Autumn signals the start of the garden's slow saunter toward winter. Plants and gardeners alike welcome the return of cooler weather and lower humidity. It's a time when some flowering plants finally get exactly what they've been waiting for: the short days and cool temperatures that trigger asters, chrysanthemums, and goldenrods to cover themselves with blossoms. Smart gardeners take advantage of the crisp, cool weather by planting spring-flowering bulbs, digging beds for the next season, and fertilizing lawns.
Active bloomers are few in the fall, though some spring-blooming perennials like candytuft and veronica will re-bloom in autumn if they've enjoyed a stress-free summer. Some annuals including marigold and impatiens, often push out a strong showing of blossoms at season's end. Where autumns are long and warm, re-bloorning roses get in on the act, too. In colder areas, roses will set brilliant red or orange fruits, called hips, which are a winter taste treat for birds.
But the garden isn't the only game in town for color. Mesmerized by maples and spellbound by parrotias, you will find yourself looking skyward every chance you get, watching the colors of autumn grasses and trees change against a background of bright blue October skies.
Glorious Grasses
Several types of turf grasses dazzle the eye in the autumn landscape. If your lawn features a cool-season species, such as bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, or any type of fescue, it should awaken from its summer dormancy and green up beautifully in the moderate temperatures of fall. But it may need a little help.
In many areas autumn is a dry season, so supplemental water may be needed to help your lawn during its late-season growth spurt. Early fall is also an excellent time to fertilize any cool-season lawn. In addition to promoting vibrant green color, a fall feeding with a controlled- release lawn fertilizer helps the grass store nourishment for the cold weather ahead. Finally, any type of lawn grass benefits from the removal of fallen leaves. Leaves allowed to settle atop your grass, block sunlight and fresh air, which are essential to its health.
Ornamental grasses laden with showy seeds bend and sway, dramatizing the brisk winds of autumn. And they persist far beyond the first few freezes. Even after the leaves of ornamental grasses fade from green to buff, don't trim them back. Besides being pretty, the long grass leaves help insulate the base of the plants from extreme cold and shelter the shallow roots as well. In many areas it is best to delay pruning until late winter, or just before new growth begins to emerge from the plants' crowns
Blushing Foliage
The same processes that make trees turn red and gold lead to changes in the leaf colors of some perennials and shrubs. As these plants sense the coming of winter, the green coloration in their leaves fades to reveal shades of yellow, orange, and red. Forsythias will glow in a soft shade of buttery yellow, while viburnums will turn to bronze. Many Japanese maples that were a gentle bronze color all through summer will turn to crimson red, and compete for your attention with the brighter red leaves of winged euonymus.
Several perennials follow suit, turning bronze in response to long, cool nights. When autumn ferns, bergenia, epimedium, or hardy geraniums blush bronze, any nearby plants with silvery foliage will seem lighter and brighter in contrast. Even though you may have appreciated artemisia, dusty miller, lamb's ears, and Russian sage all summer, their platinum foliage will become breathtaking with the advent of fall. For all plants, autumn becomes a time of second glances.
Look around for places where you can plug in the combination of the intriguing coarse texture and the kaleidoscope colors that becomes with cold-tolerant ornamental cabbage and kale. If you're not sure where they will look best, pot each in a roomy container at least 6 in (15 1/2 cm) wide, and experiment with placement. Containers are especially practical in very cold climates because these plants are severely damaged when temperatures drop below about 25° F (4° C). Whisk them indoors when killing frost threatens, and take them outside again during the day. But do leave them out when it's chilly. The leaf colors of these ornamental coles become increasingly vivid in response to night temperatures that are consistently below 50"F (10°C) degrees. And, of course, don't overlook the punch of color that cold-tolerant pansies can contribute to flower beds, window boxes, and containers.They can even survive being buried in snow, emerging to bloom anew with each thaw.
Bitter Berries
In autumn, you won't be the only one enjoying nature's bounty. This is the season when many shrubs and trees produce colorful berries, and birds take full advantage, harvesting each berry in its time. From a bird's point of view, ripening doesn't necessarily happen immediately. For some shrubs, such as hollies, the right time may not be until spring. Some fruits, such as those of serviceberry, are snapped up as soon as they ripen, but others must mellow for weeks or months before they become palatable to birds. Half the entertainment as autumn slips into winter comes from noting when shrubs such as cotoneasters and viburnums are stripped of their berries. Last of all are the bitter berries of junipers and hollies, which actually begin to ferment before birds accept them. But until then, the berries remain for your pleasure.
The Sneezing Season
If you suffer from seasonal allergies in the fall, don't blame your sneezes on the season's outstanding flowering plants, such as aster, goldenrod, and sneezeweed.The culprit is usually ragweed pollen, which hits the air at the same time these flowers bloom. In fact, this is probably how sneezeweed got its name. A terrific upright perennial that covers itself with yellow blossoms in late summer and early fall, sneezeweed is a fine partner for asters in shades of purple and pink. But even without sneezeweed at its side, a clump of purple asters makes an ideal accent in the autumn landscape, especially if you import a few pumpkins to display near your entryway.
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