Chrysanthemum The November Birth Flower

by Melissa Mayntz Updated: November 18, 2024

The rich fall hues of the chrysanthemum make it the ideal choice as the November birth flower, but there is deep symbolism and lore behind this bloom. Learning more about the beloved “mum” can help you appreciate these iconic flowers even more, whether you are celebrating your birthday, Thanksgiving, a wedding or anniversary, or any other special occasion in November.

About Chrysanthemums

The chrysanthemum, of which there are many different individual species, is in the floral family Asteraceae. This is one of the largest floral family classifications, making these beautiful blooms related to dahlias, sunflowers, zinnias, and several other popular birth month flowers, including: the daisy (April), aster (September), and marigold (October). See all birth month flowers.

These lovely blooms originated as stunning wildflowers in China and East Asia, and the first records of cultivation are found in in China approximately 3,500 years ago (in 1500 B.C.E.). Today, there are about 35-40 species of chrysanthemums recognized altogether, with 20,000 or more varieties worldwide. In the wild, the greatest diversity is still found in Asia, but several types can often be found wherever mums have spread.

These popular flowers are perennial flowering herbs that grow naturally in a wide range of habitats, including grasslands, mountain slopes, roadsides, and even on beach edges where grasses encroach on the sandy dunes. This means that no matter where one lives, chrysanthemums are likely to be available.

Named for their traditional color: chrysos is Greek for “golden” and anthemon means “flower.” While yellow and golden shades are the natural, native colors of mums, these November flowers are also available in white, red, purple, pink, orange, peach, and even green, depending on the cultivar.

The shape of the bloom also varies widely. Thirteen varieties of chrysanthemums are recognized, with creative names that reflect their petal and overall bloom shapes: button, pompon, spoon, anemone, incurved, spider, quill, cushion, football and more.

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November birth month flower, chrysanthemums, with light orange blossoms.

Symbolism of Chrysanthemums

These flowers are widespread and highly symbolic and prevalent in many cultures. In general, chrysanthemums are associated with luck, optimism, love, happiness, devotion, joy, trust, loyalty, fidelity, and wealth. In many East Asian cultures, however, these flowers are more often related to death, grief, mourning, sympathy, and remembrance, particularly in China. Some memorial associations are also common in European countries.

In Japan, chrysanthemums have special meanings and extraordinary symbolism as the official national flower as well as the Imperial Seal or the Chrysantemum Seal of the emperor. The flower’s beautiful symmetry and golden color reminiscent of the Sun is the perfect symbol for the “Land of the Rising Sun” even on Japanese passports. Different members of the Japanese imperial family will use slight variations on the seal as their personal emblems, with differences in petal count, orientation, or color.

Chrysanthemum flower bouquets of different colors from left to right: pink, yellow, magenta, and orange.

Chinese and Korean cultures also have special meanings for the chrysanthemum. These flowers are one of the “Four Gentlemen” or “Four Noble Ones” and represent autumn, along with other seasonal blooms – the orchid (spring), lotus (summer), and plum blossom (winter). All four are often featured in art and design, showcasing the changing of the seasons and the beauty of nature throughout the year.

In the language of flowers, the color of a chrysanthemum can change what the flower means:

Red – Romance, love, passion, courage
Pink – Gentleness, affection, optimism
White – Mourning, sympathy, remembrance, respect
Orange – Excitement, enthusiasm
Purple – Good health, get well, luxury, longevity
Green – Renewal, rebirth, youth
Yellow – Happiness, joy, celebration

Interestingly, unlike many other flowers and their folklore origins, there are no Greek legends directly associated with the chrysanthemum. This is likely because these flowers did not originate in the Mediterranean region and were not widely naturalized in ancient Greece.

Chrysanthemums in the Kitchen

As an herb, chrysanthemums have a definite place in cuisine, particularly in Asia. In China, chrysanthemum tea is a sweet beverage believed to help restore youth. During the Han Dynasty (202 B.C.E – 220 C.E.) chrysanthemum wine was particularly popular. The wine was especially prized on the ninth day of the ninth month of the lunar calendar – roughly in mid- to late October – for the Double Ninth Festival.

