10 Great Perennials for Fall Planting
Frost and freezing temperatures may be just around the corner, but if you hurry, you can still get some awesome plants in the ground. And I’ve got some pretty good candidates for you that don’t mind making friends with dirt that’s on the chilly side. Check out my list. Here are 10 great perennials for fall planting.
By John G. Stamos
September 22, 2020 marked the beginning of the very first fall season for my garden, here in hardiness zone 5b/6a. A summer packed with furious designing, building, and planting in my garden came to an end for me at 9:29 AM on that day, and an autumn filled with more furious garden designing, building, and planting began exactly one minute later. At the beginning of that first fall, I was right in the middle of building the first section of my limestone retaining wall/planter/waterfall structure. I had quite a bit of construction still ahead of me and I still had a bunch of potted perennials that needed planting. In fact, it was that November (the 8th of November, to be exact) when I finally completed that first limestone section and subsequently planted the last of my perennials for the year.
So, what did I plant that fall? And, why did I plant it in the fall? The answer to the first question is the subject of this article, and it’s coming up in just a minute. The answer to the second question is a two-parter. First, I did lots of research and found out that many perennials benefit from being planted in the fall. These plants have the opportunity to develop their root systems over the course of the fall (and even winter, in some cases) and have a decided growth advantage over spring-planted individuals. Second, I had no choice. Research or not, with winter just around the corner, everything sitting in pots needed to get in the ground.
What are 10 great perennials for fall planting?
Ten perennials great for planting in the fall? Here’s the list in no particular order – partly informed by research, mostly informed by necessity (and resulting firsthand experience).
Note: You’ll see that plants grown from bulbs are conspicuously missing from my list. That’s not because they’re not great for fall planting – they are, and for many excellent reasons. I don’t mention them here because I simply didn’t have any to plant last fall.
1. Hostas (Plantain Lilies – Hosta) – Hardiness Zones 3-9. When I planted some of my Guacamole, Patriot, and Bedazzled Hostas (Hosta ‘Guacamole’, Hosta ‘Patriot’, and Hosta ‘Bedazzled’) it was November and many of them had already lost most of their leaves for the winter. But into the ground they went. I didn’t know if hostas were good candidates for fall planting. I just knew that if I didn’t plant them when I did, they’d be spending the winter in their pots along a protected side of my house. I planted them in big holes filled with potting soil (as I do with everything I plant). As the potting soil I use (Sta-Green Potting Mix) contains a slow release fertilizer, I knew my hostas would receive nutrients over the course of fall, winter, and early spring. Some plants, like roses, do not benefit from late season fertilizing. The stimulating effects of fertilizer on a plant like a rose could be problematic. Roses, which are pretty much deciduous, and are also voracious feeders that respond vigorously and almost instantly to fertilization, might actually sprout new growth (if fertilized late in the fall) which could be killed by freezing temperatures. But hostas are herbaceous in my hardiness zone (5b – 6a). That means that they die back entirely to the ground in the late fall and winter. No amount of fertilizer is going to make them sprout during the cold weather. So, into their nutrient-rich, vast holes they went. Some of them literally had no leaves left when I planted them. But I’ll tell you what, they came roaring back this spring, and grew and flowered beautifully throughout the spring, summer, and well into fall. Hostas range in size from miniature (my Hosta ‘Miniskirt’ only grows to about 5″ in height with a spread of only 13″) to giant, some of which can grow to over 4′ in height with spreads to well over 6′. Hostas typically demonstrate a moderate growth rate. Mine have bloomed from late spring into fall, depending on the cultivar. They tend to prefer shady spots, but some of the variegated cultivars can tolerate some sun. Hostas turned out to be a great choice for fall planting for me. In fact, hostas are so tough and they performed so well after being planted last fall, I’m planting ten Hosta ‘Blue Cadet’ and ten Hosta ‘Rainforest Sunrise’ this fall within the next couple of weeks. They easily made my fall planting Top 10.
