Even when the summer blooms fade away, the flower show keeps going strong. Fall wildflowers are making their appearance, brightening up roadsides, forests, fields, and gardens.
If you haven’t started growing them yet, planting wildflower seeds in the fall will definitely reward you with gorgeous blooms next year. To get the best results, go for native autumn wildflowers or a wildflower seed mix that’s perfect for your area.
Before you plant your wildflowers in the fall, you might want to consider cold stratifying or cold-moist stratifying your seeds. This helps seeds sprout and speeds up the germination process by simulating the chilly or damp conditions they would encounter in the wild.
For cold stratification, gather the seeds and let them air dry. Then, place them in a plastic bag or container and pop them in the fridge. This way, they’ll be ready for planting outdoors after the last spring frost.
The time you can store things in the fridge really depends on what you’re growing, so be sure to check your seed packet, take a look at our tips, or do a bit of research!
1. Black-Eyed Susan
Black-eyed Susan brings a vibrant display with its bright golden ray flowers and dark centers, keeping the color going strong right up until the heavy frost hits.
Rudbeckia, a native prairie wildflower, is perfect for mass plantings, adding a nice touch to borders, creating beautiful meadow or cottage arrangements, and even shining in fall container displays.
This resilient plant blooms for a long time and adapts well to different conditions. It does really well in warm, humid conditions and can handle dry spells too. I personally love the variety ‘Indian Summer’ for a beautiful late-season show and a cut flower that lasts a while!
2. Autumn Sage
Late in the season, salvias captivate with a renewed show of color. Look to the native autumn sage of North America for edible leaves and stunning fall flowers. There are red tubular blooms as well as white, purple, and pink variants.
The late-season red flowers of pineapple sage (Salvia elegans) and its mildly pineapple-flavored foliage are found in zones 8–10. This one adds brightness to beds that are partially shaded.
One popular native late-bloomer that I personally love is Salvia guaranitica “Black and Blue.” Its tall, deep-blue tubular flowers bloom from July till the first frost.
3. Mistflower
Mistflower has lovely tufts of purple-blue flowers. The feathery bloom clusters on those tall, upright stems really add a lovely soft haze to the whole look.
The sky-blue clusters show up from July to October. Mistflower really stands out with its beautiful silver, deep purple, or chartreuse foliage, adding a lovely textural contrast.
Ageratum can handle some dry spells, but it really thrives in moist, well-drained soil. Under perfect conditions, it spreads quickly through seeds and rhizomes.
4. Echinacea
The purple coneflower really stands out in summer arrangements with its bright color and ongoing blooms. Their purple petals wrap around a bright orange center, making it a tasty spot for helpful insects to gather nectar.
Echinacea brings charm throughout the seasons, featuring beautiful blooms and dried seed heads that stick around even in winter. There are so many different cultivars out there, each with its own unique colors and shapes!
Coneflower is a natural prairie plant that loves well-draining soils and really shines in the summer heat.
5. Coreopsis
Coreopsis offers a lovely display of bright blooms and easily reseeds for the next seasons. Coreopsis is one of the first flowers to bloom in spring and one of the last to fade away, making it a reliable perennial native to North America.
Lance-leaved coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata) is the most popular variety, featuring its iconic golden ray petals and bright yellow centers. It can handle dry conditions quite well and creates clusters of pincushion leaves with flowers rising above.
Coreopsis is a popular choice for bees, butterflies, and other helpful insects looking for nectar and pollen. During winter, songbirds search for seeds to eat.
6. Heliopsis
Heliopsis, often known as ox-eye daisy or oxeye sunflower, features beautiful golden blooms that resemble sunflowers, complete with fuzzy yellow button centers.
The colorful flowers draw in pollinators, and after they bloom, the birds enjoy the seeds. Any leftovers will self-seed and help the colony grow.
Heliopsis has strong, upright stems that can reach up to five feet tall, and there are also some dwarf varieties available for gardening enthusiasts. Heliopsis is great because it can thrive in different soil types, making it extremely simple to grow and enjoy throughout the seasons.
7. Helenium
Helenium is a lovely North American native featuring daisy-like petals that beautifully surround a fuzzy central disc. The cheerful yellow flowers show up in the middle of summer and keep bringing color until the chilly weather sets in.
Although it’s often referred to as sneezeweed, that name actually comes from its historical medicinal uses for colds, not thankfully from causing allergy-related sneezing!
This lovely fall flower loves a moist spot to flourish, often found along streambanks, ponds, and in wet meadows. They can handle periods of standing water and less-than-ideal soils.
8. Cosmos
Sun-loving cosmos bring bright, beautiful blooms all summer long, and they continue to shine with a lovely display in the fall too. If you’re in a warm climate, planting annuals in late summer can give you a lovely burst of blooms just before the frost hits. They sprout up fast from seed.
This summer annual comes from the Americas and features daisy-like flowers in vibrant colors like yellow, apricot, bright pink, lavender, red, chocolate, and plenty more. The ray flowers gently sway on their slender stems.
