Coming soon to a landscape near you -- Fall Seasonal Color!
Wow, how nice did Thursday feel!
A little rain, temperatures in the 80s and everyone had a smile on their face. The first day of cooler temperatures after a summer filled with way too many 100 degree days and weeks without any rain sure has a way of lifting one’s spirits.
Thursday actually gave me hope that summer really is going to end and the cooler days of fall are really going to happen this year.
Not only have lawns, trees and shrubs struggled through the long run of 100 degree plus days, but your summer seasonal color has too. If your landscape is anything like mine, some of your ‘tried and true’, always plant, summer annual color was a big disappointment this summer.
The current appearance of many summer seasonal color plantings in central Oklahoma suggest it is time to cry ‘Uncle!’ and move on to next…next…
Next up for your landscape…. Fall Seasonal Color!
Before you get too excited about replanting your annual color beds, do me one favor first: grab your Seasonal Color Journal (you have one, right?) and make a few notes about this summer. What took the heat well? What did you plant in full sun, like you do every summer, only to discover this summer they really needed a break from the hot afternoon sun? What did you discover needed more water than you expected? And, take lots of pictures to go along with your notes.
A few pictures from our Summer Color Journal:
Mezoo, a low growing, trailing succulent loved the hot summer.
Sun Coleus is a summer favorite for bold foliage. This year the Sun Coleus planted where it received hot afternoon sun was thin and faded. The Sun Coleus receiving morning and afternoon sun looks as stunning as ever.
A ‘True & Tested’ favorite for a hot summer is Lantana.
Penta, another summer hot weather annual, performed well where it was out of the hot evening sun looks great. Some Penta planted in the hot afternoon sun struggled.
Periwinkle, an old fashioned, summer annual was one of the best this summer.
Joseph’s Coat took the summer heat well.
What big difference between the Summer of ‘25 and the Summer of ‘26. My go to summer shade color planting is Caladiums and Impatiens. They are always stunning. Well, almost always! This year they didn’t survive the heat.
Sunpatiens (picture from Summer of ‘25 because I didn’t have any survive the Summer of ‘26) has been a summer color I have used more and more the past couple of summers. Lesson from this summer: If the summer is a recorded setting summer for 100 degree days, it may not be the best summer color.
Done? Good. Let’s start talking about fall seasonal color…
Seasonal Color Defined:
The planting of annual (plants that only last one season) flowers in the landscape to add a seasonal accent of color. Annual color can have more impact in the landscape than any other design element. Seasonal color plantings can be large and bold, or they can be small plantings near the front door or planted on the edge of the patio to catch your attention, or they can be as simple as a few colorful landscape pots welcoming guests to your home. The key is to only plant as much color as you can adequately care for. Seasonal color, large or small, is a statement piece in your landscape.
Fall seasonal color options:
A key to pansies surviving the winter is moisture. A good deep soaking once per week in the winter will help them overwinter.
Pansies
How ironic! The cool season annual that is the toughest…the best at surviving the cold of winter is called a Pansy! Planting pansies this fall will add vibrant yellows, blues, purples, oranges, whites, and reds to your landscape for 7-8 months. The key to pansies surviving the winter is keeping the plants from being bone dry when cold fronts arrive. Pansies love fertile, well-drained soil. For the best results add compost to the soil when planting. For the best show, plant on 6” centers. Pansies are available with a clear face or with a blotch. I love both but enjoy the added color contrast you get with the blotch.
Use seasonal color as a welcoming statement for your guests.
Mums
They are actually a perennial but can double as an annual for dramatic color during October and November. They are traditionally used in pots and overlooked as a bedding plant. Use mums in the landscape for bold, eye-catching color. An added bonus – after the blooms fade, transfer the plants to a place where they will accent the landscape as a perennial in the coming springs and falls.
Kale riding out an ice storm.
When you use mums as perennials they add a splash of color to your fall landscape.
Kale and Ornamental Cabbage
A leafy annual that adds texture along with hues of purples, pinks, and whites to the fall landscape. Most winters kale and cabbage will add interest to the landscape through the holidays and occasionally into the spring. Just like pansies, the most damaging thing you can do is allow the soil to be dry when cold spells sweep in.
Pansies, kale and mums make a great combination for your fall landscape containers.
Bulbs: Tulips, Daffodils and Hyacinths
Not fall color, but they must be planted in the fall for color next spring. We will spend more time talking about spring flower bulbs later, but now is the time to start making your plans. Bulbs put on their best show in the spring when they are planted with several bulbs together in a group.
Spring flowering bulbs aren’t fall color, but you have to plan for them now and plant them in them in November for a spring show.
It’s still too early to plant spring-blooming tulip bulbs, but it isn’t too early to start planning your color scheme and where you are going to plant bulbs.
Tip - For the best color show, limit mums and/or kale to 20% or less of your planting. Because of the short bloom time of mums and the chance kale will not last until spring, you will limit your spring color show if you have too much of them. Or, plant your spring bulbs in the same area as your mums and kale. The bulbs will fill the void with a burst of color next spring.
Your lawn and landscape assignment for this week…
Document your summer seasonal color.
Plan your October seasonal color change.
Remember…Great landscapes should include plants that add color and interest in every season!
You really don’t want to be without color for the next 7-8 months, do you?
Lorne Hall
Hall | Stewart Lawn + Landscape
(405)367-3873
A blanket of pansies with kale. In this landscape tulip bulbs are planted in November every year in the area of the kale to add more color next spring.