Chrysanthemum (Dendranthema spp.) belongs to the family Compositae (Asteraceae), the second-largest family of flowering plants. It was named by Carolus Linnaeus from the Greek prefix “chrysos” means golden and “anthemon” means flower. Chrysanthemum morifolium, the modern florists Chrysanthemum evolved as a result of endless variation and hybridization from C. sinensis, C. indicum and C. omatum. This group is also distinguished as C. hortorum. The name of C. morifolium Ramat has been changed to Dendranthema grandiflora Tzvelev. Chrysanthemums are mainly herbaceous perennial and bear flowers in capitula. It ranks second next to roses in importance among the cut flower crops. In India it occupies third position after the jasmine and roses. Development of varieties with novel traits provide marketing opportunities for retailers and cautious selection can increase both productivity as well as improving the quality of the products. So an attempt was made to condense the available literature that has been published on chrysanthemum breeding with more emphasis on improvement in floriculture point of view. In recent years, important strides were made in molecular breeding, particularly targeting the unusual colours through transgenics and understanding of flower genetics and flowering regulation.