8 plants for autumn bedding

With the arrival of autumn a whole new palette of plants comes to the fore. Colourful, tough and guaranteed to provide seasonal cheer, there really is no reason to 'put your garden to bed' like many gardeners used to. Read on to discover a selection of plants suitable for autumn bedding schemes, whether in the ground or in pots and containers. 

Delightful blooms

Originally coming from the eastern Mediterranean, Cyclamen persicum produces delightful flowers until the first hard frosts. It will continue blooming into the winter in sheltered gardens or protected positions, such as a porch. Some plants bear flowers with a sweet musky fragrance. 

Ideal ornamental plant

Not many people think of using herbs as bedding plants, but purple sage (Salvia officinalis ‘Purpurescens’) makes an ideal ornamental plant. Its metallic evergreen leaves look good all year round, and smell great too. They are just as edible as their green-leaved cousins.

Year-round colour

Heavenly bamboo (Nandina domestica ‘Fire Power’) gives year-round colour. Its leaves are yellow-green in summer then turn bright red as the weather cools in autumn. Small plants can be purchased cheaply for autumn bedding then re-used as permanent garden plants. 

Long-lasting displays

Ornamental cabbages give a long-lasting display and are available in an enormous range of colours and leaf shapes. Their coloration changes as the weather cools, presenting an ever-changing spectacle. They combine well with fine-textured plants such as grasses.

Pollinator friendly

Hardy plumbago (Ceratostigma plumbaginoides) is a reliable performer for a sunny spot, with sky-blue flowers blooming for weeks on end in September and October. It is much loved by pollinating insects. The leaves develop attractive wine-coloured tints too. 

Ideal for texture

Imperata cylindrica 'Rubra' provides useful texture in autumn bedding schemes. Its narrow leaves shine out a rich red in the low sunlight at this time of year, contrasting effectively with other plants. Plants die back to ground level over the winter. 

Dependable colour

Winter pansies provide dependable colour from autumn until mid-spring. Smaller-flowered varieties are more weather resistant and easier to combine with other plants than those with big flowers. All are hardy and colourful; their little faces providing cheer on even the darkest days.

Useful for contrast

Heuchera ‘Sugar Plum’ has bright pink leaves that provide long-lasting colour and a useful contrast to other plants, particularly grasses. This is a hardy

Perennials are plants that live for multiple years. They come in all shapes and sizes and fill our gardens with colourful flowers and ornamental foliage. Many are hardy and can survive outdoors all year round, while less hardy types need protection over winter. The term herbaceous perennial is used to describe long-lived plants without a permanent woody structure (they die back to ground level each autumn), distinguishing them from trees, shrubs and sub-shrubs.