You can't help but feel happy and positive about the warmer weather to come when you look at this image of Dolly Parton taken at her Dollywood home in 1995. It's bursting with natural color that feels so summery and uplifting, making us want to fling open the doors to our own outdoor space at the first glimmer of sunshine. She created the look with a combination of white and yellow Crysanthemums, and vibrant orange foliage.
Growing Crysanthemums is such an easy way to bring plentiful and long-lasting color to a summer garden.
Head of Gardens, Rachel Bull, shares her advice on planting these, and other colorful perennials to ensure your garden will be a Dolly-worthy riot of color by mid-summer. I've also recommended some buys below from Crysanthemum seeds (Amazon), to cheerful accessories, like this yellow watering can (Target), to help you get started.
Recreate Dolly's Nostalgic Colorful Garden With These Buys
This pack of 300+ mixed seeds will bring abundant summer-to-fall color to your garden, with a selection of yellow, white, red and pink shades for a stunning display.
A pretty pair of gardening gloves will make planting your pots up even more enjoyable, especially in a Dolly-inspired yellow and white print, like this.
Who said watering had to be boring? It certainly won't be with this cheerfully hued watering can in powder-coated galvanized steel for rust resistance and durability.
This substantially sized (25") planter will bring height and contrast to a nostalgic garden scheme, with the brown glaze leaning into the retro feel.
Bring an explosion of color to your garden with this live plant in a stunning variety, called Matchsticks, so-called for it's red-tipped quilled yellow petals.
Never forget where you planted your seeds again with these wooden markers. Use them to help you plan out your color scheme for summer, too.
There's something really nostalgic about Crysanthemums. I'll always remember them growing in my grandmother's market garden in all shades of yellow – from buttery soft to almost-ochre – and even rich oranges and pinks when I was a child, growing up in the 1990's. So this image of Dolly Parton's 1995 Dollywood garden takes me right back. Vases of the sun-burst blooms would fill my grandparents' home and, of course, by default (as there was always a glut), ours, throughout the summer months, when they were in full bloom. And Dolly's yellow, orange, and white palette leans even further into that retro vibe – it feels almost 70s in fact.
If you love the idea of bringing this look, created by nostalgic plants your grandparents used to grow, to your garden, but are concerned that you might be too late, Rachel is here to set your mind at ease and help you on your floral journey. 'If you're starting to panic that you've missed the window for bulb planting and you're worried there won't be enough color in your garden, do not fret,' Rachel reassures.
'There are lots of stunning blooms and shrubs you can plant now with late summer and fall color in mind, and one of those flowers is chrysanthemums.'
'Planting them now will give these nostalgic blooms time to establish in the soil before it gets too warm, encouraging vigorous growth and lots of flowers by summer,' says Rachel. And if you want to avoid making these common Crysanthemum mistakes, be sure to heed this advice: 'They love a sunny position, but need consistent watering to stay healthy.'
If you prefer, you could choose to grow Crysanthemums in pots, as Dolly Parton has in her Dollywood garden, which means you'll have more flexibility on where to place them and be able to move them into the most sun-filled spot in your garden.
If we haven't quite convinced you of the beauty of these retro blooms, try these Crysanthemum alternatives to grow instead. Or, Rachel advises, 'Other perennials you could plant now include heleniums (sneezeweed), dahlias and asters, all of which have long blooming seasons and will give you flowers well into the fall.'
We also love the beautiful orange color that creates a backdrop to Dolly Parton's Crysanthemum display. Whilst it's not instantly identifiable from the archive image, you could get a similar look from a trumpet vine. And Rachel advises: 'For vibrant foliage, you cannot beat Japanese maple trees (acers), which also make fantastic trees for pots if you have limited space to grow in.'
Once your nostalgic garden starts to come into full bloom in the summer you'll be keen to learn how to keep Crysanthemums blooming for longer to bring a lengthy supply of sunshiney cheer to your garden and home.
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