Also widely known in China, Japan, and Korea as the Chrysanthemum Festival, the Double Ninth Festival celebrates good health and honors the elderly. In Japan, the beverage of choice would be sake flavored with chrysanthemum.

In addition to drinks, chrysanthemum is used in salads, soups, and more. Both the blossoms and leaves can be edible, but be sure to check labels to make sure yours is the culinary variety (and ask a professional if you are unsure). Flowers might be added to pancakes, crystallized flowers used as cake decorations, or the leaves can be steamed or boiled as a fresh green.

Depending on their preparation, chrysanthemums have a light floral flavor that has been described as similar to chamomile. This can be refreshing and add a mild touch of sweetness to many recipes without adding extra sugar.

It should also be noted that if you are allergic to ragweed, you may also be allergic to chrysanthemums and should use them cautiously in case of any reactions.

Medicinal and Other Chrysanthemum Uses

While chrysanthemum has a long history in the kitchen, its history in the medicine cabinet is even longer. Important note: The Farmers’ Almanac does not offer medical advice. Information included here is for education purposes only. For millennia, these flowers have been used to relieve a variety of symptoms and conditions, including dizziness, vision problems, coughs, headaches, sore throats, and more.

These flowers also have anti-fungal and antibacterial properties, and adding them to a wash or compress has often been used for wound care and healing.

Even today, chrysanthemums have a place in modern medicine for their anti-inflammatory and anti-obesity properties and to help control blood pressure and blood sugar, though studies are ongoing.

As with cooking additions, these flowers should be used sparingly and only under doctor direction if you may have an allergy to ragweed.

Outside the medicine cabinet, chrysanthemums contain pyrethrins, which can be potent insecticides. Growing the flowers may help alleviate problems with moths, flies, and mosquitos, making them a popular addition around doorways or on patios and other outdoor seating areas.

Take care, however, because mums can be dangerous and toxic to both dogs and cats, and should be kept out of reach of pets. If ingested, pets may experience vomiting, diarrhea, excessive saliva, loss of balance, skin problems, and other difficulties, and could even be fatal depending on the exposure or amount of consumption.

Similarly, chrysanthemums can be toxic to horses and should not be present in pasture areas or used as barn or corral decorations where curious equines could come into contact with them.

The Art and Literature of Mums

With so much history behind these flowers, they feature prominently in a great deal of Asian art, particularly seasonal depictions of the “Four Gentlemen” (tap to view) as well as in different media such as silkscreens, brush painting, woodblock prints, and porcelain.

Chrysanthemums have also been popular in other eras and other artwork, as well, most especially French impressionist Claude Monet’s oil on canvas in 1882. Tap here to see Monet’s “Chrysanthemums.”

In a more contemporary work, the chrysanthemum was clearly featured in Kehinde Wiley’s 2018 presidential portrait of Barack Obama for the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery.

No less lovely but on a smaller scale, chrysanthemums have been showcased on postage stamps, not only on the 2020 US Global Forever Stamp, but also on releases in a number of past years from Korea, China, Japan, Vietnam, the Marshall Islands, Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia.

Another modern take on chrysanthemums is their use in floral tattoos, often as memorial or remembrance designs or as part of sleeves or bouquets. The bloom’s great symmetry and full display of petals is ideal for covering scars, remaking old tattoos, or other ink work.

Which chrysanthemum flower meaning is your favorite? Tell us in the comments section below.

In literature, John Steinbeck’s short story “The Chrysanthemums” published in 1937 highlights the flowers as a potent metaphor for the protagonist’s emotions and treatment during the Great Depression in California. The flowers are also popular in Asian poetry and literature.

One day, a famous author may even have a name related to chrysanthemums. Crisanta and Chrissantha are both feminine names that are derivatives of the flower name, while Kiku is another option or nickname that means chrysanthemum in Japanese.

Growing Chrysanthemums

These popular blooms are easy to grow and reliable bloomers even for novices. They are considered a perennial in US Hardiness Zones 5-9, which covers a great deal of the lower 48 states. Outside those zones – and for many casual gardeners even within mum’s perennial range – these flowers are often used as seasonal autumn accents in porch pots or landscaping accents. They are great for fall weddings, look cheerful as wreaths, and can even be added to pumpkin displays – even inside pumpkin vases!

