Worship in Asia, adored in Europe  
 Chrysanthemums can look back on a long history of continuous success.  
  From snow white and fresh green to gold and claret. 
  Chrysanthemums are not only renowned for the number of varieties but also for the endless range of colours in which they are bred. Every Chrysanthemum has its own individual charm: a sprouting sphere, a graduate daisy or a colourful button. As well as the traditional spray Chrysanthemums there are also disbudded and small flowered Chrysanthemums.  
 Worshipped in China  
 Chrysanthemums were already being grown in China in the 15th century B.C. as a flowering herb. They were seen as such an exalted plant that only nobles were given permission to plant them in their gardens. This explains why they can also be found on the finest Chinese porcelains, painted in the sophisticated Oriental style. The flower is also one of the four Junzis, the favourite plants of the influential poet Tao Qian (the others are Prunus, Orchid and Bamboo) and is the symbol of nobility. An entire city was actually named after it: Chu-Hsien means Chrysanthemum city.  
  Majestic symbol 
  In the 8th century the flower was introduces in Japan, where the Emperor raised it to the status of national symbol. This still applies today and the Japanese throne is often referred to as the Chrysanthemum throne. This is because the thrown of earlier Emperors were completely covered in Chrysanthemums. The Japanese depict the Chrysanthemum as a single flower with sixteen rays, a symbol representing divine authority. In Japan Chrysanthemums are seen as a symbol of longevity and good fortune. The Chrysanthemum – symbol of the sun – also plays a significant part in the royal coat of arms. The ‘Supreme order of the Chrysanthemum’ is the highest order of knighthood the Emperor can award; the Chrysanthemum is the only flower to be honoured in this way.  
 Aka “fireworks”  
 In the 17th century the flower arrived in the West: Dutchman Jacob Layn brought it to the Netherlands for the first time in 1688. The flower was named by Carolus Linnaeus and means ‘gold flower’ from the Greek ‘chrys’ meaning ‘gold coloured’ – a reference to the original colour of the flower – and ‘anthemon’ meaning flower. The term Chrysanthemum is also used for a specific type of firework that shoots out a spray of sparks that look like the petals of a Chrysanthemum.   
  Edible Chrysanthemums 
  In the Far East the flowers of the Chrysanthemum are boiled to produce a sweetish tea called Jú Hu Chá in China. It is reputed to have a cooling effect and is used on hot days and to treat fever; it is also said to speed up recovery from flu. And the green leaves of Chrysanthemum coronarium (the Garland Chrysanthemum) , for example, are often stir fried with garlic and red pepper. Dutch Chrysanthemums are intended exclusively for decoration and are not for consumption!