Aster, Pansies and Mums, Oh My!
by Bonnie Grant September 05, 2014
The abundance of fall blooming plants and color sources should keep any gardener happy with their eye pleasing tones and forms. Fall gardening doesn't have to be the end but can be as rewarding as the peak growing seasons. Plant some of these options for an autumn garden that will tide you over until spring.
Spring is a time of bright renewal and rejuvenation. It is a gardeners favorite season, as he/she makes their way out into the watery sunlight after a winter locked indoors like a prisoner. Summer brings with it bounty and unmatched beauty as everything explodes into full maturity and fruit-fullness. Fall begins the slow slide back into the wintery doldrums and leaves a slight ache in the committed gardener's heart as he/she bids the growing season fair well. Autumn color planting can take the sting out of the transition and extend the season, complimenting the changing leaf colors and final harvests that signal the fall.
Plants will bloom at varied times dependent upon which region they are growing. Some of the specimens in your garden may persist well into autumn while a friend's plants may have already given up in another climate. Hardy bloomers like Asters and Mums characteristically come into flower in late summer and keep sending out flowers until freezing temperatures arrive. They make excellent container or in-ground plants and rejuvenate in mid to late spring, building up foliage until they resemble small bushes by summer's end. The variety of colors and petal combinations offer a multitude of options with just these two species.
Fall isn't just for Mums as there are plenty of species of flowering plant that will grace the garden into the fall season. Stonecrop sedum persists into the cooling season and has tall stands of tiny clustered flowers and thick attractive leaves. It looks good almost all year and will renew in spring, growing a thicker clump every year. Pansies are classics for the fall garden, with fascinating color combinations and forms. Hardy annuals that persist might include cheery marigolds, violas, impatiens, trailing nasturtium and bright zinnias. For dimension in the garden, plant some Joe Pye Weed. It attracts late season butterflies and pollinators and can get up to 6 feet tall with bushy mauve heads of scented blooms. Caryopteris, butterfly bush, Russian sage, tickweed, Helenium and hardy Mallow all continue to bloom until frost. Other plants to try might include autumn crocus, toad lilies, goldenrod, anemone, turtlehead, and monkshood.
Seasonal color isn't just about flowers but encompasses all the foliar hues as well. Ornamental kale and cabbage are some of the best bets for continuous color in autumn. They have large thick leaves that may be frilled, variegated or curled. These plants come in a stunning array of hues, forms and heights and their tones grace the garden often into early winter. Beautyberry puts on a show of stunning purple berries. Spike grass offers strappy elegance that turns burgundy in fall. There are more varieties of Coleus now than you can take stock of and they come in a mind blowing array of leaf form and color. The foliage looks like a soft water color in tones of salmon, yellow, rose, greens, purple, gray, orange and even blue. These plants tend to be treated as annuals but they are inexpensive, grow quickly and last until first frost. Dusty miller accents colorful plants with its soft leaves and subtle dove gray foliage. Grasses like sea oats and pampas grass produce interesting plumes and seed heads to enhance the fall garden.