Blooms are Back

by Lydia Holley February 3, 2025

Fall officially arrived on September 23, and temperatures are finally starting to dip. Daylight hours are also decreasing, signaling that winter is coming. With less sunlight, photosynthesis reduces, causing chemical changes which make tree leaves turn colors.

Some plants are blooming again now that the stress of summer’s heat is over, and plants which flower in fall are starting to put on a show. Muhly grass is enveloped in pink plumes, giving the garden a fairyland quality. From afar, they look like cotton candy, and are just as soft up close. Other grasses are blooming, too. ‘Hameln’ waves its blooms in the breeze, and Little Bluestem throws up white tufts. Its stems will soon turn red.

Firebush (Hamelia patens) has tubular red-orange flowers that attract hummingbirds, helping to feed them as they migrate southward. This Florida native is reportedly only reliably hardy to Zone 9, but I have had a couple of them in my garden for almost 10 years and they have returned even after the hard freezes we experienced during that time. Of course, I count myself lucky every year they live.

Also blooming now is lantana. I have noticed numerous lantana on the side of the road in full flower. It is amazing to me they survived the drought without any care from a gardener.

‘Henry Duelberg’ salvia has purple flowers while ‘Augusta Duelberg’ looks almost identical, except she blooms in white. Mine are planted next to a re-blooming yellow daylily and the combination is delightful. Several other plants are putting out another round of flowers before they go dormant, giving the garden a festive feeling. Roses blush. Texas sage celebrates. Rain lilies rejoice.

But as much as is blooming now, it is a pale preview to what will come. Plants which traditionally flower in fall, such as mums, dwarf solidago, Autumn Joy sedum, and others, will soon be flushed with color. It is a magical time in the garden, with new delights to see daily until winter sets in.

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