Mums That Make a Statement: Choosing the Right Chrysanthemums for Your Fall Porch
Nothing signals fall quite like a burst of mum color on your front porch or in your yard. Stop by Open Air Market Produce Stand in London, Kentucky and find the perfect chrysanthemums to complete your autumn look.
The One Plant That Does All the Talking
You can have the neatest yard on the block, the cleanest porch, and the most carefully arranged fall display — but the moment you add a cluster of full, blooming mums, everything else snaps into focus. Chrysanthemums have this remarkable ability to anchor a fall scene. Their dense, rounded shape and jewel-toned colors do what no gourd or hay bale can do on its own: they bring the whole picture to life with pure, saturated color.
Right now at Open Air Market Produce Stand on Barbourville Road in London, we have mums coming in looking absolutely spectacular. Deep burgundy, rich copper, bright lemon yellow, snowy white, and that gorgeous burnt orange that just screams October — they're all here and they're full and healthy. Whether you need two pots to flank your front door or a dozen to line a walkway, this is the week to come pick them out in person.
Pot Size Matters More Than You Think
One of the most common mistakes people make when buying mums is grabbing the smallest pot available to save a few dollars. And honestly, that's understandable — but a six-inch pot is going to look lost on a wide front porch or a wooden deck with room to breathe. For a truly full, impressive display, look for the larger gallon-sized or two-gallon pots. They're already bushy, already loaded with buds, and they fill a space the way a small pot simply cannot.
When you come by the stand, take a walk around and really look at what's available before you grab the first one you see. Sometimes the fullest plant isn't the one at the front of the display. Gently rotate a few, look for tight green buds tucked underneath the open blooms — those are the ones that still have weeks of color left in them. Our staff is always happy to help you sort through and find the best picks.
Color Combinations That Work Every Time
Pairing mum colors is half the fun. If your front door is red or dark wood, golden yellow and white mums make an elegant, classic contrast. If you've got a black or charcoal door, go bold — deep burgundy and bright orange together look almost electric in the October light. For a more natural, earthy feel, mix copper and bronze tones with a pot of creamy white, and tuck a few small gourds around the base of each pot.
Don't be afraid to mix three colors. A grouping of yellow, orange, and burgundy mums sitting beside a stack of pumpkins and a hay bale is about as close to a perfect fall porch as you can get. We carry all the pieces — the mums, the pumpkins, the gourds, the hay — so you can put together a full display in one stop without running all over town.
Keeping Them Going All the Way to November
Here's the thing about mums that a lot of people don't realize: they can last well into November if you give them a little attention. The number one rule is water. Mums dry out faster than almost any other potted plant, especially when nights start getting cooler and the soil temperature fluctuates. Check the soil every single day — if it feels dry an inch down, water thoroughly.
Deadheading spent blooms — that just means pinching off the flowers once they've faded — encourages the plant to keep pushing out new color rather than putting energy into seed production. And if a hard frost is in the forecast, don't panic. Either move the pots to a covered porch or drape a light cloth over them overnight. A little protection goes a long way, and you'll be rewarded with mums that look great long after your neighbors' have faded.
Build the Full Fall Display While You're Here
Since you're making the trip out to 1594 Barbourville Road, make it count. October 2nd is honestly a perfect time to pull your entire fall display together — we're right in that sweet spot where the mums are full and fresh, the pumpkins are plentiful, and we still have Indian corn, gourds, and fodder shocks available to round everything out.
A really satisfying front porch setup might look like this: two large mum pots at the door in contrasting colors, a hay bale or two off to the side, a few pumpkins in varying sizes grouped casually at the base of the bale, and a string of Indian corn or a couple of gourds tucked in for texture. It takes maybe fifteen minutes to put together once you get home, and it looks like something out of a fall magazine spread. We're open today until 6 p.m. and all week Monday through Friday 10 to 6, Saturday 9 to 6, and Sunday 11 to 6 — plenty of time to stop in.
Why Mums from a Real Stand Beat the Box Store Every Time
There's a reason people who've been shopping for fall mums at a local produce stand keep coming back year after year instead of grabbing a wilting pot from the front of a big box store. At a place like ours — the oldest produce market in Laurel County, going strong since 1984 — the plants are handled with care, displayed properly, and turned over regularly so you're always getting something fresh and healthy, not a pot that's been sitting under fluorescent lights for two weeks.
You also get to actually look at what you're buying. Walk around the display, compare colors side by side in natural daylight, and choose the pot that speaks to you. That personal, unhurried experience is something you just can't replicate online or in a warehouse store. Come out to London, browse at your own pace, and leave with mums you're genuinely excited to put on your porch. That's what we're here for.
1594 Barbourville Rd, London, KY 40744 · Mon–Fri 10–6 · Sat 9–6 · Sun 11–6
Get Directions
Serving London, Kentucky since 1984, Open Air Market is the oldest and longest-running produce market in Laurel County. For over 40 years, our family-owned stand at 1594 Barbourville Rd has been the trusted source for fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables in southeastern Kentucky. We hand-select every item for ripeness and quality — the way it's been done for four decades. Open 7 days a week.
