October Blooms
Autumn is wonderful time to visit the Garden. Fall foliage, autumn crocus, camellias, fall-blooming azaleas and a new flush of roses in the Rose Garden!
Link to the latest Bright Spots (PDF) highlighting current blooms and interest.
Jerusalem Artichoke
Helianthus tuberosus, or Jerusalem artichoke, has yellow daisy-like flowers above tall, stout stems and the thick rough-textured leaves have course hairs on them. Perhaps you’ve eaten the edible tubers — they have a flavor reminiscent of artichokes, hence the name. Beautiful and yummy! You can find it in the Children’s Garden and the Community Kitchen Garden.
Bloom-A-Thon® Red Azalea
Rhododendron Bloom-A-Thon® Red azalea is part of the Joan Van Arnam Azalea Walk in Flagler Garden. The Azalea Walk was created with an explosion of color in mind and Bloom-A-Thon® Red is just one of the many vibrant fall bloomers you’ll see there.
Beautyberry
Callicarpa americana, also called beautyberry, is a real show-stopper. Its bright green leaves are a great contrast to the lovely metallic purple berries. Recently we’ve seen branches of beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) featured in flower arrangements at the local farmers markets. Yet another great reason to grow it in your own yard! It also can be used to make insect repellent.
Autumn Crocus
Autumn Crocus, Colchicum autumnale ‘Waterlily’ does look a bit like a water lily, doesn’t it? The light purple fountain-like flowers emerge after the leaves have died back. You can find it in many spots in the Garden, but the easiest to find is in the Healing Garden, part of the Central Garden.
Fringe Flower
Fringe flower, Loropetalum chinense, Razzleberri® ‘Monraz’ is a large tree-like shrub with clusters of raspberry-red fringed flowers. Its beautiful foliage looks great in all seasons. It blooms heaviest in spring, but amazingly blooms from early spring to late fall. You’ll find it in the Asian Valley.
Aster
Symphyotrichum oblongifolius is a beautiful tall, upright, compact Aster with vigorous growth. Blooms feature masses of daisy-like flowers with violet rays and yellow centers. It’s attractive to butterflies and other pollinators. You’ll find it in Flagler Garden.
Rose ‘Strike It Rich'
Rosa ‘Strike It Rich’ is a Grandiflora (Carruth) rose featuring a blend of orange and yellow flowers on tall outstanding foliage. The blooms have a slight fragrance. You’ll find it in the Cochrane Rose Garden, of course!
Rose 'Pat Austin'
Rosa ‘Pat Austin’ has warm copper to pink blooms with beautiful center ruffling. Be sure to stop and smell this beauty, it has a strong tea scent. See it in the Rose Garden.
Rose ‘Julia Child'
Rosa ‘Julia Child’ is a Floribunda (Carruth) rose featuring a bloom with a blend of yellows from light to dark. This low-growing plant has a slight, delicate fragrance.
Pink Muhlygrass
Pink Muhlygrass, Muhlenbergia capillaris, is wiry grass that forms clumps with a fog of purple seed heads. You’ll find it planted throughout the Central Garden. It’s planted to intermingle with blooms like Echinacea purpurea and dahlia in the Four Season Garden, and planted en masse in front of the Conservatory, where it replaces turf as an ecologically sound alternative.
Switchgrass
Panicum virgatum ‘Northwind’ is an olive-green to blue-green switchgrass topped by a beige plume. You’ll find it as a mass ornamental grass planting in the Central Garden in front of the Conservatory. You can learn more about the benefits of ornamental grass and why we’ve chosen these grasses in particular on the Garden’s blog.
Prairie Dropseed
Sporobolus heterolepis, has textured flower panicles that rise above slender green foliage. You’ll find it as a mass ornamental grass planting in the Central Garden in front of the Conservatory. You can learn more about the benefits of ornamental grass and why we’ve chosen these grasses in particular on the Garden’s blog.
Winterberry
Winterberry, Ilex ‘Winter’s Gold’ provides a brilliant spray of orange color in fall. This tall shrub with abundant golden berries offers great contrast to the landscape as it transitions to its winter dormancy. You’ll find it throughout the Garden, but a great place to spot it is near the Lotus Bridge along the Cherry Tree Walk.
Japanese Windflower ‘Pamina’
Anemone x hybrida ‘Pamina’ or Japanese windflower offers fabulous, vibrant pink to contrast the traditional fall colors. The backs of the blooms are often as interesting as the fronts. These leggy blossoms sway in the wind, and yield to a fluffy white seed puff after flowering. You’ll find Japanese windflower in many spots in the Garden, particularly the Asian Valley, but this particular cultivar is in Flagler Garden.
Japanese Windflower 'Whirlwind'
Anemone x hybrida ‘Whirlwind’ features brilliant white petals and yellow centers which helps makes them attractive to bees, butterflies and birds.You’ll find Japanese windflower in many spots in the Garden, particularly the Asian Valley.
Camellia
Fall-blooming camellias are called Camellia sasanqua, versus spring-blooming camellias which are called Camellia japonica. This one, of course is a fall bloomer, Camellia sasanqua X Camellia oleifera. It is a woody shrub with rose pink, frilly, double-blossomed flowers.
Camellia 'Daydream'
Camellia sasanqua ‘Daydream’ features delicate white blossoms with pink tips. This is one of our earliest fall blooming camellias because it’s sheltered in the Fountain Terrace, just outside the Robins Visitor Center entrance near the Garden Cafe.
'Jindai' Aster
Aster tataricus ‘Jindai’ is a new addition to the Four Seasons Garden (in the Central Garden). It is a dwarf version of tatarian aster. It was discovered at 神代植物公園 Jindai Botanic park outside of Tokyo, Japan. Normally this species of aster is 5 – 6 feet tall, but ‘Jindai’ tops out at only 3 to 4 feet, so it doesn’t require staking. It has sky blue to lavender petals with a yellow center, and blooms from late September until our first hard frost. This aster is a great nectar plant for pollinators in the late fall and is, as you can see, a butterfly magnet.
Aster 'Raydon's Favorite'
Aster, Symphyotrichum oblongifolium ‘Raydon’s Favorite’ has an unusual blue bloom. You’ll find it along the shady paths of Flagler Garden.
Peek-a-boo Plant
Peek-a-boo plant or Spilanthes oleracae is sometimes called toothache plant because it has numbing properties when the leaves or flowers are chewed! Others call it eyeball plant because it looks like an eye ball. This fun loving plant is in the Children’s Garden.
Autumn Crocus
Variegated Flowering Maple
Abutilon x hybridum features peach-colored blossoms and variegated maple-shaped leaves. Although its common name is variegated flowering maple, it is not related to a true maple tree.
Blue Star
Amsonia hubrichtii is probably best known for its beautiful blue starlike blooms in early spring. But we like the feathery soft textured leaves in fall just as much. They turn from green to a multicolored “rainbow” and finally to bright gold. You’ll find it throughout the Garden, but look for it in the Central Garden near the Main Garden Path, and just beyond the Lotus Bridge in Grace Arents Garden.