25 Fall Flowers That’ll Keep Your Garden Bursting with Color
Brighten up your yard with these fall-blooming varieties.
By Arricca Sansone
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As the days cool down and the light starts to soften, summer's bold blooms will naturally begin to fade. But fall’s arrival doesn’t mean your garden has to forgo color and vitality. From moody, jewel-toned mums to cheerful, golden sunflowers, there are plenty of plants that peak in autumn. When the rest of your garden is winding down, these fall flowers put on a spectacular show.
While fall planting is a great time to get annuals in the ground, this cool-weather season is also the perfect opportunity to tuck in new perennials and evergreen shrubs. That’s because the lower temperatures create less stress on young plants, while the increased rainfall helps roots get established before winter hits. The trick is timing: Aim to plant these fall favorites at least six weeks before the ground freezes to give your perennials a head start. For long-term success, be sure to choose varieties that are well-suited to your USDA hardiness zone, and check each plant tag for details on how much sun and water it needs.
Whether you're looking to dress up your front porch with pots of fall flowers or add a few sturdy shrubs to your landscape, the fall-blooming options are endless. With the right mix of blooms and foliage, your garden will keep glowing through frost. Ready for inspiration? Check out the best fall flowers that every autumn garden needs!
Don't stop with fall flowers! Find more autumn inspiration:
Zinnias are hardy fall flowers that can handle a light frost like a champ. These multi-petal beauties come in every shade imaginable, from lemon yellow to deep magenta. Plant them in large swaths for maximum color, and enjoy an influx of pollinators like butterflies and bees.
Varieties to try: Double Zahara Fire, Tequila Lime
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Sunflower
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With their sunny demeanor, rustic charm, and larger-than-life center, sunflowers are one of Ree Drummond's favorite flowers for a reason! Although their cheerful blooms typically peak in the summertime, they'll continue standing tall through early fall.
Varieties to try: American Giant, Evening Sun
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Caryopteris
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Known for its brilliant blue hue, caryopteris will bring a striking display to your autumn garden. With their tall spikes and sweet fragrance, this fall flower is also a favorite among pollinators. But their easygoing nature makes them a go-to with gardeners, too!
Varieties to try: Blue Diddley, Gold Crest
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Sedum
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When other plants in your garden begin to fade, fall-blooming sedum will keep boasting muted shades, the perfect complement to the vibrant, color-changing leaves. Since cut blooms last for weeks, these fall flowers also work great for cut arrangements.
Varieties to try: Lemonjade, Firecracker
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Hydrangea
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These dazzling, textured bulbs sprout to life in early or midsummer, but certain varieties will offer color well into fall. When cooler temperatures arrive, some existing blooms will transform into rich, moody hues of pink, burgundy, and green.
Varieties to try: Cherry Explosion, Little Quickfire
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Montauk Daisy
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One of the last perennials to bloom each year, Montauk daisies open in September and keep going until frost. The crisp white petals and golden centers look like oversized garden daisies and pair beautifully with pumpkins and gourds. Plant them in full sun and well-drained soil for years of reliable late-season color.
Tall, airy spires of lavender-blue flowers bring a soft and hazy look to autumn gardens. Russian sage thrives in full sun, shrugs off drought, and adds a gorgeous contrast against warm-toned fall flowers like mums or rudbeckia. Plus, it attracts bees and butterflies right up to the season's end.
Varieties to try: Blue Spire, Rocketman
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Joe Pye Weed
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With its big, dusky pink flower heads, Joe Pye Weed is a pollinator favorite that blooms from late summer into fall. It's tall enough to anchor the back of a border, and its soft color palette fits right in with other fall perennials. Plant in full sun to part shade and keep the soil consistently moist for best results.
Varieties to try: Gateway, Little Joe
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Canna Lily
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Add a burst of brilliance to your garden this fall with the fiery canna lily! Blooming in late summer and continuing through fall until the frost arrives, these vibrant flowers feature banana-like leaves and come in stunning shades of red, orange, and yellow, bringing a touch of tropical charm to your autumn landscape.
Varieties to try: Apricot Dream, Firebird
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Aster
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Plant these fall-blooming must-haves in the summer, and they'll bloom later in the season when many other florals begin to fade. You'll get the prettiest blue, pink, or purple shades for years to come. Not only are they easy to grow, but they live a long time without the fuss.
Varieties to try: Bluebird, Peachie's Pick
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African Daisy
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These daisy-like blooms, often called blue-eyed daisies due to their striking gradient centers, thrive in full sun. From late summer through early fall, they deliver vibrant color shortly after planting.
Varieties to try: Lemon Symphony, Sideshow Copper Apricot
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Japanese Anemone
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With their delicate pink and white petals, these flowers bloom in the fall with beautiful branching stems! They flourish in light to partial shade and prefer soil rich in organic matter.
Varieties to try: Pamina, Whirlwind
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Nemesia
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Despite its name meaning "nemesis," Nemesia is anything but negative! This charming, sweet-scented flower thrives in cooler temperatures and well-drained soil, making it a wonderful choice for borders, hanging baskets, and flower beds.
Varieties to try: Lemon Mist, Opal Innocence
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Helenium
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Often referred to as "sneezeweed," this warm-toned flower is perfect for cottage gardens, wildflower meadows, and everything in between! Thriving in full sun and blooming from late summer through fall, it loves moisture and attracts butterflies.
Varieties to try: Mardi Gras, Ruby Tuesday
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Cosmo
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With their cheerful, daisy-like flowers, there's just something so charming and irresistible about cosmos. That's probably why they're so often used in bouquets and flower arrangements. Cut a few to place into vases around your home for fun pops of color or throw them in your garden to produce blooms from summer into fall. They'll even attract birds, bees, and butterflies.
Varieties to try: Dazzler, Fizzy Pink
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Hardy Fuchsia
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These fuchsia have incredibly eye-catching two-tone pendent flowers that will bring such a special touch to your yard—but they're a little fussy when it comes to soil. Conditions shouldn't be too wet, too dry, or too hot. Get it just right and the shrub will reliably persist through fall with dangling blossoms galore.
Varieties to try: Beacon, Dollar Princess
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Goldenrod
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A deep yellow color makes the aptly-named goldenrod flower a good choice for any autumn garden—but beware: It's sometimes considered a weed because of its tendency to multiply. Despite this, you can easily find a cultivar that offers better performance so you can still have those bright yellow plumes reminiscent of fireworks that thrive in a wide variety of conditions, from full sun to part-shade and in average to dry soils.
Varieties to try: Zigzag, Seaside
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Sumac
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You've probably seen sumac listed in some of your favorite recipes: The dried, ground berries of this flower lend a sour, lemon-like flavor to plenty of savory dishes. In your garden, they're just as interesting to have around. Especially in the fall thanks to those clusters of short-stalked flowers and leaves that become extremely colorful! Note: This one can grow up to 30 feet tall!
Varieties to try: Lemonade Berry Sumac, Fragrant Sumac
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Chrysanthemum
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This iconic flower comes in every shade of the rainbow. Plus, they're hardy and cold-tolerant, so they'll come back next year if you get them in the ground early enough in the planting season. Although they’re considered annuals, you can still enjoy them now and plant new ones next year.
Varieties to try: Matchsticks, Mammoth Daisy Lavender
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Marigold
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Marigolds have been a fall favorite for a long time. That's because these hardy annuals bloom well into fall and can even survive a light frost. They aren't bothered by pests or critters, either. You're sure to enjoy their reliable, steady hues in a perfect fall color palette.