top of page
Search

🍁Skip the Mums with THESE Fall-Blooming Perennials!🌸 Mum Alternatives!

10 minutes ago
5 min read

We know you're feeling it too! The nights are getting cold and the mums are starting to fill your neighborhoods. But what if I told you there’s so much more to Fall than the classic chrysanthemum? Plant these Mum Alternatives!

Vibrant chrysanthemum mounds in white, yellow, red and purple fill a sunny garden display with ornamental grasses.
Mums are staples in the Fall garden, but they're far from your only option!

If your garden looks a little tired and lackluster, you should know, mums aren’t the only answer. Every Fall, millions of homeowners spend hundreds of dollars on annuals that lose their wow-factor when early winter weather knocks at the door. However, there’s a whole host of perennials that give that same seasonal splendor. 

Close-up of pink sedum blossoms with green leaves in bright sunlight, filling the frame with a lush garden feel
Sedum 'October Daphne' weathers frosty mornings with ease!

Take Sedum for example. These sat out here in the open elements last night, took a direct hit from the frost, and they still look absolutely spectacular – We didn’t have to protect them at all!

Colorful garden of pink, yellow, and white wildflowers blooming densely against a blurred green and gold background.
Calico Aster standing out amidst Rudbeckia, New England Aster, Phlox and 'Fireworks' Goldenrod

While some yards are turning brown and spent, plants like these are just getting started. If you want high-impact, zero-stress curb appeal from August all the way through November, you need to start planting structural, late-season perennials that thrive in cool weather.

Bright garden bed with pink blooms and wispy lime-green foliage, plus blurred yellow flowers in the foreground.
'Vibrant Dome' New England Aster adds intense neon color to the Fall garden.

The secret to a gorgeous late-season garden isn’t just about buying fall bloomers—it’s about layering different species to create varied texture, add vibrant color, and ring the dinner bell for those very hungry late-flying pollinators. Come look at the lineup we have here for you at Bountiful Gardens:

White montauk daisies bloom beside a brick path in a sunny garden, with purple flowers and lush green foliage in the background.
You can't go wrong with Montauk Daisy in Autumn!

First is a classic garden staple: Montauk Daisy. It offers a bright white mound of blooms for a structured, cottage look.

  • Hardy Plumbago
  • Spotted Deadnettle

Hardy plumbago and spotted dead nettle provide abundant flowers from late spring onward into mid fall. Plumbago’s foliage then transforms to a brilliant, bright burgundy-red post bloom while the nettle stays stylishly semi-evergreen all winter long.

Hand cradling clusters of tiny pink flowers on a green succulent October Daphne Sedum, with a bee nearby.
Sedum 'October Daphne' offers crucial late-season food for pollinators!

While other sedums may be petering out, ‘October Daphne' Sedum delivers peak pink perfection to the October garden.

  • 'Fireworks' Goldenrod
  • 'Fireworks' Goldenrod

'Fireworks' Goldenrod’s electric cascade of yellow blooms in the early fall supports over 100 different species of pollinators!

  • Toad Lily
  • Japanese Anemone

For shadier spots, Toad Lilies and Japanese Anemones are thriving right now! Their flowers range from bright whites, perfect purples, to vibrant pinks & red.

  • Calico Aster
  • Aromatic Aster
  • New England Aster 'Vibrant Dome'

For some late native color, try some true asters: Calico, Aromatic, and New England Asters. All three fit different unique niches in the garden but add their own prismatic flare.

  • Orange Coneflower
  • Black-Eyed Susan

There’s also Orange Coneflower & Black-Eyed Susan. They stay blooming strong, summer through fall and attract loads of wildlife like goldfinches.

Dense patch of bright yellow Tall Coreopsis in lush green foliage, sunlit and serene with no people or text visible.
A huge mass of towering Tall Coreopsis in a native perennial garden

If you love coreopsis but have a moister spot, try Tall Coreopsis. This perennial skyrockets up to nine feet tall with canary colored blooms. 

Bright yellow Swamp Coreopsis bloom in a lush garden, surrounded by grasses and blurred purple flowers in warm sunlight.
Swamp Coreopsis 'Summer Sunshine'

But if you want something a bit shorter, use its relative Swamp Coreopsis. Our cultivar champion ‘Summer Sunshine’ blooms September through November and maintains glossy, pristine, dark green foliage all summer long.

