21 Fall Blooming Perennial Flowers For Your Flower Garden

As summer ends, you’ll start seeing your beautiful summer flowers fade away. This can be an upsetting experience, as the cooler weather makes your yard dull and devoid of color. Yet, it doesn’t have to be this way. There are plenty of fall blooming perennials available to keep your yard bursting with color even when that cooler air starts rolling in.

If you plan ahead, it’s possible to plant a garden full of perennial flowers that will sequentially bloom, season after season. So, where do you start? How do you find the the perfect perennial flowers for autumn blooms?

We’ve hand-picked our favorite fall blooming perennials that will help carry your garden into first frost. Let’s dig a little deeper and take a look at our favorite fall blooming perennials you can add to your garden this season!

Anise Hyssop

Scientific Name: Agastache foeniculum

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: North America
• Plant Size: 3-5 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 5 to 9

Anise Hyssop will brighten your fall flower garden with pretty hues of purple and blue. The plant grows up to a few feet tall, with long rods of clustered flowers. It looks similar to lavender.

The flowers begin opening in the late summer, but the plant will continue producing new flowers through the fall. This plant is a favorite among pollinators.

The plant most likely gets its name from the licorice or anise scent that the plant expels. You can use the plant in food or make infused teas with it.

Appalachian Sunflower

Scientific Name: Helianthus atrorubens

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: The United States
• Plant Size: 3 to 5 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 6-8

Appalachian Sunflowers are a common wildflower found in the southeastern United States. They typically begin blooming in the middle of the summer and continue blooming through the fall.

Unlike their larger relative, the Appalachian Sunflower produces much smaller flowers that are only about two inches in diameter. The flowers come in gold or yellow, while the pistils are dark brown. They look similar to daisies.

Appalachian Turtlehead

Scientific Name: Chelone lyonii

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: The United States
• Plant Size: 2 to 4 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 3 to 8

The Appalachian Turtlehead is a clumping wildflower commonly found in the southeastern United States. The plant produces long stems with leaves that can grow up to six inches long.

The tubular flowers are bright pink or purple and grow in small clusters. You can find them in white or yellow too, but pink and purple hues seem to be more common. This flowering plant starts blooming at the end of summer and continues to brighten your garden with blooms through the fall.

Aromatic Aster

Scientific Name: Symphyotrichum oblongifolium

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: The United States and Mexico
• Plant Size: About 3 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 3 to 8

Asters are wildflowers that you can commonly find throughout the United States, but you can buy them from local nurseries for your gardens as well. They come from the daisy family, so you’ll notice they have long, skinny petals similar to many daisy varieties.

The flowers usually have purple petals with yellow pistils in the middle, and they have a balsam scent when crushed. There are many different aster varieties with the aromatic aster being one of the most popular.

These colorful flowers will last in your garden and continue to bloom until around the time of the first frost. Animals tend to stay away from these flowers, and they are drought and flood-resistant.

Autumn Crocus

Scientific Name: Colchicum autumnale

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: Southern Europe
• Plant Size: 6 to 10 inches
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 4 to 9

The Autumn Crocus is a fall blooming perennial, creating beautiful flowers that can be purple, pink, and sometimes white. It grows best in wet, well-drained soil and full sun, but it can tolerate a small amount of shade. This is another favorite flower among pollinators.

While the Autumn Crocus is a rather beautiful plant, it is poisonous to humans and animals if ingested. So, be careful if you have small children and pets.

Autumn Sneezeweed

Scientific Name: Helenium autumnale

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: The United States and Canada
• Plant Size: 3 to 5 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 3 to 8

Sneezeweed gets its name from its historical usage. People used to crush this plant to make a type of snuff that encouraged sneezing.

Autumn Sneezeweed is a common wildflower that you’ll often find in red, orange, and yellow hues. This flower grows in the shape of a bush, growing long stems with small flowers. They tend to bloom in late summer and continue blooming throughout the fall, providing your garden with some pretty fall colors.

Autumn Sneezeweed is poisonous, but only if you ingest large amounts.

