Your mind may be laser-focused on spring planting bulbs and fall clean-up when the temperatures begin to dip around this time of year, but there is another wonderful way to spend your time in the garden before the snow flies—by giving your containers a bit of a fall refresh! Your summer annuals have likely seen their day at this point in the year, so why not replace them with some cold-hardy annuals that are a little bit more appropriate for the upcoming fall season?
With fall comes all of those gorgeous jewel-toned late-season bloomers, stunning foliage, and ornamental veggies that can withstand the cooler temperatures. These are some of our favourite cold-hardy annuals that are sure to give your containers that last little blast of colour they so deserve.
Can you think of anything cuter than some dainty little pansies? We can’t. Pansies are perfect cold-hardy annuals for container planting. Since they stay quite small and come in red, white, orange, gold, yellow, and deep purple (perfect as you prepare for Halloween!), you can pretty much tuck pansies anywhere within a container for a little pop of colour. They pair beautifully with everything from evergreen ferns to winter vegetables and enjoy full sun to partial shade. In the hotter months, they need to be shielded from those intense afternoon sun rays, but as the days get shorter in the fall season, they will likely be happiest on a south or east-facing patio.
As one of the most popular late-season bloomers, mums are perfect cold-hardy annuals for container planting. They come in every autumn shade you can imagine (yellows, oranges, mauve…the list goes on), are delightfully compact, and offer quite long-lasting blooms. Mums prefer well-draining soil and full sun. If they don’t get at least six hours of sunlight per day, they tend to produce fewer, smaller blooms. With that said, since they are cold-hardy annuals, if we happen to experience one of those hot, sunny fall seasons (it can happen!), then be sure to protect your mums from the strongest afternoon rays by moving them somewhere shaded.
Ornamental flowering kale is one of those cold-hardy annuals that just makes you smile with its unique foliage. Ruffled leaves that appear soaked in pink, purple, or red tones make ornamental kale a gorgeous companion for other late-season favourites like pansies, black-eyed Susans, and chrysanthemums. Flowering kale prefers full sun and moist, rich soil. It also needs to be kept well-watered, but otherwise is relatively easy to grow and care for.
Both ornamental kale and cabbage come from the same family as their edible siblings, like broccoli, cauliflower, and edible cabbage. While not edible, ornamental cabbage is a quirky, colourful, and cold-hardy annual that is worth its weight in gold if you are hoping to spruce up your fall containers. They don’t actually have a whole lot of colour in the warmer months, but once the cold weather descends on us here in Guelph, you’ll really start to see the white, pink, and red pigments in their showstopping rosettes of foliage.
The vibrant yellow branches and twigs of yellow dogwood provide the absolute perfect accent to cold-hardy annual planters! If you decide to add one of these deciduous shrubs to your yard this year, keep in mind that they prefer rich, moist soil in full sun to part shade. In addition to fall colour, they will also add visual interest to your yard and landscape all winter long.
Fall is a great time to get creative and have some fun with container planting! Test out ornamental grasses, add a gourd or two, and take advantage of some of these cold-hardy annuals that are sure to bring you the burst of colour you are looking for. If you’re on the hunt for frost-hardy annuals in Guelph or the surrounding area, be sure to stop by Royal City Nursery to check out our extensive stock!
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