Fall Perennials for a Splendid Array of Flowers

Last Updated on March 8, 2024 by Kimberly Crawford

Solidago, Helenium and Rudbekia are some favorite fall perennials that give a splendid array of flowers. Brighten up Fall gardens with red and white favorite perennials.

As the russet days of Fall begin to take over the garden some summer perennials, such as aster and anemones will still be in bloom and will continue to produce a splendid array of flowers right up the first frost.

But fall is a whole new season and there is no shortage of perennials specially suited for this time of year.

Look through the garden centers and catalogs for more choices but here is a non-alphabetical list of some tried favorite perennials for colorful fall gardens.

Favorite Perennial Plants for Fall Gardens.

1. Solidago

Solidago or Goldenrod is a reliable plant for fall color. It grows practically anywhere in zones 3 to 9 and can spread quite rapidly so pruning is a must.

True to its name it produces golden plumes of flowers deep into the fall. When flowering has finished cut back the old stems to the butt and if the plant is mature lift and divide the root ball.

Even though solidago is thought of as a tall plant look for solidago “Little Lemon” to enhance the front of borders. It blooms freely at 10ins. tall.

2. Helenium

Helenium or Helen’s Flower has warm colors from red to yellow with brown centers on display in early fall. It will tolerate light shade in any soil type but it prefers a full sun position.

Dead head to prolong flowering. It is also called Sneezeweed because its dried leaves were formerly used for making snuff.

3. Rudbeckia

This is a good companion plant for helenium. It enjoys the same conditions in full sun and it benefits from shelter from cold winds.

Staking will be necessary for its light stems and water regularly, although it will tolerate some drought. The soft feathery leaves will suffer a bit but will bounce back when watered.

It self seeds so dead head to prevent unwanted plants the following season. Its more common name is Black-eyed Susan.

4. Helianthus

Although not a perennial, this plant, also known as the Sunflower is easy to grow from seed and is a very colorful addition at the back of a mixed border. It looks great with rudbeckia and heleniums.

Red and White Favorites for Fall Planting

It is easy to get consumed by the natural russet and gold colors of the fall months, but to add interest and variety a selection of red and white flowers can be introduced into the borders.

5. Chrysanthemum

These plants are lovingly called mums and are available in a vast range of colors, red, white, pink, bronze and yellow. They tolerate unfavorable weather conditions, although staking will be necessary with the taller varieties.

Some mums grow 3 feet tall. Just like their aster cousins which join summer and fall seasons the chrysanthemums join fall and winter and sometimes can bloom right through to December.

6. Cimicifuga simplex

This plant name is a bit of a mouthful but its more common name is Bugbane and it is worth growing at the back of borders for extra height and color.

Bugbane ‘White Pearl’ can grow up to 5ft. tall and its white feathery spikes remain well into the fall. From a distance the flowers look like curved bottle-brushes. Bugbane likes semi-shade and well drained soil. It can be slow to develop but is worth the wait.

7. Dahlia

There are so many varieties of dahlia that it is almost impossible to list them all but one of the best for fall color is Dahlia “Bishop of Llandaff”. It grows about 3ft. tall and with its scarlet flowers in full sun it is a magnificent focal plant in any setting.

Fall perennial plants complement the summer perennial plants and can be grown side by side sharing the same support canes. The best time to plant both spring perennials and fall perennial plants is in the spring but container grown plants can be planted out in the fall.