When the vegetable garden is less generous, several end-of-season perennials still put on a good show. The performance will continue for a few more weeks, especially since certain species are only just beginning to show their charms. Presentation of several plants that will embellish your month of September and sometimes until the first cold weather at the end of October; perennials that we often forget to get in the spring, precisely because they are not yet in bloom.
Whether you want a vibrant spring with bulbs to plant these days or a colorful garden from April to October, planning is required. And why not now?
It is in autumn that we have a real idea of the scale of our plants or their behavior, and of the corrections which will have to be made next spring, in particular to benefit from them as long as possible. Remember that certain plants have a long flowering period which continues into September – especially if you have taken the trouble to remove the faded flowers – and that you can delay the flowering of certain perennials from full sun simply by placing them in light shade. . And then, there are these late species which prolong the pleasure. But horticultural science being rather inexact, weather conditions will always influence the abundance and longevity of our flowers.
Many perennials only start showing up in late August or early September and then bloom for weeks. This is the case for autumn asters and chrysanthemums. There are many varieties with diverse colors. However, chrysanthemums currently sold in large numbers in supermarkets must be considered annuals.
Silver candlesticks, often known as cimicifuga, are also part of the latecomer group. Varieties with purple foliage like ‘Brunette’, ‘Black Beauty’, ‘Pink Spike’ or the popular ‘Atropurpurea’ often wait until early September before fully revealing their curved, downy, white or pinkish spikes. They give off an exquisite scent.
Many sedums also take time to fully color, but will keep their color until October. The most popular, Sedum spectabile, comes to us in countless variations. Chubby leaves of very dark purple or in various shades of green; Their flowers range from soft pink to red to white. Furthermore, some aconites with dark blue flowers also wait until the end of August before flowering. But this year, due to apparently heavy rains, they have been in flower for quite a while and have reached a considerable size, around 2m. Preferring dry soil, the ‘Chartreuse’ coreopsis with pretty yellowish foliage is one of the laggards this time. It has been in bloom for only a few days. As is the case of the perennial sunflower “Lemon Queen”, still bright at the end of October.
Year in, year out, many late flowering plants are still looking their best in September and even beyond. Perennial geraniums, including the indestructible ‘Rosanne’, Japanese anemones, including the prolific but invasive ‘Robustissima’, rudbeckia ‘Goldsturm’, yarrow, Russian sage (perovskia) and even marsh hibiscus , these perennial hibiscus with giant flowers, are one of them.
Other jewelry also deserves attention. This is the case of the paniculate phloxes “Aureole” and “Jeanna”, of the heliopsis “Bleeding Hearts” with flowers changing from red to orange, sometimes in shape until October. Often sold under the name Rudbeckia triloba, the spectacular and very prolific Ratibida triloba reaches around 1m in height and is adorned with dozens of small flowers exactly like those of our native ruffled rudbeckia. Six weeks of splendor.
Obviously, it’s impossible to forget the essential hydrangeas, several new products of which have appeared on the market in recent years. Of variable height, paniculate or in balls, they flower in summer, but for many, it is at the end of the season that they present their most beautiful colors. The show lasts all fall and even longer if you save a few dried flowers.