The delicate flowers really stand out when they’re grouped together. Once the flowers have finished blooming and gone to seed, it’s best to leave the stems intact so the seeds can germinate for the next generation of beautiful blooms.
9. Prairie Coneflower
The prairie coneflower is a vibrant, long-blooming wildflower that’s incredibly simple to care for. It provides nectar for insects and seeds for birds and small mammals during the colder months. This coneflower, with its tall blooms in vibrant yellows and rich reds, adds a cheerful touch to the wildflower display from spring all the way to the first frost of fall.
Prairie coneflower grows quickly, handles dry conditions like a champ, and can hold its own against other plants. It can really thrive in the best growing conditions and might overshadow less vigorous plants.
Ratibida columnifera, also known as the upright prairie coneflower or Mexican Hat, features a striking mix of red, yellow, or dark purple-red ray petals that are beautifully accented with bright gold edges. The petals hang down nicely around a standout central gold-brown disc.
The grey-head coneflower (Ratibida pinnata) features tall, vibrant yellow blooms. The selections really stand out when planted in groups or mixed arrangements, allowing their unique blooms to shine beautifully, especially with their sparse basal leaves.
10. Solidago
Goldenrod, also known as Solidago, brings a cheerful touch to the garden with its graceful, arching spires of bright yellow. They offer food for pollinators with bloom clusters that come back to life in the autumn.
Most solidago plants are originally from North America and can easily take root in the landscape – sometimes a bit too much! However, from experience, I know that well-behaved varieties like ‘Fireworks’ won’t spread uncontrollably to other areas.
Solidago draws in a variety of bee species and other helpful insects. Trim off those spent blooms to keep the flowers going strong and to stop seeds from spreading, but don’t forget to leave a few seeds for the birds—they really appreciate that tasty snack!
11. New England Aster
Asters, which are native to North America, are easygoing favorites featuring beautiful deep blue-purple, lavender, and pink daisy-ray flowers. Asters really brighten up the fall season with their vibrant, plentiful blooms that beautifully cover the leaves.
The variety of flowers keeps pollinators happy during the late season and adds beauty for everyone to enjoy. New England asters are originally found in grasslands and the edges of woodlands, but they’re pretty adaptable and can thrive in old homesteads and along fencerows.
They like soils that are consistently moist and rich in organic matter. Make sure there’s good air circulation and keep those stems thin during the summer if things get a bit crowded and airflow is blocked. Thinning and ensuring good soil drainage are great ways to keep foliar diseases at bay.
12. Blanketflower
Blanketflower is an early bloomer and stays vibrant for a long time. Its disc blooms come in vibrant shades of gold, orange, red, or even bi-color, all featuring charming brown button centers.
G.aristata, a native plant of North America, is known for its ability to reseed easily and often flowers in its first growing season. Plus, it’s also hardy against drought and heat!
There are a bunch of other species of blanketflower out there. Gaillardia pulchella comes from the Southwest, showcasing vibrant warm shades of red and gold that bloom from late winter all the way through fall.
G.pulchella is an annual that does really well in many parts of the country. The species are flexible, diverse, and loved by butterflies.
13. Turk’s Cap
Turk’s cap is a native perennial that thrives in warm places like Mexico, Texas, and the Carolinas. It thrives in various soil and light conditions, blooming effortlessly from mid-summer all the way until the frost sets in.
This plant is part of the mallow family, and its flowers look like a little hibiscus ready to open up, showcasing vibrant red colors along with some lovely pink and white varieties.
The red “caps” are a real treat for hummingbirds! After blooming, you’ll notice some bright red berries popping up, which not only add a splash of color but also serve as a tasty treat for birds. This ties in nicely with its other common name, Mexican apple.
14. Globe Gilia
Gilia produces beautiful clusters of deep blue flowers that form small, neat globes and last a long time. Perfect for a mixed planting setup, gilia adds charm to the landscape with its airy clusters of 50 to 100 tiny flowers.
Gilia capitata, commonly known as globe gilia, is a well-loved species that can be found naturally across a large part of the American West. Flowers in shades of pink, white, lavender, or powder blue start to bloom as early as late winter and continue until frost comes back.
The orbs draw in a bunch of insects, like butterflies, moths, and caterpillars. Plus, it easily self-seeds, giving you delightful bursts of blue year after year.
15. Joe Pye Weed
Joe Pye weed is a tall beauty perfect for the back of your garden with lovely domes of purple-pink flower clusters. Their fall comeback draws in beneficial insects, and those dark seed pods keep things interesting all through winter.
Most Joe Pyes are pretty tall, but there are also dwarf varieties that have a more compact growth which makes them easier to fit into different spaces. The varieties ‘Little Joe’ and ‘Baby Joe’ are pretty compact, growing just two to four feet tall with nice, sturdy stems.
Other Guides from Planet Natural:
11 Perennials You Shouldn’t Cut Back in Fall
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