Black-Eyed Susan

Scientific Name: Rudbeckia hirta

• Plant Type: Short-lived perennial
• Geographic Origin: Eastern United States
• Plant Size: 2 to 4 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 3 to 8

Black-eyed Susan varieties can be annuals and short-lived perennials, which means they last for a few years. They self-seed, which is why they keep coming back each year and are in the perennial category.

Black-eyed Susans have long stems, bright yellow flower petals, and dark brown to black pistils. They grow in a bush shape and are a common wildflower found in the eastern United States.

But, you can buy them for your garden too. Rudbeckia starts flowering in the summer, but they will continue to bloom through the fall.

Blue Cardinal Flower

Scientific Name: Lobelia siphilitica

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: North America
• Plant Size: 3 to 4 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 4 to 9

The Blue Cardinal Flower is one of many species of Lobelia flowers. This specific plant can grow up to a few feet and produces rod-shaped clusters of tube-shaped flowers. The color of the flowers ranges from light to dark blue.

The flowers bloom by the middle of summer and continue to do so through fall. They are rather hardy and can usually withstand both full sun and partial shade, allowing you more flexibility in where to plant them.

Dahlias

Scientific Name: Dahlia hortensis

• Plant Type: Perennial or annual depending on your zone
• Geographic Origin: Central America and Mexico
• Plant Size: 1 to 6 feet, depending on the variety
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 7 to 10

Dahlias come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Most varieties will start blooming in the summer months and continue to bloom through the fall.

As long as you mulch them and continue caring for them, they should last until around the first frost. With proper care, most dahlias will continue to reappear each year.

You can find dahlias in a list of colors, including red, orange, yellow, white, purple, pink, and multicolored. The petals are vibrant and uniform, causing the flowers to look nearly perfect.

European Field Pansy

Scientific Name: Viola arvensis

• Plant Type: Perennial or annual depending on your zone
• Geographic Origin: Europe, Asia, and Africa
• Plant Size: Up to 16 inches
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 6 to 9

The European Field Pansy tends to grow close to the ground, but sometimes stems can reach up to 16 inches. They bloom multiple times a year, with fall being one of those times. To encourage growth in the fall, you need to prune them before fall comes around.

The flowers can be a solid color or multicolored. Typical colors include yellow, purple, and white, and the flowers are usually less than an inch in diameter.

Goldenrod

Scientific Name: Solidago

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: North and South America, Mexico, Europe, and Asia
• Plant Size: 2 to 3 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 2 to 8

Goldenrod is a common wildflower found all around the United States, and there are over 120 species. You’ll often find goldenrod in the woods, but garden centers sell it too. The plant consists of long stems with rods of tiny clustered yellow flowers. The bright color and sweet nectar are like a magnet for pollinators.

Goldenrod starts blooming in the summer but continues to bloom through the fall, offering your garden a pop of color for multiple seasons. It also spreads easily. So, if it gets too overpowering, you should start separating it.

Hardy Begonia

Scientific Name: Begonia grandis

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: China and Japan
• Plant Size: 1 to 3 feet
• Sun Exposure: Partial shade
• Plant Zone: 6 to 9

Hardy Begonia plants show off loose, cascading pink flowers from the summer through the fall. The plants begin to dwindle by the end of October, but they will reappear next season if you mulch their beds and provide proper care.

Hardy Begonias also like the shade rather than being in direct sunlight. So, pair them with other plants that don’t require direct sunlight.

Hardy Chrysanthemum

Scientific Name: Chrysanthemum rubellum

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: Europe, Asia, Indo-China, and northern North America
• Plant Size: 2 to 3 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 4 to 8

Some Chrysanthemums, or mums, get planted as annuals, as they typically do not return. But, hardy mums come back each year. They are a popular fall flower because they’re rather strong, and the plants produce color-saturated flowers.

They can withstand bad weather and cold temperatures, so they will bloom and last through the fall.

You can find mums in various colors such as pink, orange, yellow, red, and white, among others. They grow in a bush formation and provide a few feet of coverage on the ground, so they are great for filling in your flower garden.

Japanese Anemone

Scientific Name: Anemone hybrida

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: China
• Plant Size: 3 to 4 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 4 to 8

The Japanese Anemone comes from a hybrid of flowers originating from China, hence their native geographical location. This breed of anemone blooms for up to eight weeks, from late summer into the fall.

