Feeding is another area of growing looked on with much mystery and once again it is quite simple. Over feeding will not produce larger blooms; it will simply scorch the roots or produce a coarse soft flower, susceptible to disease.
Feeding is best carried out little and often. It is far better to give more half-strength feeds than less double strength.
The basic rule is that plants given high nitrogen will tend to produce stems and leaves and those given high potash will be encouraged to start producing flowers. However, a grower who simply applies a topdressing of the J.I. No. 3 compost, which he used in the pot, about once a month during July, August, September and October, will probably find that his plants lack very little in the way of food, and the garden chrysanthemums will probably not need feeding at all if the ground had a good amount of manure dug in over winter.
