Why Autumn Is One of the Best Seasons to Garden; Don't Throw in the Trowel Just Yet; Creating a Beautiful Autumn Garden; Our Favorite Fall Flowers; Plant Spring Bulbs This Autumn; Creating Autumn Flower Arrangements; Preparing Your Garden for Winter; Beginner's Guide to Growing Roses
In the Garden with Paris House - Ask Gardener
Fall Gardening
Autumn is the perfect time to plant bulbs for a beautiful spring garden. We love shopping from Eden Brothers, White Flower Farm, Jackson and Perkins, and more. Read our Beginner’s Guide to Planting a Rose Garden
Ask Gardener, The Fall Garden Edit
How to Make the Most of the Autumn Garden. Don’t Throw in the ‘Trowel’ Just Yet.
As the long, hot days of Summer come to an end, we may find ourselves grabbing a cozy sweater and a hot cup of tea as we head out to see the last of our garden’s bounty. By this time, many Gardeners are usually tired after a long season digging in the dirt and battling Mother Nature, and may feel it is time to 'Throw in the trowel’ and call it a day until Spring comes around once again. As a lifelong Gardener, I have found this time of the year to be one of the most joyous and colorful times in our gardens. After all, it is much cooler, making our time spent working in the garden much easier and enjoyable, not to mention the delicious aroma of homemade pies, warm cider donuts, fruit ripe on the trees, and hot mulled drinks makes me want to throw open the French doors, grab some wool blankets, light an outdoor fire, and spend time in the garden sipping sparkling Poire Granit all evening with family and friends. All the more reason to keep your garden growing and going strong and beautiful until the first hard frost hits and the Winter garden takes shape.
The zone you live in determines what you can grow during the Autumn months, as a zone 6A gardener here in the Northeast, I was accustomed to mums and pumpkins being the main ‘stars’ of the Autumn garden. Over the years, I have discovered many more fall treasures to add, including hardy perennials that have returned each year. I love to walk out in my garden and gather vegetables, fruit, flowers, and herbs to create an enchanting Autumn centerpiece for both indoors and out.
Here are some of my favorite Autumn Flowers:
Chrysanthemums come in a wide variety of colors to complement all gardens.
Asters — I adore these hardy flowers, especially their purple hues.
Pumpkins, Jack -Be -Littles, and Gourds — I adore all varieties, especially the fairytale-like Cinderella pumpkin. You can visit your craft store and create a flower wreath to surround these enchanting pumpkins, giving them a look straight out of a storybook. This fun craft can be enjoyed with your children for only a few dollars.
Sunflowers are always a great late Summer, early Fall flower.
Hydrangeas — We grow hundreds of them on our property and let them dry to use in our arrangements.
Sanguisorba Obtusa, La Pimprenelle — These are the loveliest flowering ‘Plumes’ that look so pretty tucked into your arrangements. The Shades vary with the maturity of the stem.
Japanese Anemones — Lovely pink shades mingling amongst purple Asters in the garden and in arrangements.
Autumn Joy Sedum with its vibrant pink hues that deepen over its long bloom time, this is a must in your garden.
Sweet Autumn Clematis is a fast-growing, beautifully scented flower that grows up a structure such as an arbor or trellis. Autumn clematis remains one of my favorite late-summer, early-autumn flowers. It is stunning.
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