Are you planning on setting out trees and shrubs in your garden this fall? If so, consider kinds that put on brilliant foliage displays—maples, oaks, stewartias, dogwoods, fothergillas, euonymus, and others noted for autumn color.
Actually, for the same amount of time, effort and expense, you can concentrate on flowering and foliage trees and shrubs that stage dramatic bursts of red and scarlet, orange and vermilion, yellow and gold, bronze, rust, and apricot.
Jack Frost Doesn’t Do It All
Gardeners who live where autumn brings a combination of bright, warm, sunny days and a sudden drop of temperature at sundown are especially fortunate. This weather is ideal for vivid foliage in the fall.
Though nature’s canvases are the most spectacular, the home gardener can plan on lesser displays in his backyard by selecting kinds that are considered outstanding. The list is a long one, and tastes vary, but here are some of the best.
For example, if it’s a small tree you want for your terrace, make it a flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) because its leaves become brilliantly scarlet-red. Eligible, too, is the Japanese dogwood, (C. kousa), known for its pointed “flower” bracts that unfold in the early summer.
Maples Give a Brilliant Display
Among large shade trees, few can surpass the native sugar and red maples, which are responsible for a large part of the dazzling tapestry that nature paints in the eastern part of the country. Sugar maple Acer saccharum) leaves may turn scarlet, orange-red, or pure yellow; red maple (A. rubrum) may vary from deep red through orange to gold.
Black tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica) is another American with handsome shiny leaves that turn scarlet-red. Difficult to transplant, the pyramidal tree, with characteristic drooping branches, is best moved in the early spring with a ball of soil. The native sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) likewise is not to be overlooked because its large star-shaped leaves become a glowing red.
The American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana) has much to recommend it, including a neat, bushy habit and bright orange autumn coloring. It grows to 35 feet, is very hardy, and makes a desirable specimen for the lawn area near the house where a medium-sized tree is preferred.
Against the dark green of pine, spruce, hemlock, or other evergreens, the red-orange leaves of frankliniana (Frankliniana alatahama) will stand out like a flaring beacon, as will Japanese and Korean stewartias. These are all cherished for their lovely cup-shaped, creamy white flowers that appear late in the season. They are hardy as far north as Boston.
If it’s red-orange you prefer, the native sassafras (Sassafras albidum) deserves a favorite spot. Though frequently seen as a small woodland tree, often as a sapling, plants will become large and shapely if given space in which to develop.
Maybe You Could Use This Weed
Staghorn sumac (Rhus typhina) is a weed, but what else surpasses it in autumnal gaiety? You might let it naturalize on a hillside or use it on a slope that adjoins the garden. For a ground cover, plant fragrant sumac (R. aromatica), a three-foot shrub with three-parted leaves.
The Oriental katsura tree (Cercidiphyllum japonicum) is a large growing shade tree, with heart-shaped leaves that take on yellow and scarlet hues come fall. Other outstanding Orientals include the small amur maple (Acer ginnala), with scarlet leaves and winged fruits that turn red in midsummer, and the Tatarian maple (A. tataricum), also noted for its red-winged fruits.
Large trees that are especially spectacular include sou wood (Oxydendrum arboreum), tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera), Japanese larch (Larix leptolepis), and ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba). Do not overlook the oaks. Their leaves are the last to turn and hang on for a long time, into November and December. Pink, scarlet, red, and white are some of the best to plant.
Shrubs also play leading roles in the fall color pageant. Among natives is the highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum), which deserves a conspicuous spot where it can be seen from indoors in rainy weather. Bottlebrushes (Fothergilla major and monticola) are tops, along with the American smoke tree (Cotinus americanus), admired for its fruiting heads that give the appearance of smoke.
Most fiery of all are the large-growing winged euonymus (Euonymus alatus) and its smaller form known as the dwarf winged euonymus (E. a. compactus). These shrubs from the Orient resemble balls of fire and never fail to arouse comment when appropriately placed in the garden.
Among vines, two are top candidates, Boston ivy (Parthenocissus tricuspidata), often seen clinging to public and college buildings, and Virginia creeper or woodbine (P. quinquefolia), particularly effective when permitted to scramble over rock outcroppings or to hang over a stone or concrete wall.
Flowers for Fall Color
In addition to these—and others —include flowering plants to make the autumn garden festive. For example, concentrate on late-flowering annuals such as marigolds, calendulas, cosmos, dahlias, cleomes, celosias, zinnias, and red salvias.
For perennials grow heleniums and fall asters but rely strongly on hardy chrysanthemums which may be purchased in full bloom. Then you’ll have a gay arrangement around your terrace, at your front doorway, or in your flower garden that will rival even that of spring.
44659 by George Taloumis