Depending on the exact cultivar, chrysanthemums range from 12-36 inches tall and their typical mounding shape may reach 48 inches wide, so they should be planted with adequate space if used as a perennial. Bloom size can be less than half an inch for smaller button mums, or up to a whopping 10 inches wide for more specialized blooms.

Chrysanthemums prefer well-draining, slightly moist soil (if planting in a pot, be sure to have plenty of drainage holes) with a pH of 6-7. Full sun is best for the most colorful, fullest flowers, but partial sun can also work. Soil should have a good organic component to nourish mums, so add manure, compost, or bone meal if needed. Fertilizing in spring and midsummer will help these plants be thoroughly fed.

To help chrysanthemums keep their characteristic mounding shape, they should be deadheaded regularly, which will encourage more flowers to fill in any gaps. Cutting the plants back to 6 inches tall after they’re finished blooming will preserve them for the next year, and they should be mulched for the winter to protect delicate roots.

Because mums are resistant to deer and squirrels, they are favorites to protect garden areas, but can be planted anywhere for a burst of autumn beauty.

As the official November birth month flower, chrysanthemums are ideal as a gift for November birthdays or anniversaries – especially for the thirteenth wedding anniversary, as they’re also the official flower for that significant milestone.

They’re popular in Thanksgiving decorations or as centerpieces, depending on the size. Inside the home, they also are great to clean the air – a study conducted by NASA in 1989 found mums to be especially good at eliminating toxins such as ammonia, benzene, toluene, and formaldehyde from the air.

An Alternative November Birth Flower – The Peony

If the chrysanthemum isn’t quite your thing, the peony is considered an official alternative November flower. Part of the family Paeoniaceae, there are about 30 varieties of peonies that come in red, pink, white, and yellow.

Peonies bloom from late spring to early summer, typically from April through June, so it may be confusing why they are a secondary option for the November birth flower. They do have a connection to chrysanthemums, however, in that both blooms are herbaceous perennials that first originated in Asia. Peonies, however, are also native throughout Europe and in parts of North America.

November birth month flower alternative, the peony, showing light pink blossoms.

In China, peonies represent riches and prosperity, and can also symbolize romance, passion, honor, and even bashfulness. These blooms are also the state flower of Indiana, the national bloom of Romania, and the unofficial but favored flower to symbolize China. They are also the official flower of the twelfth wedding anniversary (right ahead of the chrysanthemum on the thirteenth).

Peonies are named for Paean, the physician for the Greek gods, and in fact these flowers have been used in traditional ancient Chinese medicine and are also used for flavoring in salads and cool drinks. Another Greek origin legend of the peony claims the blooms originated when Aphrodite discovered the beautiful nymph Paeonia flirting with Apollo, and she turned the nymph into a peony as punishment.

The peony grows 2-3 feet tall and 3-5 feet wide, and can be planted alongside chrysanthemums in full sun with moist, well-draining soil that has a pH value from 6.5-7. These plants are hardy in zones 3-9, making them marginally more widespread as a perennial than mums. Ideally, peonies should be planted in a sheltered location as taller varieties may flop or droop in heavy winds or rain. Staking can help protect the blooms and keep them upright.

Whether you choose the official chrysanthemum or the alternative peony as your November birth flower, either bloom can be beautiful in the landscape and delightful as a gift to celebrate any special moment in the eleventh month of the year.

Join The Discussion

Which November birth month flower do you prefer: chrysanthemums, peonies, or something else?

Did anything surprise you about the chrysanthemum flower meaning?

Share your thoughts, tips, and tricks in the comments below!

Melissa Mayntz

Melissa Mayntz is a writer who specializes in birds and birding, though her work spans a wide range—from folklore to healthy living. Her first book, Migration: Exploring the Remarkable Journeys of Birds was published in 2020. Mayntz also writes for National Wildlife Magazine and The Spruce. Find her at MelissaMayntz.com.