If you’re unsure whether or not your soil is able to drain efficiently, dig a hole using a shovel that’s roughly 1 foot (30 cm) deep. Fill the hole with water and see if all of the water is able to drain out in under 10 minutes. If it’s not, your soil isn’t well-drained.
The mulch layer doesn’t need to be incredibly thick, but it should cover all of the soil completely. You can also plant your chrysanthemums along a fence to help protect them from the wind.
You can purchase well-draining soil and seed germination trays at a gardening or home improvement store. To tell if the soil in your yard has proper drainage, dig a hole that’s roughly 12 inches (30 cm) deep and fill it with water. If the water drains from the hole by the time 10 minutes have gone by, the soil is well-draining.
If you’d like, you can place a heating mat under the tray to warm the soil for faster germination. You should start seeing results in 8-10 days. Monitoring the weather if you leave the seeds out on a porch is important in case it happens to rain a lot, gets cold, or isn’t sunny outside for several days.
Be careful not to oversaturate the soil — it should be moist, not dripping wet. Check the soil more often if you’re using a heat mat.
It should be time to transfer them after about 6 weeks. Use a small spade or shovel to help remove the plants carefully.
Spread a fresh top layer of soil over the roots as well, not just on the sides.
Follow the instructions that come with the liquid fertilizer to know how much and how often to feed the plants.
