While many herbaceous plants have already finished their main show by October, there are still a number of reliable performers that continue to bring colour and life to borders into early autumn. Varieties such as Anemone, Geranium, Sedum, and Helenium provide valuable late-season interest with their fresh foliage and long-lasting blooms. These plants are perfect for bridging the seasonal gap between summer and winter, adding softness, structure, and rich colour tones just when many borders begin to fade. Whether you’re refreshing a tired planting scheme or looking to extend the flowering period of a new project, these late-flowering herbaceous favourites are ideal choices for prolonging garden appeal into the cooler months.
Anemone (Japanese Windflower) is a graceful perennial that blooms from late summer into autumn, adding soft colour and movement to borders. With tall, airy stems and delicate pink or white flowers, it’s ideal for partial shade and pairs beautifully with ferns and grasses. Low-maintenance and long-flowering, it’s a standout in late-season gardens.
Flowers: August – October (depending on variety)
Position: Full sun – partial shade
Height: Up to 1.2m (depending on variety)
Soil: Moist, fertile, humus-rich soil
Pot size: 2L, 3L (depending on variety and subject to availability)
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Agastache (also known as Hyssop or Hummingbird Mint) is a fragrant, upright perennial prized for its spikes of tubular flowers in shades of purple, pink, orange, or blue from mid-summer to autumn. Loved by bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, it thrives in full sun and well-drained soil, tolerating heat and drought. Its aromatic foliage and long bloom time make it perfect for pollinator gardens, prairie-style borders, and dry, sunny spots.
Flowers: July – October (depending on variety)
Position: Full sun
Height: Up to 1m (depending on the variety)
Soil: Fertile, well-drained soil
Pot size: 2L. 3L
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Aster (also known as Michaelmas Daisy) is a late-blooming perennial that brings a burst of colour from late summer into autumn. With daisy-like flowers in shades of purple, pink, blue, or white, it’s a favorite for pollinators, especially bees and butterflies. Asters thrive in full sun to partial shade and work beautifully in borders, wildlife gardens, and mixed plantings.
Flowers: August – October (depends on the variety)
Position: Full sun
Height: Up to 0.9m (depending on variety)
Soil: Well-drained, moderately fertile soil
Pot size: 2L, 3L
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Geranium (Hardy Geranium or Cranesbill) is a reliable, low-maintenance perennial valued for its mounded foliage and long-lasting, saucer-shaped flowers in shades of pink, blue, purple, or white. Blooming from late spring through summer—and some varieties into autumn—it thrives in sun or partial shade and well-drained soil. Geraniums are excellent for groundcover, edging, or weaving through borders, and many varieties are deer-resistant and pollinator-friendly.
Flowers: June – October (depending on variety)
Position: Full sun – partial shade
Height: Up to 0.6m (depending on variety)
Soil: Fertile, well-drained soil
Pot size: 2L
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Penstemon (commonly known as Beardtongue) is a long-flowering perennial admired for its tall spires of tubular flowers in shades of pink, purple, red, white, or blue, blooming from early summer into autumn. Its elegant, upright form and nectar-rich blooms make it a favourite with bees and hummingbirds. Penstemon prefers full sun and well-drained soil, and works beautifully in mixed borders, cottage gardens, and pollinator-friendly plantings. Deadheading encourages a longer bloom period.
Flowers: July – October
Position: Full sun- partial shade
Height: Up to 1m (depending on variety)
Soil: Fertile, moist, well-drained soil
Pot size: 2l, 3L (depending on variety and subject to availability).
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Persicaria (commonly known as Knotweed or Bistort) is a bold, long-flowering perennial known for its dense spikes of small flowers in shades of red, pink, or white, blooming from mid-summer into autumn. It thrives in sun or partial shade and prefers moist, well-drained soil, making it ideal for naturalistic borders, damp spots, or prairie-style plantings. With its spreading habit and extended bloom time, Persicaria adds texture, movement, and late-season colour to the garden—and is loved by pollinators too
Flowers: June – October (depending on variety)
Position: Full sun- partial shade
Height: Up to 1m (depending on variety)
Soil: Any moist soil
Pot size: 2l (depending on variety and subject to availability)
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Rudbeckia (commonly known as Black-eyed Susan) is a bold, late-summer perennial known for its bright yellow or gold daisy-like flowers with distinctive dark central cones. Blooming from mid-summer into autumn, it thrives in full sun and well-drained soil, and is loved by bees, butterflies, and birds. Rudbeckia adds vibrant colour and structure to borders, prairie-style plantings, and pollinator gardens, and pairs well with grasses and other late-season perennials.
Flowers: August – October (depending on variety)
Position: Full sun
Height: Up to 0.8m (depending on variety)
Soil: Moderately fertile, preferably heavy but well-drained soil
Pot size: 2l, 3L (depending on variety and subject to availability)
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Salvia (commonly known as Sage) is a vibrant, long-flowering perennial known for its spikes of tubular flowers in shades of blue, purple, pink, or red, blooming from late spring through summer, often into autumn. It thrives in full sun and well-drained soil, is drought-tolerant, and highly attractive to bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. With aromatic foliage and a tidy habit, Salvia is perfect for borders, pollinator gardens, and Mediterranean-style plantings.
Flowers: June – October (depending on variety)
Position: Full sun
Height: Up to 1.2m (depending on variety)
Soil: Moderately fertile, moist but well-drained soil
Pot size: 2l, 3L,5L (depending on variety and subject to availability)
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Sedum (commonly known as Stonecrop) is a hardy, drought-tolerant perennial prized for its fleshy, succulent leaves and flat-topped flower heads that bloom from late summer into autumn. Flowers come in shades of pink, red, or white, and are highly attractive to bees and butterflies. Sedum thrives in full sun and well-drained soil, making it ideal for borders, gravel gardens, and containers. Its upright varieties add structure and seasonal colour, while low-growing types work well as groundcover.
Flowers: August – November (depending on variety)
Position: Full sun
Height: Up to 0.6m (depending on variety)
Soil: Moderately fertile, well-drained, neutral to slightly alkaline soil
Pot size: 2l, 3L, 5L (depending on variety and subject to availability)
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Posted 16th Sep 2:39pm
