7 Lovely Fall Garden Ideas

Ready to show off a gorgeous garden this autumn season? These lovely fall garden ideas are easy to add to your front yard, front porch or backyard, and will bring beautiful fall colors to your landscape.

With fall around the corner, I’m sharing a few of my favorite fall garden design ideas. By the end of summer, many blooms have begun to fade, and it’s easy to overlook which plants and flowers can actually be a star in an autumn garden.

Some summer blooms may actually last through fall, while other garden additions are easy to pop in a planter anytime throughout the fall season for some seasonal color.

Let’s check out a few of these fall garden ideas!

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. All opinions and recommendations are my own.

Fall Garden Ideas

When you think of spring, there are distinct flowers you might think of: lilacs, tulips, daffodils, etc. And when you think of summer, flowers that come to mind might be: hydrangeas, garden roses, and lavender. However, a fall garden gets a bit “iffy” for some people, where it’s difficult to pinpoint what exact plants or flowers fall into that seasonal “fall” category.

However, I often find that some blooms that begin in the summer, and trail into fall, can actually serve as great fall flowers. For example, some annual salvias can last until November here in (Northern suburbs of Chicago) zone 6!

Fall colors that typically come to mind are red, orange and yellow, just like the changing fall leaves. However, deep purples and violets can really pop against orange pumpkins, and it’s such a fun “Halloween color combo”! And deep greens, like ornamental kale, can really feel “fall”, and compliment so many other fall florals, too.

Here are a few favorites for the fall garden!

Dahlias

One of the most stunning flowers in the garden, and they just happen to bloom well through the fall, Dahlias are the perfect fall flower! Their large, captivating blooms (including the extra large dinnerplate dahlias), come in the most vibrant fall colors- golden yellows and all shades of orange, with touches of warm pink and apricot.

Dahlias not only transform your fall garden, but they also make the best cut-flowers too. A dahlia floral arrangement is perfect for a fall centerpiece or tablescape.

If you’re growing dahlias in your own garden, you have to do a bit of planning, as these dahlia tubers need to be planted around mid-May, depending on your zone, and they bloom toward the end of August and continue through the fall. If you love the thought of dahlias in your garden, definitely make a note in your calendar, because tubers are often available for pre-sale online as early as August (for the following spring!).

But, if you didn’t plan ahead, you can often buy growing dahlias from local garden nurseries or dahlia farms, as well as farmers markets. Some dahlias are more compact and can be grown as a perfect fall container garden flower, and others can reach 6 feet tall! (I told you they can be a showstopper in the fall garden!).

Some favorite dahlia varieties for fall are:

Bonaventure Dahlia
Candlelight Dahlia
Chewy Dahlia
Crichton Honey Dahlia
El Sol Dahlia
Sebastian Dahlia

Sunflowers

Another showstopper flower in an early fall garden is the sunflower. The golden yellow hue is perfect for the autumn season. And a hedge of sunflowers lined with pumpkins couldn’t embrace the season more!

Similar to dahlias, you need to plan a bit if you want to plant sunflower seeds, to time it right for blooms in September through October in some zones, but it’s well worth it. Like dahlias, you can often find sunflowers to add to your garden from local garden nurseries or sunflower farms. They often come sold in a planter, perfect for adding to your sunny front porch steps or garden (remember, sunflowers thrive with plenty of sunshine!).

But if you want rows and rows of sunflowers in your fall garden, be sure to plan for planting those sunflower seeds so you can have blooms next fall!

Some favorite sunflower varieties for fall are:

Summer Beauty Sunflower
Evening Sun Sunflower
Helios Flame Sunflower
Royal Flush Sunflower
Van Gogh Sunflower

Mums

Chrysanthemums, often referred to as mums, are the STAR of fall gardens. When you see pops of color in fall gardens, more often than not, they will be vibrant mums. They’re often times one of the last plants to bloom before frost, which gifts your garden with one last burst of color.

There are many, many varieties of mums, with different appearances- from globe-like pompoms to classic daisy-style petals. Mums also come in a variety of fall colors including yellow, orange, red, bicolor, and shades of purple (which are great for Halloween!).

Mums are so easy-to-grow and they’re readily available at local garden centers, farmers markets, and even big box stores that sell flowers. Mums are so versatile in the fall garden- they can be used in garden beds, borders and planters. Nothing says “it’s fall y’all” more than a lush planter of mums on your front porch! They even attract butterflies and make great cut flowers, lasting up to two weeks!

How stunning are these fall mums in beautiful fall colors surrounded by ornamental kale (another fall favorite) and large pumpkins (a classic fall garden favorite!)

Ornamental Cabbage & Flowering Kale

As you can see in the last image, ornamental kale, also known as flowering kale, is a favorite fall garden choice for many gardeners. Ornamental cabbage is very similar in both look and growth. They’re cold-tolerant, hardy, unassumingly gorgeous, and they pair well with many fall flowers or even just as a solo plant in a container. They also pair well surrounded by pumpkins!

Ornamental kale and cabbage are so easy to grow from seed, can be found at local garden nurseries in the fall, and they come in beautiful shades of green and even stunning pops of purple.

(Although a bit more bitter than other varieties, ornamental kale and cabbage are also edible!)

Fall Foliage Plants

Fall foliage gatsby gal oakleaf hydrangea fall color

When thinking of fall garden ideas, many people jump to mums or other fall flowers, and of course, pumpkins, but don’t forget about the plants that have gorgeous fall foliage! A favorite in our garden is Gatsby Gal Oakleaf Hydrangea, as seen in the image above. Not only do we get to enjoy beautiful Oakleaf Hydrangea blooms in the summer, its leaves turn a rich wine-red in the fall.

There are many shrubs that turn vibrant fall colors, from rich wine-reds, to golden yellows, to sunset oranges, and they all look fantastic in the fall garden landscape.

Some favorite fall color foliage plants are:

Salvias (Whose Blooms Last From Summer)

Salvias are probably not one of the first flowers you’d think of for a fall garden, considering they’re a summer flower. However, some salvia varieties have the most gorgeous deep purple blooms that last until mid to late fall, if you’re lucky! I’ve had both perennial salvias and annual salvias that have had blooms last until late November here in zone 6b near Chicago.

One reason I love these for fall, is dark purple or violet is such a fun Halloween color, and the blooms look so festive against soft orange blooms like mums or dahlias, and they also really pop when placed near pumpkins!

pumpkins and purple flowers — This was an annual salvia, Rockin’ Playin’ The Blues Salvia, whose blooms lasted all summer through November!

Salvias are so low maintenance, their blooms last a long time, and the perennial varieties will come back year after year. The annual varieties are some of my most reliable, long-blooming flowers in my entire garden!

Some favorite salvia varieties that tend to keep their blooms through fall are:

Rockin’ Playin’ The Blues Salvia (annual) *(this salvia’s blooms have lasted through November for me)
Caradonna Salvia (perennial)
Violet Riot (perennial)

Pumpkins

It can’t quite be a complete fall garden without, you guessed it, pumpkins! Whether you’re growing pumpkins in your own garden or buying pumpkins as fall decor outside, you simply can’t overdue it when it comes to this classic fall staple.

Pumpkins look festive on their own, surrounded by ornamental kale or cabbage, or in a sea of fall flowers like mums, sunflowers, or dahlias. They also look so lovely around garden edges and paths, surrounded by the last blooms from the summer season.

From gorgeous heirloom pumpkins that range in color from creams to soft oranges to muted greens, beautiful white pumpkins, mini pumpkins, oversized pumpkins in pops of orange, they all look stunning in a fall garden!