The plant shows off beautiful white flowers. Sometimes, they’ll even have a little pink mixed in. You’ll find that they grow into a mound shape and cover a lot of ground. Japanese Anemones can handle full sun, but they’re happier in partial shade.

Joe Pye Weed

Scientific Name: Eutrochium maculatum

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: North America
• Plant Size: 4 to 7 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 3 to 8

Joe Pye Weed is a common wildflower that can grow taller than an adult human. There are multiple varieties found all over North America, and they all have long, leafy stems that produce clusters of tiny pink or purple flowers. The stems tend to be hairy and purple or have purple spots.

Joe Pye Weed starts blooming in the late summer and continues blooming through the fall. In their natural habitat, you’ll often find them near coasts.

Marigold

Scientific Name: Tagete

• Plant Type: Perennial or annual depending on your zone
• Geographic Origin: South and Central America and Mexico
• Plant Size: 1 to 4 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 2 to 11

Marigolds are popular garden flowers that come from the sunflower family. The flowers are rather fragrant when crushed, so you can use them in food and drinks like teas. But, most people like them because of their beauty.

Marigold stems can grow to long lengths and hold flowers that can grow up to three inches in diameter. The flowers usually come in orange or yellow, and they can sometimes be a combination of the two. Marigolds are hardy, self-seeding plants that will grow in most environments.

Russian Sage

Scientific Name: Salvia yangii

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: Southwest and Central Asia
• Plant Size: 2 to 4 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 5 to 9

Russian Sage is a shrub that produces thick, woody stems, which serve as a sturdy base for the plant. These stems, along with the minty-scented leaves, are a mix of gray and green.

The flowers are small, ranging from blue to purple, and grow in a rod shape. As the plant matures, it takes on a bush-shaped appearance and can grow up to four feet in diameter.

This plant does best in full sun and produces beautiful flowers from summer up to the first frost.

Sedum Autumn Joy

Scientific Name: Hylotelephium

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: China
• Plant Size: 1.6 to 2 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Plant Zone: 3 to 10

The Sedum Autumn Joy is in the succulent category and has an appealing appearance all year round, even if it isn’t flowering. The plant grows in a cluster or bush and produces small flower clusters.

Pink is a common flower color, but the flowers can be orange, red, yellow, purple, or white. This fall-blooming perennial starts growing buds in the summer that open up by the fall.

Sweet Alyssum

Scientific Name: Lobularia maritima

• Plant Type: Short-lived Perennial
• Geographic Origin: Southern Europe
• Plant Size: 3 to 9 inches
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 5 to 9

Sweet Alyssums are short-lived perennials that you can expect to appear in your garden for a few years. This mound-shaped plant is great for filling in gaps in your garden, as they tend to spread wide distances with their little four-petaled flowers.

The flowers are usually less than an inch and grow closer together in clusters. You can find these flowers in varying colors, such as white, purple, red, yellow, etc.

Sweet Autumn Clematis

Scientific Name: Clematis paniculata

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: New Zealand
• Plant Size: Up to 30 feet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
• Plant Zone: 3 to 8

The Sweet Autumn Clematis is a vine-like plant that is in the buttercup family, and it easily spreads. It produces tiny white or yellow flowers that are about an inch in diameter, and they grow very close together.

Although these four-petaled flowers may be small, they give a strong scent, and they bloom twice a year. They are fall blooming perennials and summer blooming perennials. Just pay attention to small children and pets, as this plant can cause mouth ulcers if eaten.

Toad Lily

Scientific Name: Tricyrtis hirta

• Plant Type: Perennial
• Geographic Origin: Japan
• Plant Size: Up to 36 inches
• Sun Exposure: Partial shade
• Plant Zone: 4 to 8

Toad Lily plants grow in clumps, sprouting beautiful speckled flowers that grow up to three inches in diameter. When the flowers open up, the tips of the petals tend to curl outward, displaying their interesting stamens.

These flowers work great as accents, or they can be the center of attention. You’ll typically find these flowers in purple and white, and they bloom from summer through the fall.