Autumn changes the mood of the garden as the latecomers come into their own and colour is provided by berries and the fading leaves. Far behind us is the anticipation of spring, the glorious splendour of summer, and ahead of us is the damp darkness of winter. This is a time of preparation, and a perfect opportunity to take stock of the successes and failures of the previous months.

For me the precious few days of dry conditions are very much welcome. Cercidiphyllum japonicum fills the air with the scent of burnt sugar as the leaves turn a glorious pink before falling, and the leaves of Quercus coccinea are in the process of turning to scarlet; the leaves will stay on the tree until they are ripped away by a winter storm.

The colder nights seem to delay the emergence of autumn flowers, but finally, after waiting for what seems an eternity the Leucanthemella serotina (left) has burst into flower!

You may be forgiven for not knowing this delightful perennial; for some reason it has not yet taken off as a popular garden plant. Maybe it is too similar the earlier flowering Leucanthemums to be of interest to most gardeners, but surely it's strong stems with crimped leaves and it's large white daisy flowers borne some time after the last Leucanthemum has flowered should make it a must-have for the late season herbaceous border? There are plenty of sources in the plantfinder, and I would strongly recommend this species as a 'back of border' plant.

 

Of somewhat smaller stature is the charming Aster 'Little Carlow' (below); at only about 1ft (30cm) tall this is a gem for the front of the late season border.

Each flower is about ½" (1.5 cm) in diameter and is a warm purple colour; used with the warm colours of shorter Heleniums and late season Rudbeckias it is particularly effective. I would strongly advise that you give Asters space in the border- good air flow will reduce the build-up of mildew and allow your plants to shine. I would, however, suggest that you still plant lower growing plants in front of even the smaller cultivars to disguise their 'bare bottoms'- the unsightly bare stems left as the stems extend upwards and drop leaves.                                           

 

My favorite Aster is the underused A. divaricatus (left). I say underused- this plant is SO     USEFUL for the gardener! The reletively large leaves of this species (compared with the leaves of the familiar hybrids) form a dome at ground level while long stems clothed with tiny white flowers flop outwards to act as ground cover or scramble through other perennials, even in a partly shaded spot. This is one of the plants that I could not garden without... I grow A. divaricatus with an unknown white flowering Begonia species, the herbaceous Aralia continentalis and around the base of my Nandina domestica; because the flowers are held on long stems they can cover the ground without any roots or leaves interfering with the young suckers of the Nandina.

I believe there is also a pink form of this species, but I have yet to grow it.

Another must have in the autumn garden is Schizostylis. Whether you grow the stunning brick red S. coccinea or the well known hybrids 'Pink Princess' (left) or 'Fenland Daybreak' (right), the large bright flowers will look fantastic on a sunny autumn day.

 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Autumn is when one of my conversation piece plants comes into flower. Lepechinia hastata (below) is a beautiful species from California and Hawaii and bears well spaced spikes of small dusky pink flowers. The leaves are somewhat triangular in shape and have a distinctive scent- to me they smell horribly of an antiseptic or medicine, but other people love the smell! This plant grows well enough in so-called 'ordinary' conditions and with a loose habit associates well towering above shorter herbaceous plants, maybe even with low growing blue geraniums. Although short lived, Lepechinia hastata is easy to raise from seed, but on a heavy soil it might be best to sow the seeds in trays rather than hoping for it to self seed around. I feel there is great potential for this plant; it is a very distinctive plant for the autumn garden and I could see potential if it is grown in a large clump or even if individual plants are dotted into a border to fill late season gaps.

Of course it's not just the flowers that we enjoy during the autumn... and if you want spectacular berries then look no further than Phytolacca acinosa! Often known by it's common names of 'Pokeweed' or 'Ink Weed', Phytolacca acinosa (below) comes from China and India, and is very similar to the more commonly grown P. americana. For me P. acinosa wins out thanks to it's tendancy to branch out and produce more flower heads per clump. The flowers themselves are dull and white (the spikes look a bit like candles), but the berries are spectacular!  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
By far the biggest splash of colour in my garden comes from the Scarlet Oak, Quercus coccinea (below). I have grown this tree for a few years and it has grown very well for me. For much of the year the leaves are large, green and chunky, but in the autumn this species comes into it's own. The scarlet leaves persist well into winter (usually the leaves are blown away by a mid winter storm). This tree grows very big ultimately- bare this in mind when siting!
... And of course when sitting in the garden and enjoying the last rays of sunshine before the dark winter sets in what could be better than the burnt sugar scent of Cercidiphyllum japonicum as it drops it's leaves...!