A Few Fall Blooms | The Home Garden

Dave Townsend began vegetable gardening in pots on a 4'x8' porch when he was an apartment-bound public educator and became hooked on the fresh taste of tomatoes and cucumbers. When the opportunity to raise his children and his garden in a home with a little space came, he jumped at the chance. He has been cultivating the former blank slate yard into the garden it is today and blogging about it at www.GrowingTheHomeGarden.com since 2007. Dave, now a stay-at-home dad of three, gardens on about an acre of land, has developed a passion for propagating plants, and retains the love of home grown goodness from the garden!

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A Few Fall Blooms
by Dave Townsend - posted 09/26/11

This time of year is nothing short of spectacular for gardeners. The weather has cooled off, the cool breezes have returned, and of course the plants are putting on one final brilliant show of color before the close of the gardening season. What can you expect from your garden this fall? Here's a look at some of the fall blooming flowers in my garden that maybe you'll want to plant in yours too!

Mums

This time of year mums are everywhere. Chrysanthemums come in many different colors from white, to yellow, to red, and various shades in between. Many people buy them for their seasonal color and toss them out without realizing that they'll come back next year. After their color has faded remove them from the pot and plant them in your garden and you'll be able to enjoy them for years.

Asters

Asters are a little less popular than mums but are definitely not less deserving of recognition! Asters perform just as well as mums and can add more unique colors to your fall palette.

Goldenrod

Once you realize that goldenrod really doesn't cause your allergies you may find its appearance particularly striking when mixed together with those asters and mums. Goldenrod tends to get tall but shorter cultivars are available.

Salvia

Often you think of salvia as a great spring and summer bloomer but certain varieties love to wait until fall like Autumn sage (Salvia greggii) and Pineapple sage (Salvia elegans).

Spider Lily

Add some spider lily bulbs this winter to enjoy next fall! Spider lilies come up suddenly and bloom for several days then disappear about as quickly as they arrived. Then they will send up foliage to gather energy to produce next year's flowers. I recently discovered one spider lily in my garden and I have no clue when or how it came to be in my garden!

Caryopteris

My favorite fall blooming shrub is caryopteris. This time of year it is covered in blue blooms that drive the pollinators wild. The main variety I have is called 'Longwood Blue' which I've planted into a curved hedge but I also have a variegated caryopteris called 'Snow Fairy'. "snow Fairy' hasn't bloomed yet but it was only planted this spring and may need a little more time to grow.