Autumn Colour

After the colourful and bountiful days of summer when displays of summer bedding and perennial plants are fast fading, we turn our attention to plants which at this time of year come into their own, playing a last finale in the seasons closing symphony. They in their turn will take us out of the current year, giving us some of the most breathtaking displays with their truly magnificent autumn colours. With the right plants we can enjoy a blaze of fire as burnished leaves shimmer with vibrant hues of brightest purple, flame red, brilliant orange, gold and butter yellow. Though autumn colour on a grand scale is not always possible in a garden setting of modest size, by choosing trees and shrubs with care those of us with limited space can still bring some of the drama into our own gardens at this time of year.

LEAF COLOUR CHANGE:  Autumn colour is spectacular and unpredictable. It relies on a complex and variable combination of climatic, environmental, genetic and physiological factors. It is not only the leaves that can offer exciting colour combinations; stems, fruits and berries play a significant role too. Their contribution help the plants take on a new lease of life, especially when masked in a film of frost or dusting of powdery snow. Berries and fruits are the jewels of our plants and their ripe, rich hues delight the eye in a feast of colour, variety and shape.

Acers: These are amongst some of the most colourful trees, many who started the season with leaves of green take on a dramatic colour change as winter draws near. A. japonicum ‘Aconitifolium’ is a bushy tree or large shrub with mid green leaves turning to red for a fiery autumn glow. A. palmatum var. ‘Coreanum’ turns to brilliant red in autumn. A. triflorum with its peeling, grey-brown bark has leaves that become brilliant orange-red. A. palmatum Osakazuki with leaves that have 7 lobes, turn brilliant scarlet during autumn. 

Noted for its beautiful autumn leaf colour, Amelanchier lamarchii the June Berry with its delicate, star-shaped, white flowers in March to April and bronze leaves maturing to dark-green and then orange and red in autumn; is an upright-stemmed shrub or tree and an ideal specimen plant for a shrub or mixed border in full sun or part-shade. 

Betula:  Most birches colour well in autumn displaying beautiful golden yellow tints. However, planted on chalk or limestone their foliage tends to turn brown before falling.

Cornus nuttallii: Will colour bright red before the leaves fall. And the spindle berry, Euonymous alatus (Winged spindle) and E. europaeus, not only produces its curious ’spindle’ like fruits but has foliage in intense glowing reds, that really stands out in the garden. The wood was once used for making spindles for spinning; its eventual height of about 5m will enable it to be considered for the smaller garden. There are a number of named cultivars available, with particularly intense colours. 

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 17th, 2007 at 5:41 pm and is filed under General Gardening, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.