Autumn Blooms

The mum buds are swelling as the nights get longer but I have a few other plants in my garden that bloom in autumn.

The old stand-by Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ is beginning to bloom along the hot, dry path behind the garage. It’s a reliable plant that will not be burned to crisp in the hot summer sun. My self-named sedum path also has pink-blooming Sedum ‘Sieboldi’ as well as a variegated sedum and little stonecrop ground cover.

Persicaria ‘Painter’s Pallet’ is grown for leaf color. The creamy white and green leaves are striking in the bright shade. The crazy little red blossoms that appear in fall make it look a bit like Medusa. It re-seeds prolifically so I’ll cut the flowers before they turn to seeds - certainly no loss to the attractiveness of the plant.

The Clematis paniculata ‘Sweet Autumn’ insert says, “vigorous and easy to grow" – you betcha. I grow it for its light fragrance as well as its fall bloom. Since it blooms on new wood, I’m not shy about cutting it back. Although I haven’t had any problem with re-seeding (yet), I’ll trim it as the flowers begin to fade to reduce seed production. I’ll cut it back another third in late winter. Sweet Autumn is the kind of plant you can hack away at - a great stress reliever.