Flower Market store at Shibuya Scramble Square in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, had set up a mum area for a limited time. It offers eight varieties of the flower, including Couture, which has a beautiful pink gradation.

An 18-year-old university student who examined them closely was surprised, saying, “They don’t look like chrysanthemums.” Store manager Ikumi Shimada said, “People are increasingly using them in bouquets and other arrangements to add style.”

The flower industry has been working to enhance the image of chrysanthemums by making them more familiar to people. According to Jun Shishido, head of the development unit at Ota Floriculture Auction Co., a major wholesale flower company in Tokyo, chrysanthemums have become more diverse in color and blooming forms, with the Disbud mum variety, which has the side buds removed to allow only one flower to bloom, being improved.

The transaction volume of chrysanthemums in fiscal 2023 increased by 40% compared to fiscal 2016. “There are many enthusiastic growers, so even more unique varieties are expected to appear,” Shishido said.

Decorative chrysanthemums, in which the petals overlap in a three-dimensional way, and flowers with thin petals that spread out in a spiderweb pattern are popular for their elaborate blooming styles.

The autumn 2024 issue of the flower magazine Hanajikan published by Kadokawa Corp. featured chrysanthemums as one of the popular standard flowers. “They are easy to obtain throughout the year, keep their freshness well and come in chic colors. They are also appealing as they can be arranged in a wide variety of ways,” Editor-in-Chief Midori Yanagi said.