Aster
New England aster bears loads of pink, blue, purple, and white flowers that are great in the vase or in the garden. Butterflies love it — and we do, too.
Name: Aster novae-angliae
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 5 inches tall
Zones: 4-8
Native to North America: Yes
Toad Lily
Toad lilies keep shady gardens from getting dull at the end of the season. This easy-care perennial offers intricate, orchid-like flowers from late summer to mid-fall.
Name: Tricyrtis hirta
Growing Conditions: Shade and moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide
Zones: 4-9
Native to North America: No
Goldenrod
Fall wouldn’t be fall without the cheery yellow flowers of goldenrod. It’s a tough, beautiful plant that looks good despite summer heat and drought. Note: Goldenrod isn’t typically a source of allergies; this is a common misperception.
Name: Solidago rugosa
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 4 feet tall
Zones: 4-9
Native to North America: Yes
Fall Power Perennials
See tough plants that power through summer’s heat for a strong fall finish.
Russian Sage
It’s fun to have some contrast to all the warm autumnal shades. Russian sage does the trick with its airy blue flowers and silvery foliage. Another reason we love it: It’s tough as nails and both the foliage and blooms have a great scent.
Name: Perovskia atriplicifolia
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 5 feet tall
Zones: 5-9
Native to North America: No
Perennial Sunflower
While most gardeners are familiar with the big-blooming annual sunflowers, it’s the perennial selections that are the true garden gems. ‘Lemon Queen’, for example, produces gorgeous creamy-yellow blooms in late summer and early fall.
Name: Helianthus ‘Lemon Queen’
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 8 feet tall
Zones: 4-9
Native to North America: Yes
Fall Garden Checklist
Learn what to do for a great fall garden and how to get your landscape ready for winter.
Colchicum
Colchicums look like fall-blooming crocuses on steroids: The big cup-shaped blooms appear seemingly out of nowhere in fall and create a bright show of pink or white.
Name: Colchicum autumnale
Growing Conditions: Sun or shade and well-drained soil
Size: To 6 inches tall
Zones: 4-9
Native to North America: No
Helenium
One of a group of great native plants in the daisy family, helenium offers cheery yellow, orange, or red blooms at the end of the season. We love how tough and easy-to-grow this plant is.
Name: Helenium autumnale
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 5 feet tall
Zones: 4-8
Native to North America: Yes
Go Beyond Basic Mums
Learn how to take your mums to the next level with these tried and true tips.
Sedum
One of the quintessential autumn plants, sedum bursts into bloom at summer’s end. This tough plant laughs off all summer’s heat and drought to look great in your garden at the end of the season.
Name: Sedum spectabile
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 18 inches tall
Zones: 4-9
Native to North America: No
Red Spider Lily
One of the most exotic bulbs, red spider lilies burst out of the ground producing spidery clusters of bright red flowers. After the flowers fade, the plants send up their strappy leaves.
Name: Lycoris radiata
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 2 feet tall
Zones: 8-10
Native to North America: No
Japanese Anemone
A great cut flower, Japanese anemone produces large poppy-shaped pink or white flowers on tall stems at the end of the season. Note: This great bloomer can be a bit of a thug, so plant it where it has lots of room to spread.
Name: Anemone x hybrida
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 5 feet tall
Zones: 4-8
Native to North America: No
Turtlehead
A fun plant with a fun name, turtlehead earned its moniker because of the shape of its pink or white blooms. It also has lustrous, glossy green foliage that looks great until frost.
Name: Chelone glabra
Growing Conditions: Full sun and moist soil
Size: To 3 feet tall
Zones: 4-9
Native to North America: Yes
Amazing Asters
Learn how this hardy fall classic is the pop of color your garden needs.
Fall Crocus
Most gardeners are familiar with the spring-blooming crocuses but overlook the fall types. They’re perfect for the garden, too.
Name: Crocus speciosus
Growing Conditions: Sun or shade and well-drained soil
Size: To 6 inches tall
Zones: 3-8
Native to North America: No
Monkshood
We love shades of blue, especially paired with yellow and orange. That’s what makes monkshood so special: The blue blooms shimmer against all the other fall flowers.
Name: Aconitum carmichaelii
Growing Conditions: Part shade and moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 6 feet tall
Zones: 3-7
Native to North America: No
Leadplant
One of our favorite ground covers, leadplant is a tough little plant that thrives in sun or shade. (We like it in shade; in sun it has a tendency to spread pretty fast.) It puts on a fall show twice — first come the electric-blue flowers, then the leaves turn beautiful shades of red.
Name: Ceratostigma plumbaginoides
Growing Conditions: Sun or shade and well-drained soil
Size: To 18 inches tall
Zones: 5-9
Native to North America: No
Mexican Sage
Few plants are as tough and beautiful as sages. Mexican sage is a great choice for ending the season thanks to its downy stems and purple flowers.
Name: Salvia leucantha
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 3 feet tall
Zones: 10-11 (grown as an annual in colder Zones)
Native to North America: Yes
Witch Hazel
Give your garden structure with this flowering shrub. Native to North America, common witch hazel offers spidery yellow flowers and wonderful golden-yellow fall foliage.
Name: Hamamelis virginiana
Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade
Size: To 12 feet tall and wide
Zones: 3-8
Native to North America: Yes
Anise Hyssop
This tough, drought-tolerant perennial looks beautiful for months in summer and fall when it’s covered with spikes of lavender-blue, licorice-scented flowers.
Name: Agastache foeniculum
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 5 feet tall
Zones: 4-9
Native to North America: Yes
Sweet Autumn Clematis
Bearing one of the season’s best scents, sweet autumn clematis clothes itself with fragrant white flowers at season’s end. Note: This can be a fast-growing, aggressive vine.
Name: Clematis terniflora
Growing Conditions: Sun or part shade and well-drained soil
Size: To 20 feet tall
Zones: 4-9
Native to North America: No
Beautiful Annual Flowers for Fall
See the five best annuals that bring pops of color to fall gardens and the best ways to grow them.
