The best fall flowers for pots are those that will thrive where you live, and which will continue to bloom even when summer is left behind. Often, looking for plants that are native to your location can be a good idea.
There are numerous blooms from around the world to consider growing in pots for fall displays.
Here are some suggestions to consider no matter where you live:
1. Agastache
Agastache are great value plants for a fall garden. They can bloom right up until October and though they can grow very tall, many varieties can work well in larger containers, with their upright spikes of purple beloved of butterflies, bees, and other wildlife.
2. Alyssum
Sweet alyssum is another great choice for pots in fall. This is a compact hardy annual with little white (or sometimes pink or purple) flowers and a sweet scent. It grows well in pots, either with other fall flowers, or as a companion plant to pot-grown vegetables such as cabbages or kale, for example.
3. Asters
Many asters in different hues and forms work very well in fall container displays. Especially where these are native plants, they are among the very best fall flowers for pots, often blooming right up until the first frosts in a garden. These look good with other flowers, and with native grasses in containers.
4. Celosia
When Celosia is grown in a pot, it produces shorter clusters of flowering stems that can bloom long into fall and bring a splash of color to a container garden with their vivid plume-like crests. These can also look good with ornamental grasses.
5. Chrysanthemums
One of the best known and most popular fall flowers in numerous areas, ‘mums are highly prized as fall flowers to grow in containers. Their large and showy blooms hold up for a long time after the summer has faded and can often bloom well into fall.
6. Coreopsis
Coreopsis, also known as tickseeds, these North and Central American natives are cheerful annuals or perennial plants. Many work well in pots, and there are numerous cultivars to choose from with blooms in many different hues. Both annual and perennial tickseeds can bloom right through to October in a fall garden.
7. Dahlias
Dahlias are perennials that will bloom over a long period through the summer and well into the fall. These have beautiful flowers with a wide range of forms and colors, and they can work well in pots as well as in the ground as long as the right containers and growing medium are selected.
8. Goldenrod
Goldenrods, or solidago, are mostly North American natives that can thrive in a container in a sunny spot. They are wonderful for wildlife and typically bloom over a relatively long period in late summer and fall. They look wonderful with other prairie plants in beds, borders or a container garden.
9. Hardy Plumbago
With an interesting color combo with their blue blooms and reddish stems, Ceratostigma plumbaginoides leaves start to turn a vivid scarlet while the flowers are at their peak, meaning that they can really stand out in fall pots not only for their flowers but for their foliage too.
10. Hylotelephium (Hardy Sedums)
Hardy sedums, Hylotelephium, also bring good color for fall displays. They can look very good with other late bloomers in fall container displays, even looking good after the flower heads have died.
11. Helenium
Also sometimes referred to as sneezeweed, Helenium is another North American native with daisy-like flowers that can be a good choice for growing in pots. It brings warm color to summer and fall displays and is another plant that works well with other prairie plants in a container display.
12. Impatiens
Impatiens, also known as busy lizzies, are another popular container plant that can provide long-lasting displays in the fall. They will typically produce an abundance of cheerful and colorful blooms right up until the first frosts arrive where you live. In a frost free location, they can continue to bloom throughout the winter months.
13. Marigolds (Tagetes)
French marigolds, Tagetes patula, are wonderful companion plants for food growers. They work well as companion plants for numerous crops, in a container garden or in the ground. Compact enough to work very well in pots, marigolds can also bloom well into fall, often, again, right up until the first frosts.
14. Petunias
Petunias are among the most popular plants for summer container displays with good reason, and they can often also continue to bloom well into fall and even beyond in a frost-free location. There are numerous named cultivars to choose from if you want to grow these cheerful flowers in your garden or home.
15. Rudbeckia
Rudbeckia, sometimes referred to as coneflowers or black-eyed susans are more North American natives that bloom in late summer and often into early fall. These can also be among the best fall flowers to grow in a container garden.
16. Salvias
Salvias can often bloom in the garden over a very long period of time. Some flower all the way through from May until October, especially if they are deadheaded to prolong the blooming period. From Russian sage to Mexican sage, and many named cultivars – there is sure to be a Salvia that will work well where you live.
17. Snapdragons
Antirrhinum, commonly known as snapdragons, are easy to grow in pots or elsewhere in a garden. There are numerous cultivars to choose from that come in a range of colors. These charming flowers can often bloom from June right through to October.
18. Verbena
Verbenas, like the popular Verbena bonariensis for example, are also among the best fall flowers for pots. These wildlife-attracting fall bloomers look fantastic alongside many of the other flowers on this list.
19. Violas & Pansies
Violas and pansies are of course among the most popular flowering plants for pots. There are options for every season of the year, fall included. You can have these cheerful and colorful plants in flower in your garden all year round.
20. Zinnias
Zinnias are notable for their rich, warm colour and velvety texture. They bloom long into fall and are often among the stars of the show in a fall container garden. There are numerous named varieties to choose from, most of which are at their best in late summer and early fall.
