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What flowers in September

The perennials, bulbs and shrubs in flower in September, which of them start this month, and how the dates move with your zone.

September is the season of the asters and goldenrods, the Japanese anemones, and grasses in full plume.

324 of the planner's plants are in flower at some point in September in zone 5, and 29 of them start this month. Autumn flowers keep much the same dates in every zone: they answer to the shortening days.

324 plants: 214 perennials, 15 bulbs, 36 grasses and 59 shrubs.

The dozen to start with

  • Garden chrysanthemum

    Garden chrysanthemum

    24 in · mid September to late October · starts mid September

    The florist's mum: dense domes of daisies, pompoms or buttons in every autumn colour.

  • Rose of Sharon

    Rose of Sharon

    10 ft · mid July to mid September · until mid September

    An upright shrub with hollyhock-like flowers in pink, purple, white or violet-blue from midsummer to autumn, when few shrubs flower.

  • Pink muhly grass

    Pink muhly grass

    3 ft · mid September to early November · starts mid September

    In October a quiet mound of wiry, dark green leaves disappears under a billowing cloud of vivid pink that looks like cotton candy.

  • Canna

    Canna

    5 ft · early July to early October · until early October · host plant

    Huge, paddle-shaped leaves, green, bronze or striped, topped with bright flowers in red, orange, yellow or pink from midsummer to frost.

  • Lilyturf

    Lilyturf

    16 in · early August to mid September · until mid September

    Evergreen clumps of dark, strap-shaped, grassy leaves, with spikes of violet flowers like grape hyacinths in late summer, followed by black berries.

  • Tall verbena

    Tall verbena

    5 ft · late June to mid October · until mid October

    Small clusters of lavender-purple flowers on tall, wiry, almost leafless stems, from midsummer to frost.

  • Chaste tree

    Chaste tree

    11½ ft · early July to early September · until early September

    A large shrub or small, multi-stemmed tree with aromatic, grey-green, fingered leaves and long spikes of lavender-blue flowers in the heat of summer, loved by bees and butterflies.

  • Black-eyed Susan

    Black-eyed Susan

    24 in · mid July to mid September · until mid September · host plant

    Masses of golden, dark-centred flowers from midsummer into fall.

  • Oleander

    Oleander

    10 ft · mid June to early October · until early October

    A large evergreen with narrow, leathery leaves and clusters of pink, red or white flowers from early summer to autumn.

  • Panicle hydrangea 'Vanilla Strawberry'

    Panicle hydrangea 'Vanilla Strawberry'

    6½ ft · mid July to early October · until early October

    Large flower cones open creamy white, turn pink from the base and finish strawberry red, on red stems.

  • Dwarf fountain grass 'Hameln'

    Dwarf fountain grass 'Hameln'

    2½ ft · late July to mid September · until mid September

    A neat, arching mound topped with fuzzy bottle-brush plumes from late summer.

  • Switchgrass 'Northwind'

    Switchgrass 'Northwind'

    5½ ft · early August to early October · until early October · host plant

    The most upright switchgrass: a narrow, rigid column of olive-blue leaves that never flops, turning gold in autumn and standing through winter.

A bed at its best in September

The planner was given only the plants on this page that suit zone 6 and full sun, and designed this 16 × 8 ft (4.9 × 2.4 m) bed from them when the page was made. It is a bed for September on purpose, so its design check marks it down for the rest of the year: a real border would add plants for the other seasons.

A 16 × 8 ft (4.9 × 2.4 m) bed at eye level in mid September: Dianthus 'Kahori', Leadwort, White mugwort, Brown-eyed Susan, Abelia 'Kaleidoscope', Pincushion flower 'Butterfly Blue', Cranesbill 'Ann Folkard', Great blue lobelia, Red spider lily, Autumn crocus.
A 16 × 8 ft (4.9 × 2.4 m) cottage garden in zone 6, full sun, seen from the path in mid September.
3. White mugwort33. White mugwort33. White mugwort34. Brown-eyed Susan44. Brown-eyed Susan44. Brown-eyed Susan45. Abelia 'Kaleidoscope'57. Cranesbill 'Ann Folkard'71. Dianthus 'Kahori'11. Dianthus 'Kahori'11. Dianthus 'Kahori'11. Dianthus 'Kahori'11. Dianthus 'Kahori'12. Leadwort22. Leadwort22. Leadwort22. Leadwort22. Leadwort21. Dianthus 'Kahori'11. Dianthus 'Kahori'11. Dianthus 'Kahori'12. Leadwort22. Leadwort22. Leadwort22. Leadwort24. Brown-eyed Susan44. Brown-eyed Susan44. Brown-eyed Susan44. Brown-eyed Susan44. Brown-eyed Susan44. Brown-eyed Susan44. Brown-eyed Susan48. Great blue lobelia88. Great blue lobelia88. Great blue lobelia88. Great blue lobelia82. Leadwort22. Leadwort22. Leadwort26. Pincushion flower 'Butterfly Blue'66. Pincushion flower 'Butterfly Blue'66. Pincushion flower 'Butterfly Blue'61. Dianthus 'Kahori'11. Dianthus 'Kahori'11. Dianthus 'Kahori'11. Dianthus 'Kahori'11. Dianthus 'Kahori'18. Great blue lobelia89. Red spider lily9. Red spider lily9. Red spider lily9. Red spider lily9. Red spider lily10. Autumn crocus10. Autumn crocus10. Autumn crocus10. Autumn crocus10. Autumn crocus10. Autumn crocus10. Autumn crocus
From above, to scale. Each circle is one plant, as wide as the room it needs.

The plants

  1. 1 Dianthus 'Kahori' × 13, pink
  2. 2 Leadwort × 12, blue
  3. 3 White mugwort × 3, cream
  4. 4 Brown-eyed Susan × 10, yellow
  5. 5 Abelia 'Kaleidoscope' × 1, white
  6. 6 Pincushion flower 'Butterfly Blue' × 3, lavender
  7. 7 Cranesbill 'Ann Folkard' × 1, pink
  8. 8 Great blue lobelia × 5, blue
  9. 9 Red spider lily × 5, red
  10. 10 Autumn crocus × 7, lavender

Planned as a cottage garden: 41 of the 48 plants (85%), bulbs aside, stand alone or in groups of no more than five, small enough for the kinds to mingle. The scheme leans cool (pink, blue and lavender) and uses yellow and red for warmth, with cream and white to calm things between them. The bed is tied together by its repeats: four kinds come round again along it, among them great blue lobelia and leadwort.

The planner's own design check: 8 Excellent, 9 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.

Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.

All 324 plants

Show all 324, by where they go in a bed

Front of a bed 71

Middle of a bed 121

Back of a bed 132

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