November’s birth flower is the chrysanthemum. It stands for joy, friendship and long life, and it blooms in the fall, just when most of the garden has quit for the year. Some lists also name the peony as November’s alternate birth flower.
If you have someone with a November birthday, the mum is a wonderful flower to give, especially when it is carved into clay instead of sitting in a pot on the porch. It is one of the twelve blooms April Dupuis carves into personalized birthday gifts at The Potter’s Hands Studio.
This post is the first in a monthly series on the journal. Each month, we will look at the next month’s birth flower a few weeks ahead, so there is still time to order a carved piece before the birthday.
Why the chrysanthemum belongs to November
Drive through any Southern town in the fall and you will see why. By the time the summer annuals give out, mums are lined up on front steps and church steps, in pots of gold, rust and deep red. They are the flower that keeps going when the days get short.
That late bloom is a big part of the chrysanthemum’s meaning. It is a flower of cheer in a season of letting go, which makes it a fitting gift for anyone born as the year turns toward winter.
What the chrysanthemum means
The name comes from two Greek words, chrysos for gold and anthemon for flower. The earliest chrysanthemums were golden, and the name stuck long after gardeners bred them into nearly every color.
The flower has a long history. It was cultivated in China for many centuries, where it was tied to long life and a well-lived old age. In Japan it became so honored that a chrysanthemum serves as the emblem of the imperial family.
In the American tradition of birth flowers, the mum most often stands for:
- Joy and optimism, for a flower that blooms when little else does
- Friendship, which is why mums are a common gift between friends
- Long life, carried over from its old associations in East Asia
- Loyalty and devotion, especially in white blooms
One thing worth knowing: in parts of Europe, including France, Italy and Belgium, white chrysanthemums are traditionally laid on graves for All Saints’ Day. In the United States the mum is a cheerful fall flower, but if your November birthday person grew up with European traditions, you may want to choose a different color or lean on the alternate flower.
Chrysanthemum colors and their meanings
Like roses, mums carry slightly different meanings by color. The most common readings are:
- Red: love and deep affection
- White: loyalty, honesty and devotion
- Yellow: cheer and good wishes in modern use, though Victorian flower dictionaries sometimes gave it a sadder meaning
On a carved piece, the color question mostly falls away. April’s sgraffito works in the contrast between white porcelain slip and the darker clay underneath, so the chrysanthemum appears as line and shape, with all those layered petals drawn out by hand.
The peony, November’s alternate
Some birth flower lists give November a second flower, the peony. Peonies are known for honor, prosperity and a happy life, and they are often given at weddings and anniversaries for the same reason.
If your November person loves peonies, or if their own family tradition points that way, you can mention it when you reach out. It never hurts to ask April what she has in mind for either flower.
How April carves a chrysanthemum into a mug
Every birth-flower piece starts on the wheel. April throws the form in stoneware and lets it firm up to leather-hard. Then she brushes on a layer of white porcelain slip.
Next comes the carving. Sgraffito, from the Italian for “scratched,” means cutting through that slip to reveal the clay beneath. April draws the bloom freehand and carves it line by line, along with the recipient’s name. A chrysanthemum, with its rows of curved, overlapping petals, is the kind of flower that rewards that patient, line-by-line work.
Once the carving is done, the piece is glazed with lead-free, food-safe glazes and kiln-fired twice. Because every line is drawn by hand, no two chrysanthemum mugs will ever be the same.
You can also add a date, a short word or verse, or a Southern floral border. For a milestone November birthday, gold leaf detailing is available as an add-on.
When to order for a November birthday
Personalized pieces take 4 to 6 weeks from order to delivery, and the studio recommends ordering about two months ahead. For a November birthday, that means reaching out in September if you can, and as early in October as possible if you cannot.
If the birthday is already close, a gift card is delivered by email the moment you buy, and they can start their own chrysanthemum commission. For every other month, see the full list of birth month flowers and what they mean.
Questions people ask
What is the birth flower for November?
The chrysanthemum is November’s birth flower. It stands for joy, friendship and long life. Some lists also name the peony as an alternate.
What do chrysanthemum colors mean?
Red chrysanthemums usually stand for love, white for loyalty and honesty, and yellow for cheer and good wishes in modern use.
When should I order a chrysanthemum mug for a November birthday?
Personalized pieces take 4 to 6 weeks, so order about two months ahead, ideally in September. If the birthday is close, a gift card is delivered instantly by email.
Have a November birthday coming up? Start a commission with the name and the month, and April will reply with a design idea, pricing and a timeline.