Suggestions for planting hostas in the fall. Since I use the following methodology not only for planting hostas in the fall, but for every plant on my fall planting list, I’ll review them in brief detail here. Again, I apply this methodology to every one of the plants on this list. The only point that varies is pruning: if, when, and how much depends on the specific plant.
- Plant at least two weeks before the first hard frost. As with all of the other plants on this Top 10 list, I suggest planting hostas at least a couple of weeks before the first hard frost of your area is expected. A hard frost will often cause the top few inches of the ground to freeze. It’s important to give your newly bedded plants a bit of time to acclimate to the soil before this happens. The more time you can give them before the ground freezes, the better.
- Water. I gave all of my fall-planted hostas (again, all of my other fall plantings as well) a good solid watering at the time I planted them. And I lightly watered them every day for two or three days after that. Then, (depending on when I planted them), I watered my fall plantings a couple of times per week while the weather permitted. This kind of watering, done at this time, stimulates each plant’s roots and facilitates (“jump starts”) the root system’s uptake of moisture and nutrients from the surrounding soil. In the case of my plants, in addition to the water, they’re benefitting from the components of the fertilizer in the potting soil. It’s important to not saturate the soil around the plant’s roots with water to the point of sogginess. This is generally bad for most plants (with a few notable exceptions like Lobelia and Clethra) at any time of year. But it’s particularly bad if freezing temperatures are imminent. Encasing the roots of a newly planted perennial in ice can be immediately lethal to the plant. So when you’re watering your fall plantings, take your particular soil’s drainage characteristics into account. If your soil is sandy and fast-draining, you can water more heavily. Clay-based, slow-draining soils will keep water around your plant’s roots. Use less water in this case. My land has got a sandy substrate, so it’s pretty difficult to over-water.
- Soil. By all accounts, hostas seem to benefit from soil that’s slightly acidic to slightly alkaline. So a pH of 6.5 – 7.5 is good. The Sta-Green potting soil I use to bed my plants tends to have a pH level in the range of 6 – 7. These levels may vary (unless I’ve misinterpreted my test results on one or two bags where the pH was almost as low as 5.5), but generally, when I test this product when planting, it’s tended to be slightly acidic (approximately 6 – 7 on the pH range). That’s a great level for hostas. This soil contains a .10-.08-.06 fertilizer (ratios of .10% nitrogen, .08% phosphorous, and .06% potassium) which releases slowly over the course of nine months, according to the manufacturer. My thinking is that this ratio is good. The levels of each nutrient are within a few hundredths of a percentage point of one another, and those levels are fairly insubstantial. I believe that a bit of general, slow release fertilizer is better than none at all when it comes to bedding a perennial plant in the fall. (For more on Sta-Green potting soil, soil pH, and N-P-K ratios, please refer to The Renaissance Garden Guy article, Lilies: The Renaissance Garden Guy Way).
- Pruning in preparation for winter. When the hosta’s leaves yellow and brown at the end of its growing season, cut it down to the ground. As I mentioned, some of my hostas were already in this condition when I transferred them from their pots to their permanent locations in the ground in early November.
A note about soil pH and nutrients: I do periodically amend my soil’s pH with either a soil acidifier or garden lime, depending on a specific plant’s requirements. I also utilize various fertilizing products throughout my garden’s growing seasons for various specific applications. But every single perennial that I planted last fall (and this fall, as well), including every plant on this list, got only the straight Sta-Green Potting Mix treatment at the time of its planting. I didn’t make any adjustments or modifications to the Sta-Green when I first planted these guys.
