November birth flower: chrysanthemum

What is the November birth flower?

The November birth flower is the chrysanthemum, and it's the only one. November is the one month in The Old Farmer's Almanac's list with a single flower.

The name is Greek, from chrysos, gold, and anthemon, flower. The first chrysanthemums were golden, the Almanac says; centuries of breeding have added white, pink, purple, red and bronze.

What does the chrysanthemum mean?

In the US, the chrysanthemum means joy, friendship and loyalty. That's the Almanac's reading, and it fits the way Americans use mums: pots of them on front steps every fall, and the oversized ribbon “mums” of Texas homecoming, which are mostly silk and ribbon rather than flowers. Chicago made it the city's official flower in 1966.

In Japan it's a flower of state. A sixteen-petal chrysanthemum was made the emperor's emblem in 1869, the imperial throne is called the Chrysanthemum Throne, and the ninth day of the ninth month is Chrysanthemum Day, a festival that goes back to a court flower show in 910. In China it's one of the Four Gentlemen of painting, with the plum blossom, the orchid and bamboo.

Kate Greenaway's 1884 Language of Flowers doesn't give the chrysanthemum one meaning; she reads it by color, which is the next question.

What do chrysanthemum colors mean?

Chrysanthemum colors have kept their meanings remarkably well since Victorian times. Greenaway's three colors and the Almanac's line up almost word for word.

The colors also mean different things in different countries. In France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Poland, Hungary and Croatia, chrysanthemums are the flowers of All Saints' Day, November 1, when families take them to graves, so there they mean mourning and aren't a cheerful gift. In China and Japan, the Almanac notes, they're a sign of youth, and in Australia white chrysanthemums are the Mother's Day flower, a play on “mum.”

Why is the chrysanthemum the November birth flower?

Birth flowers mostly follow the seasons, and the Almanac ties the chrysanthemum firmly to fall, when its blooms give the garden its last color of the year. By November most other flowers are finished. Mums are still going, which is reason enough for a month to keep one flower and not look for a second.

November birth flower tattoo ideas

The chrysanthemum has a long history in tattooing, especially in Japanese work, so there's plenty to draw on.

• Japanese style. A large chrysanthemum with bold outlines and wind or water around it, the way traditional Japanese tattoos use it, for a sleeve or shoulder.
• A single fine-line bloom. The many layered petals look delicate in thin line work, small enough for a wrist or behind the ear.
• Color as the message. Red for love, white for truth; skip yellow unless you mean slighted love.
• With a second month. Since November has one flower, add a partner's or child's birth flower beside it for a two-flower piece.

When and where does it bloom?

The florist's chrysanthemum is a garden hybrid with its roots in China. Garden centers across the US sell it in bloom from late summer, and it flowers into November.

Native ranges come from the World Checklist of Vascular Plants as published by World Flora Online (CC BY 4.0), names and families from Wikidata (CC0), and flowering times from the floras listed under Sources. They describe the wild plant; garden and florist flowers follow their own calendars.

Catch it in PocketPetal

PocketPetal is a plant-collecting game for iPhone and iPad. Snap a plant and it's caught, with a name from image recognition and a rarity roll from Common to Mythic.

November is chrysanthemum season everywhere: front steps, shop entrances, garden centers and florists, and all of them count. Snap porch mums from the sidewalk. Houseplants and potted plants are catches like any other, so a rainy day at the garden center still fills your collection.

In the Northern Hemisphere, November catches count toward Autumn Harvest, the last month for it. Rarity is the same luck for every plant. See how rarity works, the badges, and our walk ideas for colder days.