Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Fall plant picks for perennials and trees
As we work our way into Fall there are some plants that we all associate with that time of year. I talked about some annual Fall picks last week, in particular, mums – the annual kind and the hardy mums!
But what about other perennials. Sky Blue Aster is a true native plant with a sturdy growth habit of around 3 feet tall.
There’s also Smooth Blue Aster, another similar native.
Of course, Blackeyed Susans are beauties into October, they’re listed at growing to 3 ft. tall, mine are well over 5 ft.
Blueberry bushes are thought of mainly for their fabulous blueberries but they offer stunning red Fall foliage.
There are many newer cultivars for cold zone gardens.The caveat is that they require an acidic soil, which means testing your soil and amending as recommended. Do this before planting. Learn more about growing blueberries HERE.
Another late blooming beauty is ‘New England Aster’. Careful, this guy can grow to 7 ft. tall with loads of small purplish pink flowers that last from August to October, making it a magnet for butterflies.
And there’s Goldenrod. This is a native that does NOT cause allergies to flare, although it often gets blamed. There are some garden cultivars of this pretty yellow plant that also has multiple medicinal purposes. It’s actually an herb with the Latin name Solidago, which means “to make whole or heal”.
Since now’s a great time to plant trees, there are Maples, Honeylocust, Black gum, Shagbark hickory and more.
The Shagbark hickory foliage turns yellow in the Fall.