2. Peonies (Paeonia lactiflora) – Hardiness Zones 3-8. I did some research on this one. Peonies, I learned late in the summer of 2020, are great candidates for fall planting. Virtually every nursery offers them for sale in the late summer and early fall, and markets them as great fall planting candidates. They have tuberous root systems which, although not true bulbs, do store energy and nutrients for the plant in much the same way that a bulb does for lilies or tulips, for example. Peonies are incredibly hardy and long-lived. These herbaceous bushes require nothing in the way of fertilizer (thanks to those tuberous root systems) and can adapt to a fairly wide variety of soils. My two Sarah Bernhardt peonies (Paeonia lactiflora ‘Sarah Bernhardt’) were first year field-grown plants when I planted them in October last fall. As always, I bedded them with potting soil, though the fertilizer component was unnecessary. The peaty, organic nature of the potting soil, however, was agreeable to my peonies’ individual constitutions. They grew back bigger than ever this past spring and each of them even sported a few huge blooms – an excellent development for such young plants. I can expect these Sarah Bernhardts to reach both a mature height and spread of nearly three feet. But they are relatively slow growers. It can take them up to five years to fully mature and reach maximum size and bloom potential. Peonies are early bloomers, and the gorgeous flowering goes on for a comparatively short period of time. My Sarah Bernhardts bloomed for 8 or 9 days in early June this year. Plant your peonies in a location where they’ll receive full sun.
Suggestions for planting peonies in the fall.
- Plant at least two weeks before the first hard frost.
- Water. Peonies hate to be waterlogged. It can kill them under the best of circumstances in the fairest weather. Forcing them to sit in soggy soil and then freezing them is not gonna turn out well. Water but don’t over-water.
- Soil. I’ve read, from a number of different sources, a number of different recommendations for peony soil pH, N-P-K, etc. What I used, Sta-Green Potting Mix, worked great for my peonies.
- Pruning in preparation for winter. When the foliage of my peonies began to yellow and brown later in November, I cut the plants down to the ground. Doing this eliminates the possibility of harboring disease in the dead foliage, which may compromise new growth the following spring.
3. Rose of Sharon (Deciduous, or Common Hibiscus – Hibiscus syriacus) – Hardiness Zones 5-9. These were planted in November last fall because they’d been sitting in their pots since I brought them home from the nursery in June that summer and they needed to be planted. I didn’t do any research. Just planted ’em. In fact, by the time I did finally get them in the ground, they’d totally dropped all of their leaves. They were also very young plants when I bought them. But these are hardy shrubs that seemed to benefit beautifully from their fall planting – they came back better than ever and put on major growth. They doubled their original size this summer and have bloomed beautifully from mid summer through the date of this writing in early October. I’m convinced that their root systems developed substantially over the remaining fall period, and maybe even over the winter. I planted two – both from the Proven Winners ‘Chiffon’ series – a Blue Chiffon and a Pink Chiffon. I highly recommend these beautiful bushes for fall planting. These plants reach a mature height of 8 – 12 feet and a mature spread of 4 – 6 feet. And they’re fast growers. My Blue Chiffon added almost 24″ of height this year, while my smaller, more immature Pink Chiffon grew a foot taller over the spring and summer. These sturdy shrubs perform well in full to partial sun. Both of my Rose of Sharon shrubs serve as important foundation plants for my garden.
Suggestions for planting Rose of Sharon in the fall.
- Plant at least two weeks before the first hard frost.
- Water. I watered these bushes exactly as I did all of the others on this list, taking my relatively fast-draining soil into account.
- Soil. As has been the case with every plant on this list (in fact, every plant I’ve got growing in my garden), I’ve found there to be fairly divergent suggestions as to the soil requirements (pH, nutrients, etc) of Rose of Sharon shrubs. Some sources say they require slightly acidic soil, some say alkaline. Some say more of this nutrient, others more of that. All I can tell you is, what I did worked for me and my Rose of Sharon shrubs.
- Pruning in preparation for winter. These are deciduous shrubs, so no real pruning is necessary. What you might want to do, however, is remove the dried seed pods from your Rose of Sharon. You can do this when all flowering has stopped and the foliage begins to yellow and brown. I removed most of them from my plants in late November. Most of them. Those I did not remove provided me with a forest of new Rose of Sharon seedlings this last spring. Unless you want these guys overtaking your garden with their vigorous self-sowing and ensuing growth habits, get rid of those seed pods!!!
