September marks such events as the return to school, the start of the football season and the beginnings of holiday thoughts.  It’s also a time for replanting the garden.  While most think it’s time to yank out dying summer annuals, clean out garden containers and close up the garden until spring, September is actually an excellent time to add rich texture and vibrant color to keep your garden blooming throughout fall and winter.

There is a wide array of plantings available to reflect the autumn mood.  Ornamental grasses echo the tones of falls, add the excitement of a rustling movement and offer texture with striking seedheads. Deciduous shrubs such as Japanese Barberry and Japanese Maples offer a stunning display of color, ranging from brilliant orange to crimson red to dark bronzy purple.  Common perennials such as the chrysanthemum, pansy and dusty miller are staples of fall.  But for something different, try interesting varieties such as aster, Japanese anemone, sedum, fuchsia, salvia and flowering kale and cabbage to capture that fall feeling.   

Fall is one of my favorite times of year for gardening.  With the cooler weather, crispy evenings, it’s a good time to remember to add those small touches of texture and color to your gardens and bring the indoors out.