Fall Flowers to Plant For Gorgeous Seasonal Color

I know we mostly think of flowers and gardens when spring comes, but there are plenty of beautiful fall flowers to plant that will add variety and color this year. Get started with these amazing fall flowers to add to your yard.

For the record, we live in North Georgia which is considered zone 8A according to the planting and hardiness maps. If you check out the plant tags or guides when buying plants, it’ll usually tell which zones it’s appropriate for. And if you don’t know which zone you are – check out this map!

This will come in handy since you don’t want to spend time or money on plants that likely won’t flourish in your area.

Don’t be afraid to try something new this year. It can take some trial and error to figure out what will thrive and what won’t. 

Fall Flowers To Plant

Pansies

Pansies might be the most popular (maybe second to mums) for fall flowers. They come in a variety of colors including yellow, purple, lavender, pink, white, and more. They look like little lion heads or faces to me.

Pansies prefer cooler temps, so in my yard, they will need to be shaded from the blazing afternoon sun. Group them in flower beds or in borders and you’ll have spectacular fall color for months.

Pansy Facts

• Mostly annuals
• Suitable for all planting zones
• Flower through winter in many areas
• Prefers morning sun
• Compact plants that grow about 9-12″ wide and up to 9″ high
• Use them for window boxes, borders, or grouped together in single or a variety of colors for a stunning fall display

Chrysanthemums

Better known as just mums, these are pretty much icons of fall flowers. Go to any garden store or grocery store,  and you’re likely to see a variety of mums in stunning colors. Purple, yellow, orange, and white are just a few available colors. They are the quintessential fall plant for your porches or patios.

Grab a few of these in some pretty pots and toss some pumpkins beside them and your fall porch is done!

However, you can also plant certain perennial varieties in the ground well before the first frost and enjoy the mums year after year. 

Chrysanthemum Facts

• Beautiful fall plant choices for porches or patios
• Gold, yellow, red, purple, and white are a few of the colors you can easily find
• There are annual and perennial varieties – check your buying source for the care of the perennials if you want them to return each year
• Prefer sunny areas with well-drained soil

Sweet Alyssum

Sweet Alyssum is a low-lying plant that can offer tons of blooms through October in many areas. Most varieties are low-lying plants (only around 4-6 inches high and a tad wider).

Tiny clusters of white, purple, or pale pink flowers grow close to the ground and have a fragrant scent. It can be planted from seeds or seedlings and will bloom throughout the fall in milder climates.

Sweet Alyssum Facts

• Most often grown as an annual, but can be treated as a perennial in zones 9-11
• A low growing plant that needs little care
• Prefers full sun, but in hotter climates, it may thrive with a break from the afternoon heat and sun
• Can be grown as ground cover or in containers
• Will often re-seed itself year after year
• Attracts bees and butterflies

Croton

Not technically a flower I suppose, but this perennial is too gorgeous not to include. If you aren’t in the South like me, it’ll be an indoor plant for you, but until it gets below about 60 degrees, it can be outside. If leaving it outside during a frost, be sure to cover it.

It’s a vividly hued plant with varieties of orange, purple, green, and red leaves and it needs full sun. Use it indoors with your fall decorating or add a few of these to your fall porch this year for those beautiful fall hues.

Croton Facts

• Suitable for zones 9-13 in frost-free areas for outdoor growing, otherwise, it needs to be indoors
• Can’t tolerate temperatures below 60 degrees F
• Can tolerate sandy soil and salty air so they are ideal for tropical climates
• Noninvasive root systems and can grow up to 12 feet high depending on conditions

Oak Leaf Hydrangea

This is a double winner. Plant a variety of Oak Leaf Hydrangea and you’ll get amazing white blooms from spring to summer and then a dramatic shift to red, orange, or burgundy leaves in the fall.  Beautiful color when everything else is starting to fade.

Native to the US, they can handle more sun than other hydrangea varieties as well as colder temps.

Oak Leaf Hydrangea Facts

• Perennials
• Suitable for zones 5-9
• Many varieties available that can grow between 3 feet and 15 feet tall
• Prefer morning sun and afternoon shade, but if you live in a more Northern climate, these can tolerate full sun
• When temps start to fall, you’ll see a gorgeous variety of deep red, orange, or burgundy leaves

Ornamental Kale

Ok, so here I go again – not technically a flower, but another stunner that you need for the fall garden. Ornamental Kale is beautiful. It’s still edible, but bitter, so you may just want to use this one for its looks.

Plant them in full sun in the fall. When the temps start to dip down around 50 and below, the vibrant colors will start to show.  It’s cold hardy down to around 5 degrees so this makes an excellent choice for those in colder climates.

Ornamental Kale Facts

• Suitable for zones 2-11
• Biennial plants which mean they complete their life cycle in two years – they produce the foliage the first year and flowers the second. It’s most often treated as an annual.
• Can grow up to 18 inches wide
• Prefers full sun to partial shade depending on your zone 

Violas

These look like baby pansies to me. In fact, they are so similar, that when I was researching for this article, I questioned whether they were actually two separate flowers. Here’s the best explanation in simple terms compliments of Complete Landscaping Service:

“If the flower has four petals pointing upward and only one pointing downward – you’re looking at a Pansy. If the flower has two petals pointing upward and three petals pointing downward – you’ve got a Viola.”

So there you have it. They are different. But both stunning. I for one will not be inspecting how many petals you have pointed up or down, so plant away and call it whatever you want! Amazing colors well into fall, violas are a fantastic choice for fall flowers. 

Viola Facts

• Annuals or possibly a short-lived perennial depending on your zone
• Easy to grow in all zones
• Flower in the spring and the fall
• Requires full sun to partial shade which gives a lot of options for your areas
• A fairly small plant that gets 6-10 inches high and up to 8 inches wide
• Looks beautiful planted in rows for borders, window boxes or grouped together in beds
• Comes in a stunning variety of colors from white, pink, purple, blue, yellow, and orange and there is even a variety that looks almost black
• Flowers are edible

Aster

Asters are another fantastic choice for fall planting – they like the cooler temps and they make great cutting flowers. Some varieties grow over 4 feet tall so plan accordingly for space in your garden or flower beds.

Daisy-like flowers in amazing colors, these perennials will give your fall garden color year after year.

Aster Facts

• Perennials
• Suitable for zones 3-10 depending on the variety
• Full to partial sun
• Well-drained loamy soil
• Attracts bees and butterflies
• Purple, white, red, and pink varieties are available

These are just a few varieties of gorgeous flowers to plant in the fall. Just because the temps are cooling down (somewhere at least – not here in sweltering GA), doesn’t mean you can’t add some stunning color to your yard.

Related Posts:

Fall Decorating Ideas

Plants that Love Shade

Sun Loving Container Plants

Fast Growing Privacy Trees

Pin For Later!