4. New York (Hybrid) Asters (Symphotrichum novi-belgii) – Hardiness Zones 4-8. I had always heard that these were spectacularly fall-flowering perennials. My subsequent research confirmed it. New York Asters thrive and bloom beautifully in the fall. I bought a bunch of whites, blues, and purples in August and September of last year, and then planted them over the course of those months into late October. I even planted some seeds in October (with less than ideal results). But what I’m talking about, for the purposes of this article, is the fall planting of potted New York Aster plants. This was a no-brainer. These rugged herbaceous perennials are in their element in the fall, and planting them at that time works out perfectly. Not only did my fall-planted novi-belgii breeze through last winter, they grew to enormous proportions this summer and are flowering beautifully this fall. And I can expect them to continue flowering right up to late fall. Notably, my ‘Dragon’ has been flowering steadily since July, and continues to do so! Although my various novi-belgii were projected to grow to about 12-24″ in height and spread (depending on the variety), they far exceeded these numbers. To learn just how enormous these asters got this summer (and to read about the subsequent complications this excessive growth caused in my garden), please refer to my article about my garden’s “Blue and White” planting feature. These are definitely fast growers once they’re established. They flower best in full sun, but mine have performed well in dappled sunlight, as well.
Suggestions for planting New York Asters in the fall. These plants are hardy and adaptable. My fall planting methodology worked beautifully for them as it did for all of the plants on this list.
- Plant at least two weeks before the first hard frost. Though these perennials do well in cooler weather and really shine in the fall, care must still be taken to plant them in plenty of time for their roots to acclimate to the surrounding soil before it freezes.
- Water. As with all my fall plantings, I watered them in order to get them acclimated to their new locations. Once they’re established, they’re definitely drought-tolerant.
- Soil. As is the case with many of the other plants on this list, I’ve seen claims regarding these asters’ soil preference run the pH and nutrient gamut (depending upon what you read and who you talk to). Mine performed exceptionally after being bedded in the fall with Sta-Green.
- Pruning in preparation for winter. Late last fall, and even early in winter, I pruned my New York Asters down to a height of 5 or six inches. This bit of dead aerial plant material served as insulation for the plants’ root systems over the winter. In late winter of this year, I finished the job and cut them down all the way to the ground.
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5. Holly (Ilex) – Hardiness Zones 5-9. This evergreen bush handles fall planting beautifully. My China Girl Holly (Ilex x meserveae ‘Mesog’) was planted in late October/early November and performed beautifully all through last winter and this spring, summer, and fall. Although these bushes are slow growers, my China Girl has gotten a bit bigger since I planted it last fall. This was another situation where I did no research regarding this plant’s ability to benefit from (or even survive) a fall planting. It was again a situation where the bush, which I’d purchased earlier in the summer, would have remained in its pot all winter had I not gotten it planted in the fall. I did, however, reason that since the holly bush was an evergreen, it should be hardy enough to easily withstand a fall planting. (Turns out I was right.) When fully mature, I can expect this beautiful foundation shrub to reach a height of seven to ten feet and a spread of 5 to eight feet. But it probably won’t be until some time in the next decade that my China Girl reaches its full mature size. Holly shrubs do well in full to partial sun. And incidentally, there is a China Boy Holly. In order for the China Girl to bear fruit (pretty red berries in the fall), it needs a pollinizer within three or four-hundred feet of its location. That pollinizer is the China Boy Holly. (I’ll write more about this, and about the existence and nature of the sexes in the plant world, in an upcoming article here on The Renaissance Garden Guy). Although my China Girl displays beautiful shiny, deep green foliage, it did not produce any berries this year because there is no China Boy in my garden to help out. Yet.***
Suggestions for planting holly bushes in the fall.
- Plant at least two weeks before the first hard frost. Again, the fact that the holly is a rugged and hardy evergreen does not mitigate the necessity for planting it in plenty of time for its root system to acclimate before the ground freezes.
- Water. As always, watering is crucial after planting in order to help stimulate and acclimate the holly’s root system.
- Soil. Hollies like slightly acidic to acidic soil (the pH of my go-to soil, as stated, typically falls within this range). But they’re also highly adaptable. I definitely didn’t go wrong planting my China Girl in slightly acidic Sta-Green at a point in time well into last fall. Additionally, my holly has benefited greatly this year from a late spring feeding of nutrient-rich Espoma Holly-tone organic fertilizer, which performs some soil acidifying duties of its own, thanks to its sulfur content.
