24 • The Beacon September 15 , 2022
Greten ’ s mum hobby helps her pay for education
By Jen Jones
In summer 2020 Michaela Greten was looking for new ideas of things to try and came across the idea of growing mums . That year she grew 260 . This year she grew 2,000 .
“ I have always enjoyed gardening . In high school I grew strawberries as my Supervised Agricultural Experience in FFA . Mums have become a favorite of mine since I started growing them ,” Greten said . “ I do grow some annuals , primarily for my own use , family and friends . I enjoy putting together custom containers for family and friends using the annual flowers .”
Greten is attending Wilmington College , studying agribusiness . “ This is more of a hobby for me , and it helps me pay for college . I do sell to The Garden
Patch at the Fresno Farmers Market and to family and friends .”
Greten doesn ’ t plant seeds . “ They are a cut root from a mum , and they put them into plug trays ,” she said . “ I buy them in a 1-inch plug from a nursery in the south . Then I plant them in a 9-inch pot where I grow them to the final product . It takes about four months , from June through September , to get them to selling size . I grow them outside and water them by hand daily , sometimes twice a day . I also have a small portion of my mums being watered by a drip system .”
Greten said it takes four to six hours , depending on how hot it is , to water her mums each day .
The mums Greten grows are garden mums , not hardy mums . “ I have had people
plant them on the south side , close to their houses , and some have had good luck getting them to come back , but there are no guarantees . This year I have nine different colors : red , orange , white , yellow , hot
pink , summer sunset , lavender , purple and strawberry ice ,” she said .
After graduating in December , Greten hopes to find a job in Coshocton County in the agriculture field .
Submitted
In summer 2020 Michaela Greten was looking for new ideas of things to try and came across the idea of growing mums . That year she grew 260 . This year she grew 2,000 .
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