Although many parts of my garden are starting to wind down for the season, it always amazes me how some plants come to life and add colour to the landscape this month. This should be an important consideration when planning a garden. Too often people end up with all the colour in spring and early summer, instead of staggering colour throughout the growing season.
Well, take heart - it's not too late to plant. In fact, I often have more success with fall planting than with spring. Some of my favourite plants to add fall colour include the following.
- Asters (Aster), or michaelmas daisies as the Brits like to call them, produce flowers that range from white to pink, purple and red, and are available in heights from 15 cm (6 inches) to 1.8 m (6 feet). Plant asters in moist, well-drained soil in full sun.
- Artemisias (Artemisia) is characterized by silvery leaves that integrate bright autumn yellows and bronzes with the more delicate pinks and wines of fall-flowering plants. This plant prefers full sun.
- Butterfly Bush (Buddleia) is stunning, with its pale green foliage setting off its purple, burgundy, pink, blue or white flowers. What a pretty sight it is when butterflies flock to this bush in the late summer. Cut back hard in early spring, and for larger flowers, do another less severe pruning in mid-spring.
- Clematis (Clematis) is a popular vine that offers some late summer/early fall bloomers, such as C. serratifolia, C. tangutica and sweet autumn clematis. Choose from numerous colours, including red, purple, pink and yellow.
- Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida) has a yellow daisy-like flower that blooms for several weeks at the end of summer and well into the fall. It will grow to about 75 cm (30 inches) in height, and prefers moist, well-drained soil in full sun or light shade.
- Boltonia (Boltonia) is easy to grow in full sun. This plant is covered with tiny white or pink daisies, and will reach 1.2 to 1.8 m (4 to 6 feet) in height. It tends to be sprawly, so works best at the back of a border with other plants supporting it - or use stakes.
- Chrysamthemum (Chrysanthemum) is a tradition in many fall garde