- Pruning in preparation for winter. These bushes are evergreen. You don’t have to do anything but enjoy the green foliage all winter long.
***Special note to readers: At the time I published this article (October, 2021), I had not inspected my China Girl holly for the presence of berries. In December of 2021, I made that inspection and did in fact discover a few berries growing on the bush’s west-facing branches. This was an amazing discovery which led ultimately to my article of 2-25-23, in which I write about this phenomenon in some detail. Please click here to read that article.
6. Montauk Daisies (Nipponanthemum nipponicum) – Hardiness Zones 5-9. Montauk Daisies are another easy choice for fall planting. I researched these before I bought them in late August/early September of last year and discovered that they’re supposed to perform beautifully and flower profusely in the fall. They’re rugged and hardy and grow quickly to a max of about 3 feet in height and spread. They love full sun. And, take it from me, they really do bloom in the fall, and they are rugged and hardy. I’ve got five and they’re all beginning to bloom nicely at the time of this writing, with lots of still unopened buds to spare. These striking herbaceous perennials will continue to flower right up until the first frost. The flowers are big with bright white petals and sunny yellow eyes. I planted all five of mine over the course of a few weeks from September through October last fall.
Suggestions for planting Montauk Daisies in the fall. These are durable, hardy, and drought-tolerant once established. If you do what I did with mine, you’ll have some whoppers on your hands next summer!
- Plant at least two weeks before the first hard frost. Again, very important in order to give the Montauk’s roots time to begin to establish in the soil.
- Water. Water enough to stimulate its roots but within the drainage capabilities of your garden’s soil. Do not allow the Montauk’s roots to become waterlogged. Especially with freezing temperatures in the not-too-distant future.
- Soil. These plants are adaptable to a wide range of soil types with a varying degree of pH and nutrient presence. My choice of Sta-Green was again a winner here.
- Pruning in preparation for winter. Montauk Daisies are herbaceous perennials, meaning they do die back to the ground (or in this case, they die back close to the ground). These plants develop a fairly substantial woody crown and woody basal stem and branching. When I planted my Montauks last fall, they were fairly immature. So when it came time to prune them in late winter, I was able to cut them back to a point almost completely level with the ground. This year, however, after a solid spring and summer of growth, they’ve developed a thick woodiness at their bases, replete with numerous evident nodes. When I prune them in late winter this coming year, I’ll cut them down to within about three or four inches of the ground. I don’t want to damage or kill the plants by cutting too deeply into their woody, structural foundations.
7. Clematis (Clematis) – Hardiness Zones 4-9. This is another plant which I researched thoroughly before purchasing and planting in the fall. I knew I wanted clematis vines and my research told me that they were excellent fall-planting candidates. I ordered one Clematis ‘H.F. Young’ and one Clematis ‘Jackmanii’ for fall planting. Each one came from a separate, highly reputable grower, and they both arrived essentially in rootball form. With clematis vines, it’s all about the roots. Those roots have got to be extensive and substantial enough to absorb enough water and nutrition to travel to the very tips of what can be a relatively tall and expansive vine. Clematis, as a genus, vary widely in size, form, bloom time, and bloom color and form. My H.F. Young and Jackmanii are both fast growers. Their first spring and summer saw explosive growth from each vine. The H.F. Young gets about 8′ tall and 2′-4′ in spread. The Jackmanii can get up to 12′ in height and 4′-6′ in spread. The H.F. Young is known for flowering in spring and early summer, and then again in late summer to early fall. Mine, however, didn’t start flowering until July. It did flower again in September. The flowers are a lovely purplish blue and can reach up to 8″ across in size. The Jackmanii is known for blooming a bit later in the summer and keeping it up until late summer/early fall. The flowers are a deep royal purple in color and can be 3″-4″ across. Mine began blooming in early June! I’m attributing these slightly aberrant bloom times to the fact that both plants were essentially babies this spring and summer. Both of my vines are deciduous perennials. Again, Clematis, especially H.F. Young and Jackmanii, are excellent choices for fall planting and were shoo-ins for my Top 10 list.
