Chrysanthemums on a Grave: What They Mean Around the World

In an American garden center in October, a pot of mums means fall is here. In France, the same pot means something very different: it is the flower families carry to the cemetery. Few flowers carry such different meanings from one country to the next.

Europe: the flower of All Saints' Day

In France, Belgium and Austria, the white chrysanthemum is the memorial flower placed on graves. Around All Saints' Day on November 1 (Toussaint in France), cemeteries fill with pots of mums. One reason given is simple: in early November, few other flowers are still in bloom. Because of that tradition, many Europeans would never give chrysanthemums as a cheerful gift.

East Asia: funerals and honor

In Korea, funeral arrangements traditionally include white chrysanthemums, and similar customs exist in China and Japan, where white mums are a common sight at funerals and memorials. In Japan the chrysanthemum is also a symbol of the imperial family, whose crest is a sixteen-petal chrysanthemum, so it carries a sense of dignity as well as mourning.

The United States: fall and loyalty

Here, mums are mostly a symbol of autumn, and the white chrysanthemum is often said to stand for loyalty and honesty. That makes them a natural fall choice for a grave, and a meaningful one for families with European or Asian roots who grew up with the tradition.

Using mums at a grave

• Check the rules on potted plants. Many cemeteries allow them only around certain holidays, and some not at all. Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery, for example, allows potted plants only around Easter, Memorial Day and Christmas.
• Know the plant. Florist mums are not frost hardy and will brown in the first hard freeze. Garden mums are tougher, though even they may not survive a severe winter.
• Keep it tidy. Set the pot where it will not be in the mower's path, and take it home when it fades.

For All Saints' Day and Día de los Muertos traditions, see our guide to those days at the grave.