Gardens are precious, and we all want to wring as much enjoyment out of them as we can. We’re accustomed to starting the season early by planting snowdrops, aconites, crocuses and hellebores, but how can we keep the show going at the other end of the year? I have gathered a list of plants that don't merely limp along, producing a handful of pale flowers until Christmas, but really come into their own from mid-October onwards.
Of course, much depends on where you garden in the UK and what the weather serves up - early frosts and violent gales may curtail all but the toughest plants - but provided you can provide a degree of shelter and warmth, the plants I’ve chosen will bring you cheer at the end of the gardening year.
Keep in mind that with shortening days and clocks going back, you’re likely to spend less time in your garden from the end of October. I recommend positioning late-flowering plants where you’ll see them during daylight hours - perhaps in the front garden or in view of your kitchen window. If they’re planted behind the shed, you might never see them. And don’t be afraid to pick late blooms to enjoy indoors - celebrate their tenacity and vibrant colours by placing a few stems in a vase with some autumn foliage.
Most of these plants have earned an Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society, recognising their exceptional performance in a garden setting. It’s worth looking out for this badge of honour as an indicator that you are choosing a vigorous, attractive, well-regarded plant.
Nerine bowdenii AGM
I am a big fan of Nerines and Amarines, the hybrids produced when a Nerine is crossed with an Amaryllis. Bulbous plants from South Africa, they produce naked stems topped with a circlet of trumpet-shaped flowers in shades of white, pink, magenta and red. The most common and inexpensive to buy is Nerine bowdenii, which has delicious, candyfloss-pink flowers that seem quite out of place among the fiery colours of autumn. Flamboyant and fabulous as a cut flower, Nerines are best grown in splendid isolation at the foot of a wall or in a patch of dry, stony soil where they will soon bulk up to make a large clump. Nerines perform excellently in pots too, provided you give them sharp drainage and plenty of sunshine. Avoid competition from other plants or soggy soil, and your nerines will flower their socks off every autumn.
Chrysanthemum ‘Burnt Orange’
Chrysanthemums are ‘marmite’ flowers; everyone has an opinion on them. Me? I’m a cheerleader. Their reputation has been unjustly tarnished by their inevitable presence in supermarket bouquets and funeral wreaths, which highlights their most significant advantage: longevity. However, not all chrysanthemums are alike - their blooms are as diverse as the dahlias most gardeners adore. Chrysanthemum ‘Burnt Orange’ produces sprays of single flowers with exquisitely quilled petals in shades of - you guessed it - burnt orange and gold. The plant doesn’t start blooming until November, when you’ll feel smug about picking armfuls of long stems to arrange indoors. Plant Chrysanthemum ‘Burnt Orange’ in front of the smoke bush, Cotinus coggygria ‘Royal Purple’, for autumn fireworks of a horticultural nature!
Salvia ‘Phyllis Fancy’
No list of late-flowering plants could omit salvias, with many cultivars blooming prolifically until Christmas if the weather remains mild and settled. I have chosen Salvia ‘Phyllis Fancy’ for its height - up to 2m - and elegant spikes of lavender flowers emerging from inky-blue calyces. It looks terrific with grasses such as miscanthus and as a counterpoint to dahlias and chrysanthemums. In colder counties, Salvia ‘Phyllis Fancy’ will need lifting and overwintering in a frost-free shed, greenhouse or garage, but it might get by with good drainage and a light mulch elsewhere.
Bidens aurea
Bidens aurea is a tall prairie perennial that rises from the back of a border just when everything else looks exhausted. The pale lemon flowers are perfect for shortening days as they show up nicely in the gathering twilight.
Look out for a variety called Bidens aurea 'Hannay's Lemon Drop - the star-like yellow flowers with their white-tipped petals are pure joy and almost spring-like in their freshness. I first came across it at the nursery in Bath, after which it’s named. Bidens aurea ‘Hannay’s Lemon Drop’ is a spreader, so give it space to form a large clump. As a cut flower, it’s great for diffusing the solidity of big blooms such as dahlias.
Fuchsia magellanica AGM
Gardeners have a funny habit of turning their backs on plants that almost perform too well. They become ‘common’ and with ubiquity comes a degree of invisibility as we seek more challenging sport. However, hardy fuchsias have much to give, especially if you want to plant a flowering hedge. Fuchsia magellanica produces thousands of pendent flowers with the classic combination of scarlet sepals and a purple corolla for months on end. If that colour combination is too rich for you, search for Fuchsia ‘Hawkshead’ and enjoy its elegant white droplets set against apple green foliage instead. For greater height - up to 3m - search for Fuchsia ‘Lady Boothby’, which is almost always in flower at Christmas in my garden.
Anisodontea ‘El Rayo’ AGM
If there were a prize for the best all-year-round flowering plant, Anisodontea ‘El Rayo’ would be a strong contender. It looks very much like others in the mallow family, producing diaphonous, candy-pink flowers on long stems. It's distinctive because it flowers for almost 12 months of the year, pausing only when it’s coldest in January and February. Even then, you might get the odd bloom. Anisodontea ‘El Rayo’ does need good drainage and shelter, so plant it close to a wall if you can. I grow mine in a large pot. It’s not the longest-lived shrub, but cutting it back hard in April does give it a new lease of life.
Mahonia × media 'Winter Sun' AGM
Few shrubs rival the majesty of a well-grown mahonia, glinting as the sun reflects from its glossy leaves and diffuses the lily-of-the-valley scent from its yellow flowers. This is a plant for the back of a border, where you’re less likely to encounter its spiky, evergreen foliage, or find it a spot in a wilder area of the garden where it will flourish in shade. Mahonia × media 'Winter Sun' begins blooming in November and will carry on until March, before handing the baton to less tenacious subjects.
Strobilanthes rankanensis
Purple is a great friend to the yellows, reds, oranges and browns of autumn, showing up nicely against a carpet of fallen leaves. Strobilanthes rankanensis isn’t a plant you’ll find growing everywhere, but it’s worth seeking out if you garden in milder parts of the UK. A shrubby perennial, it produces a mound of attractive but ordinary green leaves through summer before bursting into bloom in September. The tubular, violet-purple flowers resemble gramophone speakers and keep coming well into November. Strobilanthes rankanensis requires winter protection in colder areas, but is well worth the extra effort.
Hydrangea paniculata cultivars
I vowed only to include plants that peak at the end of the year, so you might question my inclusion of Hydrangea paniculata, which begins blooming as early as June. The beauty of these easy-growing shrubs, with their conical panicles of blossom, is that they age slowly and gracefully. They usually open lime green before turning white, ivory, pink, and finally a ruddy shade of red before drying to the colour of a brown paper bag. I think that represents outstanding value for a flowering shrub! From mid-October until mid-November, the flowers are going through their ruddy phase. After that, you can pick them and use them for decoration at Christmas. There are countless varieties to choose from, ranging from ground-hugging ‘Groundbreaker’ to big daddy 'Grandiflora', which attains almost tree-like proportions.
Clematis cirrhosa 'Wisley Cream' AGM
We think of clematis as summer-flowering climbers, but a handful bloom from autumn right through the winter. One of the prettiest, and perfect for those who prefer a cool, contemporary look, is Clematis cirrhosa 'Wisley Cream'. Unlike summer-flowering varieties, this clematis produces nodding, bell-shaped flowers to protect its pollen from the rain; visiting bees appreciate the shelter too. I recommend planting it against a south or west-facing wall or fence in full sun, or over an arch so that you can look up into the pendent flowers.