Suggestions for planting clematis vines in the fall. These will perform beautifully for you if you follow these basics:
- Plant at least two weeks before the first hard frost. My Jackmanii was bedded later than the H.F. Young – sometime in mid to late October. But it was the first to emerge in the spring. These vines are climbers, so give them something to climb. I planted mine within 6″-8″ of a metal garden arch. Also, please note that clematis vines don’t utilize any aerial stem modifications, such as tendrils, for climbing. Their leaf stems are tactile, and they wrap them around slender objects to establish anchoring points for climbing. And those leaf stems are of a finite length (unlike the aerial tendrils or aerial roots of other types of climbing vines, which can grow almost limitlessly in establishing climbing anchor points) and can wrap around objects no bigger than 1/4″ to possibly 3/8″ or 1/2″ in diameter. Keep this in mind when providing a climbing structure for a clematis vine. And, they like their roots cool. Their leaves, stems, and flowers love the sunshine, but it’s important to make sure that clematis are kept in the shade at the point where they emerge from the ground.
- Water. Give those extensive root systems a good drink, but do it as I described above. Again, don’t soak them and then let them freeze!
- Soil. Sta-Green helped ’em stay green. Clematis like a slightly acidic soil (a pH of around 6.5) according to what I had read and been told in anticipation of my clematis vine purchases. So Sta-Green potting soil worked beautifully for them.
- Pruning in preparation for winter. A bit of a loaded topic here. The short answer is that no pruning in preparation for winter is necessary with Clematis. These are deciduous woody vines that lose their leaves as fall progresses and winter approaches. However, my two vines do benefit from two different pruning approaches in late winter/early spring. Why two different approaches? Because clematis vines are categorized into groups according to the type of pruning from which each respective vine benefits most. The H.F. Young belongs to Pruning Group 2. It flowers on old and new wood and it benefits from only a minor elimination of dead, damaged, or straggling branches in the late winter or early spring. The Jackmanii is a Group 3 vine. It flowers on new wood only. I’m going to cut mine down to about one foot in height late this coming winter. This will help its basal stem and branch area to strengthen and thicken, and will encourage new branching upon which new flowers will bloom. For more on pruning Clematis (and other perennials, as well), have a look at my article entitled Pruning, Pinching, and Deadheading Perennial Plants right here on The Renaissance Garden Guy.
8. Japanese Pieris (Pieris japonica) – Hardiness Zones 5-9. I planted my evergreen Valley Rose Pieris (Pieris japonica ‘Valley Rose’) on November 8th last fall and it has done remarkably well. Like many of the other plants on this list, my knowledge of this plant’s fall “plantability” comes strictly as a result of my own firsthand experience planting it in the fall. Yep. This was another one sitting in its pot until November. This is a slow growing bush in the Ericaceae family (Rhododendron also belongs to this family) which grows to both a height and spread of 5′. The leaves, stems, and flowers of this plant are toxic to humans and animals. It blooms in early spring with beautiful, hanging clusters of salmon-colored flowers and is happiest when planted in partial, or dappled sunlight. This is a lovely plant and is one of the three foundation shrubs of my first completed section of limestone planter elevation.
Suggestions for planting Pieris in the fall.
- Plant at least two weeks before the first hard frost. Mine was planted on November 8th last fall.
- Water. Good initial soaking, then moderate watering over the next couple of weeks.
- Soil. My pieris’ roots were immersed in Sta-Green potting soil when I planted this lovely, compact bush (as in the case of each of the other plants on this list). Like all members of the family Ericaceae, these plants like acidic soil. The Sta-Green mix is slightly acidic and the plant performed beautifully over the fall and winter. This past spring, late in the season, I further acidified my pieris’ soil with Espoma Soil Acidifier, and also gave it a feeding of Espoma Holly-tone organic fertilizer. The little bush has rewarded me with luxuriant green performance throughout the year.
- Pruning in preparation for winter. Pieris is an evergreen shrub. Just sit back and enjoy its beautiful glossy green foliage during the winter months.
