For Fall Flowers Now
Not all flowers bloom in the spring. Some don’t bloom until temperatures cool, and some long-blooming perennials make flowers from spring until fall’s first frost. If an October bouquet of blooms is your garden goal, here are some fall-blooming perennials to plant now.
Mums
Mums, short for chrysanthemums, are the classic flower for fall corsages, porch displays and Thanksgiving tablescapes. If you want perennial mums that last for years, skip the florist mums you often see in foil wrapped pots intended for indoor display and opt for hardy mums (Chrysanthemum morifolium) that are tough enough to survive for years planted outdoors.
Asters
Asters are lovely fall-blooming perennials with daisy-like flowers that bloom from late summer to the first frost. Their flowers come in blue, pink, purple and white. They’re drought tolerant and attract pollinators. Plant them in full sun.
Roses
Roses aren’t considered a fall perennial, but they’ll bloom right up until the first frost. Want easy-to-grow roses? Go with Knock Out Roses. They bloom continuously and aren’t plagued by diseases that affects many types of roses.
Wondering what the difference is between perennials and annuals? Perennials come back year after year with little to no help from you. Annuals die each season, and must be replanted each year. Perennials equal less work for you.
For Flowers Next Year
Flowers are the reason for the season in the spring and summer. Look for perennial flowers that bloom all summer long, year after year, with nothing more than a little pruning and deadheading from you.
Hydrangeas
This easy-to-care-for perennial shrub produces big, round- or cone-shaped flowers. Two of the most popular types are Endless Summer hydrangeas and oakleaf hydrangeas. They grow quickly, around two feet per year, and some varieties can reach up to 15 feet tall. They’re a good choice for beginning gardeners because they’re easy to grow. Use them as foundation plantings or along a fence line. They’ll bring you summer flowers for years to come.
Shasta daisies
These cheery flowers look like the classic daisy: white petals around a yellow disc. They’ll bloom all summer if you clip off the dead flowers. Shasta daisies grow in clumps up to three feet tall and two feet wide. Use them in a mixed border with other perennials and annuals.
Coneflowers
These tough plants stand up to heat and drought. They begin blooming in early summer and keep going through fall as long as you clip off the spent flowerheads. They bloom in shades of purple, orange, pink, white and yellow, depending on variety, and grow in clumps up to four feet tall and three feet wide. Put them in a mixed bed with annuals and other perennials that get full sun.
Fall and late summer are good times to plant perennials. Autumn’s cooler temperatures let your transplants put their energy into growing strong roots instead of battling summer heat. Strong roots are the secret to healthy perennials.
Perennials for Privacy
Want to sit in a lawn chair and read a book or catch rays without your neighbors watching? Plant perennials to create a natural fence. Here are some trees, vines, and shrubs that can give you plant-based privacy.
Leyland Cypress
Plant a row of these fast-growing evergreen trees to create a living wall. Leyland cypresses can get as tall as 50 feet, and they grow around four feet a year! Plant a half-dozen three-foot-tall Leyland cypresses now and you’ll have a wall of 25-foot-tall trees in just five years.
Arborvitae
Arborvitae is another fast-growing evergreen tree that makes a great privacy screen. Arborvitae grows to a mature height of as much as 50 feet and will reach 12 feet wide. It grows one to two feet per year. It turns a little bronze in the winter, bringing color to the landscape. Plant it in late fall before the first freeze.
Star Jasmine
Train this blooming vine to scramble up a trellis for a wall of flowers. The blooms have a sweet aroma, so you get fragrance along with privacy. Star jasmine grows in the shade, so it’s a good pick for a patio or a shaded fence. It reaches 20 feet tall and grows at a rate of a couple of feet per year, so you’ll get coverage quick.
For Shade-Loving Perennials
Shady spots in the yard or garden can be a challenge, but there are shade-loving perennials that can solve your sunless problems. Here are our favorites.
Hostas
This shady yard favorite produces gorgeous foliage in shades of blue, green, chartreuse and gold. Sometimes called a plantain lily, hostas look tropical but are tough perennials that thrive in places where temperatures go well below freezing. They’re easy to grow and their showy, fragrant flowers attract beneficial pollinators. They also multiply quickly, so you can divide them and plant them in other spots in your yard or share them with your fellow gardeners.
Ferns
Ferns bring texture and color to shady spots in your yard. Their hardiness varies by variety, but there are many perennial ferns that survive temperatures that dip far below freezing. Some good choices include holly fern, Western sword fern, lady fern and wood fern. Keep them moist, give them shade and nutrient-rich soil with lots of compost, and ferns spread into a gorgeous, jungle-like groundcover.
Hellebore
Also called Lenten rose, this perennial is one of the first to bloom in the spring. It has saucer-shaped flowers in colors ranging from white to black. Yes, black. Buy hellebores as full-sized plants and get them in the ground before the first frost. They’ll keep their leaves throughout the winter, so hellebore even brings some green to your yard in the depths of winter.
For Deer-Resistant Plant Ideas
Deer are one of your garden’s worst enemies. Most deer repellants don’t work well, and a deer can leap an 8-foot fence the way Superman leaps tall buildings in a single bound. The best defense against deer is planting things they don’t find tasty. There are a slew of deer-resistant perennials that keep your garden and yard from becoming a deer salad bar. Here are some of our favorites.
Red Hot Poker
Also known as torch lily, red hot poker blooms from spring to fall. Its flowers are dramatic red or yellow spikes, it can endure drought and heat and it’s resistant to most insect pests. Best of all, deer don’t eat red hot poker, either. Pair it with artemisia, perennial salvia or blanket flowers.
Coral bells
Coral bells, also known as heuchera, come in a rainbow of leaf and flower colors. They grow in a range of light conditions, from shade to sun, so there’s a coral bell variety for almost any spot in your yard. Some varieties bloom in the fall, others in the spring, and their leaves stay on the plant throughout the winter, providing year-round interest. Use them for groundcover alongside astilbe and ferns.
Yarrow
Yarrow is an easy deer-resistant plant to grow. It’s drought hardy, and the herbal scent of its fern-like foliage deters deer. Its long-lasting blooms come in yellow, pink, red and white. Plant it in full sun for maximum flowers.
