Colorful Containers for Fall
Though the abundant colors of summer will soon start to fade, don't pack up your gardening gloves just yet. Consider an alternative to simply putting your garden to bed until next spring.
Why not take advantage of the autumn months to plant some colorful containers that will keep your garden flush with blooms well into the winter?
An array of fall flowering plants will thrive in many parts of the country at least until the first hard frost, and perhaps longer if you live in a temperate area. By planting now, you give these late bloomers a couple of months to establish themselves before the days shorten and winter chill sets in.
Here are five combinations that can create a dynamic show in your garden.
Autumn Glow
Combine warm yellow, orange and red hues with the earthy tones of a terra cotta container. Grow in full sun.
- black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia fulgida sullivantii 'Goldsturm'). Even after the petals start to drop, the brownish-black "eyes" remain attractive.
- yarrow (Achillea millefolium 'Terra Cotta' and 'Paprika'). These two varieties offer exactly the colors their names suggest in long lasting, flat-topped flower clusters.
- ornamental peppers (Capsicum annuum). Choose bright red and orange varieties.
- pansies (Viola xwittrockiana). Tuck some yellow and orange pansies among the larger plants to fill in the spaces.
Contrast in Lavender
Create drama in your autumn garden with the striking contrast of light and dark, in a deep green or black glazed ceramic container. Full sun to light shade.
- coral bells (Heuchera micrantha 'Stormy Seas'). Rich purplish ruffled leaves mottled with silvery lavender will keep their color all year if given sufficient light.
- Santa Barbara daisy (Erigeron karvinskianus 'Moerheimii'). Blush lavender flowers trail delicately over the pot edge, softening the impact of the dark coral bells.
Golden Greens
As the days start to shorten, this evergreen combination will add a glow to your garden. A terra cotta container will enhance the greens and golds, or try a glazed ceramic pot in a celery color. Full sun to light shade.
- santolina (Santolina ericoides, also S. pinnata). This dense Mediterranean shrub has narrow, toothed leaves and graceful branches.
- gold breath-of-heaven (Coleonema pulchrum 'Sunset Gold'). Golden yellow foliage darkens in winter on this fragrant evergreen, and tiny white and pale pink flowers appear in winter and early spring.
- dwarf periwinkle (Vinca minor 'Illumination'). Use two or three plants of this variety of vinca, with its mustard colored leaves, irregularly edged with deep green, to fill in around the shrubs and trail over the container edge.
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