9. Black Tower Elderberry (Sambucus nigra ‘Eiffel 1’) – Hardiness Zones 4-8. This beautiful deciduous shrub displays dark green to purple foliage and blooms in early summer with clusters of small, pretty pink flowers. As in many of the other perennials on my Top 10 list for fall planting, I did no research regarding its recommended planting time. I bought it in the summer and it stayed in its pot until I planted it on November 8th, last fall. Once again, necessity and firsthand experience were my instructors. This extremely fast-growing bush can grow to over eight feet in height and four feet in spread. Mine was a baby of approximately two feet in height when it went in the ground (and it was also leafless, having dropped the last of its foliage the week before it was planted). It’s now approximately six feet tall. Subsequent research tells me that my Black Tower will produce fruit – purple berries, which are apparently not only edible, but healthy and delicious. Mine did not produce any detectable fruit during its first complete summer in my garden. I’m thinking this fact is attributable to my bush’s immaturity. This bush, which serves as one of the three foundation plants in my first completed limestone planter, prefers light exposure ranging from partial shade to full sun. Mine lives happily in dappled sunlight.
Suggestions for planting elderberry bushes in the fall.
- Plant at least two weeks before the first hard frost.
- Water. My usual fall watering regimen applies here.
- Soil. Although my elderberry is planted in slightly acidic Sta-Green mix, and my subsequent research told me that they do prefer slight soil acidity, further research has shown me that these plants are highly adaptable to a wide range of soil composition and pH levels. Firsthand experience has shown me that these bushes do great in slightly acidic soil.
- Pruning in preparation for winter. These bushes are deciduous. Let ’em drop their leaves and leave ’em alone.
10. Coral Bells (Heuchera) – Hardiness Zones 4-9. Coral Bells easily make my fall planting Top 10. They’re beautiful, super tough, and great for fall planting. This is a genus of remarkably beautiful evergreen to semi-evergreen perennials. When I bought mine, I knew very little about them. I just knew I loved their incredible foliage and dense, mounding growth habit. I’ve got a total of six different Heuchera cultivars in my garden. I planted a total of eleven, made up of individuals from four different cultivars, on November 8th, last fall. My knowledge of their ability to successfully handle fall planting came solely from firsthand experience. As in the case of so many other plants on this list, my exercise in coral bells fall planting was a learn-by-doing kind of thing. Since planting them last fall in November, all of my Heuchera have performed beautifully. They grew fairly quickly over this spring and summer. Only one of my four fall-planted cultivars, Heuchera ‘Plum Pudding’, flowered, and it did so in June, this year. The other four, ‘Caramel’, ‘Marmalade’, and ‘Cherry Truffle’, didn’t flower, but they grew exceptionally well. They seemed to love the dappled sunlight/partial shade in which I located them last fall, and amicably shared space with Hosta, Pieris, Sambucus, and Clethra. Mine grow to about 8″ to 10″ in height and from 18″ to 36″ in spread, depending on the cultivar. They look great planted with hostas in the front border and also underplanted around the base of each of my larger foundation shrubs. All in all, I’m thrilled with the performance of every one of my Heuchera.
Suggestions for planting coral bells in the fall.
- Plant at least two weeks before the first hard frost.
- Water. My suggested fall watering methodology applies to coral bells as well.
- Soil. Since planting my coral bells last November, I’ve done some reading and asking, and the consensus seems to be that they like a pH level of somewhere between 6.0 and 7.0. As far as nutrient ratios go, the suggestions have been all over the board. As always, the Sta-Green mix seemed to work perfectly for my coral bells.
- Pruning in preparation for winter. Heuchera are evergreen/semi-evergreen herbaceous perennials. This means they pretty much stay green (or purple, or red, or caramel, etc, etc) through the winter. In spring, the foliage that remained vital over the winter seemed to die back to allow room for thick new basal foliage growth from each plant. I just trimmed the dead stuff away in the spring.
