Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’: 

There are many sedums that bloom late in the season, but sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ provides the largest panicles of blooms with a long season of color. In mid-summer the flat flower buds are lime green, changing to cream, then peach and finally rust as winter arrives. This is a great perennial for attracting more pollinating insects to the garden and sedums are naturally drought resistant.

Tip: To make this perennial more compact with sturdy stems, shorten the new growth by one half in late May. This forces more branching, more flowers and autumn joy.

Echinacea (Coneflower):

This North American native plant will survive drought and average soil and still pump out the daisy-like blooms all summer and into the fall. Butterflies and birds are attracted to the center seed pods and plenty of new varieties offer brighter colors and longer lasting blooms. Look for vivid orange, yellow, pink and cream shades.

Tip: This perennial is great for cut flowers and by harvesting the blooms you’ll be encouraging even more flowers. Divide mature clumps in spring or fall to increase you supply.

Rudbeckia Daisy: 

A native meadow flower, rudbeckias do well in sunny sites with good drainage where they provide late summer and fall color up until the first hard frost. New varieties provide more colors and different sizes but the gold standard is still the golden rudbeckia called ‘Goldsturm’ with sturdy stems that support the bright yellow blooms without the need for staking.

Tip: This perennial is easy to divide and move about the garden for repeating clumps of color. Dig into the center of the plant with a sharp shovel and separate sections in early spring.

Ornamental Grasses: 

The tall clumps of ornamental grass that look spectacular in the fall are best planted in the spring, but the shorter varieties such as blue fescue are under one foot tall and can be added to the landscape in the fall for instant texture, color and gratification. A new variety Festuca ‘Beyond Blue’ is especially drought resistant and has a tidy growth habit as well as blades that stay blue all year long.

Tip: The blue fescues do not go dormant or turn brown in the winter and do not need to be pruned back in the spring.