River City Chrysanthemum in bloom at Lan Su Chinese Garden (2024)
I have a confession to make: growing up, I never thought chrysanthemums were particularly special.
In my childhood in Taiwan, chrysanthemums were mostly flowers you brought when visiting the graves of loved ones. They were associated with remembrance, not romance or beauty. And here in America? They’re often the inexpensive grocery-store mums that show up on everyone’s porch when pumpkin spice season arrives.
Well, as it turns out, I had been seriously underestimating the chrysanthemum.
It wasn’t until I started working at Lan Su that I discovered this humble autumn flower had an entirely different identity. For centuries, it was a darling of Chinese poets, a muse for artists, and a favorite companion of scholars. Who knew my childhood cemetery flower had such an impressive literary résumé?
A Scholar’s Favorite, Not Just Another Pretty Flower
In traditional Chinese culture, the chrysanthemum belongs to an exclusive little club called the Four Gentlemen (四君子), alongside plum blossom (winter), orchid (spring), and bamboo (summer). Each represents a season and an admired virtue, with the chrysanthemum proudly claiming autumn.
And what makes it so special?
Chrysanthemum Huayi (花藝) created by curator of horticulture, Josie Losh (2026)
While other flowers are calling it quits as temperatures drop, chrysanthemums are just getting started. They bloom into the chilly autumn air, seemingly unbothered by the approaching winter.
Southern Song poet Zheng Sixiao (鄭思肖, 1241–1318) admired the chrysanthemum’s stubborn spirit, famously writing:
“寧可枝頭抱香死，何曾吹落北風中。
It would rather die upon its branch, holding fast to its fragrance,
Than be scattered by the cold northern wind.”
Now that’s a flower with backbone!
Three Incurve Chrysanthemums blooming next to the Painted Boat in Misty Rain at Lan Su (2025)
Chinese scholars saw this quiet defiance as a reflection of their own ideals: resilience, integrity, and the courage to remain true to oneself, even when the world grows cold.
Chrysanthemums also symbolize longevity and good fortune. During the Double Ninth Festival (重陽節), people admire chrysanthemums, climb mountains, and enjoy chrysanthemum wine to celebrate health and long life.
Chrysanthemums also have long been enjoyed in teas, foods, and traditional Chinese herbal practices. From the scholar’s writing desk to the family dining table, this versatile bloom has found its way into nearly every corner of Chinese life.
Golden Blooms, Poetry, and a Little Autumn Magic
This year, our iconic Chrysanthemum Festival is inspired by chrysanthemum’s scholar roots and celebrates the theme “Golden Blooms Upon Autumn Waters (金英照秋水)”
I particularly love the Chinese name. 金英 (jīn yīng), meaning “golden blossoms,” is a poetic nickname that Chinese writers have used affectionately for chrysanthemums for centuries.
Derek Birkcumshaw chrysanthemums in Lan Su’s Hall of Brocade Clouds (2025).
One delightful example comes from the Liao dynasty emperor Yelü Hongji (耶律洪基), who was so impressed by his minister’s writing about yellow chrysanthemums that he responded with a poem:
昨日得卿《黃菊賦》，碎剪金英填作句。
Yesterday I received your Ode to Yellow Chrysanthemums,
Its verses woven like delicately cut golden blossoms.
袖中猶覺有餘香，冷落西風吹不去。
I can still sense their fragrance lingering in my sleeves,
Too lovely for the cold autumn wind to carry away.
Imagine receiving a compliment like that from your boss!
The emperor compared beautiful writing to golden chrysanthemum petals, suggesting that its beauty lingered like a fragrance even the autumn wind couldn’t carry away.
I love that image. It captures something wonderful about Chinese garden culture: a flower is never just a flower. It can be a poem, a philosophy, a friendship, or a reflection of how we choose to live.
Come See Chrysanthemums in a Whole New Light
This November, I hope you’ll rediscover chrysanthemums at Lan Su! Enjoy our Chrysanthemum Floral Design Showcase featuring 20 designers (November 5-15), see the arrangements glow at Nights of the Golden Flower (November 5-8), or experience Sensory Night (November 14).
Discover 81 mum varieties on horticulture tours, get creative in hands-on workshops, savor fall flavors with a Chrysanthemum Tea Tasting (November 14), and treat yourself to a special Sugar & Flake flower cake at Yun Shui Teahouse.
After all, a flower that has inspired poets, emperors, and scholars for centuries deserves a little spotlight of its own. And perhaps, like me, you’ll never look at a grocery-store mum quite the same way again.
Warmly,
Venus Sun
Senior Director of Experience
Lan Su Chinese Garden
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