Note: Another great plant for bedding in the fall, I discovered, is the Summersweet bush, which also could have easily made this list. My Vanilla Spice Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia ‘Vanilla Spice’) is one of my foundation shrubs and was planted on November 8th, last fall. It’s visible in the featured image of this article. I’ll tell you more about this lovely deciduous bush in an upcoming article.
So that was my Top 10 list for great perennial choices for fall planting (Top 11, if you count the Summersweet bush). As you’ve discovered, my methodology and suggestions for planting each perennial on the list remain basically the same from one plant to the next. And although I had researched some of the plants on this list with respect to fall planting (and found that they’d benefit by the head start their respective root systems would get while absorbing nutrients and moisture from the ground, and developing over the winter), a good part of what you’ve read here comes as a result of my own firsthand experience and learning “in the field” which, in turn, came about because I still had a whole bunch of plants sitting around in pots in my backyard by the time fall rolled around last year. I planted those perennials according to what I thought would work best in the fall. And as it turned out, I must not have been too far off the mark because everything that got planted last fall performed beautifully in my garden this spring and summer. In the growth and performance of each of those plants, the benefits of a fall planting is very evident to me.
If you’re up for doing some planting yourself this fall, maybe some of the info here will be helpful to you. You might even try sticking a hosta or two in the ground this month. Or maybe a coral bell next month. Why not give it a shot? Come next spring, you just might be glad you did.
In any event, I thank you once more for your readership and your very kind indulgence. And as always, Cheers, and Happy Gardening!
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At no point did you state where you live and what climate zone you are planting in.
None of the plants you listed would succeed where I live, in the high Desert of Southern California. We have mild frost, occasional hail and once every few years a few inches of snow. We also have fiercely hot summers with temps ranging from 70’s into 109 or 112. Our native soul is pretty alakline, and any acid living plants will need to be grown in pots with enriched acidic soil.
Thank you for your excellent comments. In this article, I did indeed neglect to reference each plant’s respective hardiness zone range, which would have given readers an immediate indication of each plant’s suitability for their respective geographic locations. This was an unfortunate oversight on my part which, thanks to your observations and comments, has now been rectified. I garden in an area known as Michiana Shores (typically recognized as a 5b/6a hardiness zone) on the Indiana/Michigan border, along the shoreline of Lake Michigan (I just now added that info to this particular article, as well). My own garden’s location and corresponding hardiness zone is listed in some of my site’s static pages and in a number of articles. I don’t always reference it when making planting recommendations as I always (except in this case) include each plant’s hardiness capabilities. In terms of my own soil conditions, the substrate is sand. I imported hundreds of cubic yards of soil in order to effect my garden. I periodically amend soil pH to accommodate the needs of specific plants. You live in one of the most beautiful parts of the country, the climate of which is unfortunately inhospitable to most, or all of the plants on this particular list, as you point out. Although I do love all of the plants on this list, the flora native to your part of the country is incredibly beautiful (most, admittedly, in different ways). Even the hostas on my list, which are remarkably hardy, would need to be subjected to sustained cold temperatures (5 or 6 weeks of temps below 42° F) in order to enter their beneficial dormancy period. I’m sorry that none of these would work for you. I do enjoy all of mine. But as I’ve mentioned, I’m sure the plants which you can and do grow successfully in your region are just as beautiful and enjoyable. Thanks so much for having a read of this article, and for your extremely helpful comments and observations.
Great! You have given me a workable platform before frost for my little garden.Sta-Green mix when needed ; a beautiful mix of your delicious plantings for next year to add for a giving Fall experience. Patti
Great choice of plants! I really love all of them and have some holly, hosta, and pieris. I really want to get some coral bells if I get a chance and if there are any still out at the nursery when I go. Thanks for all of the good information!
Ten great ideas ! Every one of them is a proven winner that will give your garden years and years of beautiful plants. All of them will look great on your garden, I really love hostas. Thanks for all of the great information.
Going to buy all 10 of these beautiful plants tomorrow and get started planting them.
Great suggestions !
Thank you for that information. I have several of this plants and the pruning information is really going to help me. I will be moving some these in October and November. And I hope they do as good as yours did you planted. I always love reading these.