You may be looking around your neighborhood with envy this time of year, admiring the gorgeous shrubs, plants and small trees giving their yearly, and spectacular fall show. If you, like myself, have fall color envy, then here are some great plants for fall color you can plant this fall or next spring. Next year, it will be your turn for people to slow down and stare as they pass your home!

Japanese Maple

Maples of any kind have beautiful fall color, but the Japanese Maple is a smaller tree suitable for any garden, and is decorative as well. Japanese Maples thrive in most parts of the country. Find out more about them at our post on top trees for small gardens.

 

Burning Bush (Euonymus)

This mid sized shrub turns a deep and eye catching red every fall. A hedge of them can be breathtaking! They can have thorns, and attract bees in the summer, but are a good all around deciduous shrub that makes a great backdrop during the rest of the year to flowers and grasses.

 

Fothergilla (Bottlebrush)

Another great mid sized shrub that has fragrant, bottle brush white flowers in spring, and in the fall turns every shade of orange, yellow and red…often on the same leaf!

 

Smoke Bush (Cotinus)

This shrub doesn’t do the usual orange and yellow… if you need a change, this maroon shrub changes over to a deep, dramatic purple and blooms smoke like tufts of flowers. Very good specimen plant!

 

Oakleaf Hygrangea

This is not the classic mophead hydrangea, but the variety that blooms with white, long panicles in late summer, and has oak shaped leaves. The leaves turn gorgeous shades of red in fall,. This make a great three season plant for any garden.

 

Ornamental Grasses

While most ornamental grasses don’t technically turn fall colors, they are worth mentioning here. Many turn a deep bronze with the cold weather, and add a texture to the garden as important as color.

However, Miscanthus “Purpurascens” (flame grass)  flowers emerge magenta, then in fall turn silky white. The normally gray-green foliage earns its fiery name in fall when it changes to a brilliant flaming orange.

Shenandoah Switch Grass is a popular newer grass with great fall color.  In summer, the leaves on this slow-growing upright ornamental grass feature attractive red-stained tips, but in fall the leaves turn rich black-burgundy.This plant also has a clouds of feathery pink flowers to boot!

 

Fall Colors for the South

Many of these fall plants aren’t suited to the warm winters of the South, so for those of you below the Mason Dixon line, we have a suggestion for you as well… Heavenly Bamboo (Nandina) is a delicate looking rounded shrub that comes in a great dwarf form as well, and performs well in most parts of the country to zone 10. The deep red foliage of the Nandina generally begins to appear in late summer to early fall and holds its color throughout the winter season. In fact, the Heavenly Bamboo Nandina will go through several color changes throughout the spring, summer and fall to provide you with a unique look all year long!

So plant one or two this year, and enjoy that fall color in the coming seasons. Nothing says fall like fall leaves! What are your fav fall color plants, and where do you live? Share with our community!