Perennials offer colorful fall foliage
Trees and shrubs garner high praise for fall color. Brilliantly colored leaves in autumnal shades glow against clear blue skies. Perennials are most often chosen for their flowers but some also boast foliage that lights up the landscape in fall.
Amsonia tabernaemontana, commonly called willow leaf amsonia, is a generous-sized perennial. Its steel-blue flower clusters charm the garden in early summer and willow-like leaves remain fresh and attractive all summer before they glow a gorgeous golden yellow in fall.
Arkansas amsonia (Amsonia hubrichtii) sports threadlike foliage, giving the plant a feathery appearance. Light blue flowers bloom in early summer and the bright green foliage turns brilliant yellow in fall.
Looking more like shrubs than perennials, they both grow up to 3 feet tall and wide. Their best show of flowers and foliage is achieved in full sun and well-drained soil.
Another blue-flowering perennial that sports outstanding fall color is leadwort. Botanically known as Ceratostigma plumbaginoides, its gentian blue flowers are set off by the bronze-scarlet foliage.
Leadwort is often planted as a ground cover. It is late to emerge in spring, so take care not to disturb its roots or accidentally dig it up during spring cleanup. Leadwort benefits from an extra blanket of mulch over winter.
Most gardeners appreciate their perennial geraniums throughout the summer for their long-blooming flowers. But in fall, some types put on a striking display when their foliage turns combinations of orange and red.
This group of plants, commonly referred to as cranebills, is adaptable to a wide variety of growing conditions including light shade. They are often used as fillers knitting other plants together in a lovely perennial tapestry. G. sanguineum, G. himalayense and G. dalmaticum are types of perennial geraniums with intense orange and red fall color.
The shiny, cabbage-like foliage of bergenia is why most gardeners choose this perennial for the front of their shady borders. Its broad leaves contrast beautifully with fine-leaved companions like astilbes or ferns. Another reason may be its showy flower clusters lifted by stout stems early in spring. Fall color could be another when dazzling, bronzy-red leaves create a carpet of color that often lasts well into winter.
Purple wintercreeper, botanically named Euonymus fortunei, or Coloratus, is a vigorous ground cover that traverses large areas in sun or shade. It is useful to cover spaces under trees or along banks. Its dark evergreen foliage turns to fall shades of reddish purple.
The strong lines of ornamental grasses are accentuated in the fall when their foliage puts on their autumn hues. While many grasses turn a warm tawny shade complementing drying seed heads of coneflowers and sedum, some types of maiden grass dazzle with color. November Sunset turns yellow and orange while Purpurescens flushes purple-red.
Some native grasses put on a show with the foliage of switchgrass turning golden yellow and the leaves of prairie dropseed changing to orange-red with the foliage of purple love grass shining red.
Fill your landscape with fall color from top to bottom. Choose perennials with fabulous fall foliage and enjoy the show.
• Diana Stoll is a horticulturist and the garden center manager at The Planter's Palette, 28W571 Roosevelt Road, Winfield. Call (630) 293-1040, ext. 2, or visit planterspalette.com.