Extend Your Garden Season Into the Fall

Written by: Anthony Venchiarutti, Sept 23, 2025

The gardening season doesn’t have to end in September.

After Labour Day, many people pack it in for winter: closing pools, storing patio furniture, and cleaning out their gardens. But little do they know, plenty of plants, shrubs, and trees actually shine in early fall. If you want to keep your outdoor space looking vibrant well into autumn, here are some great options.

Hydrangeas

Hydrangeas are famous for their big, showy flowers in shades of white, pink, purple, blue, and green. Most bloom from late spring to midsummer, but many hold their blossoms into the fall. As the season changes, their blooms often shift in colour, creating a beautiful, aged, almost dried look. Certain varieties, such as the Oakleaf Hydrangea, also offer spectacular foliage, turning a rich burgundy red in autumn.

Ornamental Grasses

Ornamental grasses like Orange Flame Grass and Fountain Grass may look simple during the summer, but fall is when they truly shine. Their foliage transforms from fresh green to glowing orange, copper, burgundy or deep purple, adding motion and texture to your garden beds.

Ginkgo Trees

Think maples have the best fall colour? You haven’t seen a Ginkgo tree in October. Native to China, Ginkgo trees feature fan-shaped leaves that turn an intense, golden yellow in the fall. People travel halfway across the world to see them, but you can plant one in your own yard and enjoy the show every year!

Celosia Flowers

Celosia produces soft, feathery blooms from early summer right up until the first frost. Available in bold shades of yellow, orange, red, and pink, these flowers add striking vertical texture to your garden when many other plants are winding down. To really take in their beuaty they are best planted in masses or larger pots.

Strawflowers

Strawflowers bloom from summer into late fall depending on when you plant them. Their daisy-like blossoms come in a rainbow of colours — red, yellow, pink, purple, even blue. They thrive in pots, making them perfect for patios, balconies, or front porches.  You can even cut and dry out the flowers making them last well into the winter months.

Chrysanthemums (Mums)

Mums are perhaps the ultimate fall flower in the GTA. Known for their cold tolerance and rich colour palette, they’re everywhere in September and October. Whether you plant them in beds or pots, they’ll brighten your landscape when most other flowers have faded.

Sugar Maples

No list of fall plants would be complete without a maple tree. Famous across Canada and beyond, Sugar Maples deliver dazzling yellow, orange and red foliage every autumn. Yes, the leaf cleanup can be a chore — but the summer shade and fall colour payoff are more than worth it. If you're a DIY kind of person you can even tap your tree and make your own maple syrup.

Don’t rush to pack away your garden after Labour Day. With a few strategic plantings, you can enjoy stunning colour, texture, and life well into autumn — and maybe even become the envy of your street.

Elevate Your Outdoor Space With Wildrock Construction

If you need help choosing what plants to plant in your garden for fall interest or any interest for that matter, Wildrock Construction's got you covered. We are a landscape construction firm located in Mississauga specializing in planting, Interlock, Stonework and other forms of landscaping, servicing Mississauga, Oakville, Burlington, Etobicoke, Vaughan and surrounding areas. 

Call us today at 905-484-8333 or email us at Anthony@wildrockconstruction.ca