Autumn heroes of the garden

Autumn flowering perennials are the mainstay of the garden as it winds down towards winter. The cooler days seem to give them a burst of energy, culminating in a profusion of flowers that can be enjoyed through to June. If your garden could do with lift, check out the garden centres for perennials in flower, and get planting!

Perennials are long term residents of the garden, coming back into flower the next season and for seasons after that. Most can be divided after three years or when clumps get too large. More plants for free!

They just need a good start. Plant into compost enriched soil, in sun or shade, depending on the variety. Water regularly from spring through to winter and fertilise once a month.

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That’s all you need to do for these no-fuss garden flowers. Pentas Glitterati ‘Red Star’ and ‘Purple Star’ have pretty star-patterned blooms that seem to shimmer. They attract butterflies, bees and nectar-loving birds.

This compact, tidy plant grows 30–55cm tall with an almost equal spread. It is suitable for mixed beds or in a large container. Plant three or more together for impact in the middle of a sunny bed.

Space plants 20 to 30cm apart. Pentas flowers continuously, and deadheading will encourage more blooms. Coreopsis Uptick ‘Gold and Bronze’ has vivid golden-yellow flowers with a bronze-red eye.

It is a good plant for beginner gardeners because it is easy growing, not fussy about soil and has mildew-resistant foliage. Its flowers attract pollinators. Use this neat, drought tolerant plant as a stand-out bedding and border perennial.

Plant in full sun, water regularly, and cut stems back after flowering to encourage a second flush. Its flowering season is from spring to autumn. Salvia ‘Purple and Bloom’ is a variation of the strong growing, ‘Black and Bloom.’ It is a striking landscape salvia with large purple flowers on dark stems that produce a more pronounced black/purple effect.

Plants grow 1.2m high and wide, and flower until the first frost, then come back into flower in spring. Deadheading is not necessary although pinching off spent blooms produces a bushier plant. Besides liking the cooler weather Salvia ‘Purple and Bloom’ is able to handle heat and drought.

Gaillardia ‘Mesa’ is a first year flowering perennial that can be treated as an annual. The red, yellow or bright bicolour flowers maintain their vivid colour and attract butterflies and bees. This hybrid is an improved version of the traditional gaillardia, producing more flowers from spring to autumn on more upright, well branched plants.

It grows in full sun and performs equally well in the garden or in containers. Marcada Pink Purple is a strong growing interspecific geranium that flowers prolifically and drops its dead flowers so there is no need to deadhead. It is semi-trailing, tolerating heat as well as cooler conditions, and is drought tolerant, needing to be kept drier than other geraniums.

Its height and spread of 30- 45cm makes this plant suitable for medium-sized containers, as well as in the garden. Plant in sun or semi-shade, in fertile, well composted soil that drains well. Water regularly and thoroughly but let the soil dry out in-between watering.

Feed garden plants once a month and pot plants every two weeks. Rudbeckia ‘Claire Orange’ is a compact easy flowering plant with fresh looking orange flowers and a clear black eye. It is pollen free which will suit gardeners with pollen allergies.

The flowers produce a brilliant show when planted in a sunny bed, in fertile soil that drains well. It is generally grown as an annual but in certain areas will perform as a perennial.

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