Sunny garden with yellow Swamp Sunflower, pink blooms, white posts and a black lamppost under a clear blue sky.
Swamp Sunflower standing tall in our native perennial display

Looking for a magnificent, tall perennial for the back of a moist bed? Try Swamp Sunflower! Its classic blooms last for over a month starting in late September or Early October!

Sunlit yellow Willowleaf Sunflower clustered in a garden, with blurred blooms and dark green background.
Willowleaf Sunflower is a compact alternative to Swamp Sunflower.

However, if that’s a tad tall, try its cousin Willowleaf Sunflower. The cultivar ‘Autumn Gold’ maintains denser, mounded clumps of wispy foliage, before bursting with a sea of deep-yellow petals.

Close-up of yellow witch hazel blossoms on bare branches, with a blurred colorful garden and blue sky in the background.
Witch Hazel's funky, fragrant blooms are opening up!

"And don't forget the shrubs! Common Witch Hazel is just starting to flower right now! Its fragrance is unmatched in the fall landscape.

  • Winterberry Holly
  • Red Chokeberry

Then there’s Winterberry and Chokeberry! Even in winter, they pack a punch of pigments, attracting a fanfare of feathered friends all winter long.

Bright pink and purple 'Vibrant Dome' New England Asters bloom in a lush green garden, with sunlit yellow foliage in the background.
'Vibrant Dome' New England Aster alongside 'Fireworks' Goldenrod and Garden Phlox

Maintaining Your Fall-Blooming Perennials 🌸

To keep our lineup and most late-season perennials standing tall with long-lasting blooms late in the season, follow these basic care steps:

Woman in knit hat browses colorful organic fertilizer bags at a plant shop, beside a sign reading It’s Time to Fertilize Your Plants!
Amelia shows off our extensive inventory of fertilizers--don't over-do it!

First, Avoid Over-Fertilizing: Too much fertilizer prompts massive foliage growth and floppy habits.

Person in a pink knit hat and glasses holds a potted yellow-flowered plant in a sunny garden nursery.
Amelia shows the midway point on 'Moonbeam' Coreopsis

Next, Do a Mid-Summer Shearing: For species like Coreopsis, cutting the plants back by half after their first summer flush, forces fresh foliage and more fall flowers.

Man in a sunny garden carefully prunes a leafy plant with shears, surrounded by bright green foliage.
Ike selects a "chop spot" above a node on Joe Pye Weed.

Lastly, Implement the "Chelsea Chop,” especially for taller perennials. Cutting the stems back in late spring delays the initial flowering by a few weeks. This creates sturdier, bushier plants with significantly more flowering branches for fall.

Hands gently inspect a green leafy plant in a sunlit garden, with blurred pink flowers and foliage in the background.
A perfectly executed pruning!

If your late-season heavy hitters are currently flopping over or looking a bit sloppy, the Chelsea Chop is the garden method for you! 

Man in a tan hoodie and cap touches tall wildflowers in a sunny garden, surrounded by purple blooms and green foliage.
Ike shows where you can prune Aromatic Aster in late Spring.

Named after the famous Royal Horticultural Society Chelsea Flower Show in the UK, this simple technique requires you to aggressively cut back later-blooming perennials by half to one-third in late May or early June. 

Mass of purple Aromatic Aster flowers fills a garden bed beside a yellow wall, with green foliage and a calm sunny feel.
Aromatic Aster, mounding and blooming beautifully thanks to the Chelsea Chop!

This intentional, controlled pruning forces the plant to branch out, resulting in a bushier, shorter habit with significantly more flower buds that open about two weeks later than usual.

Rows of colorful chrysanthemum mounds in a sunny garden, mostly white with pink, orange, and purple blooms.
Mums are pruned extensively to achieve their Autumn appearance.

You might be wondering: “Is that how mums get their round dense shape? Can these perennials actually do the same thing?” The answer to both is yes! 

  • Beebalm
  • Joe Pye Weed
  • Ironweed
  • Garden Phlox

The Chelsea Chop is one method used to give nursery mums their dense, rounded shape! This technique can be used on our entire fall perennial lineup as well as other species like beebalm, joe-pye weed, ironweed, and garden phlox.


Hands use pruning shears to trim a leafy green plant outdoors in bright sunlight, with a calm garden setting.
Ike prunes an Aster to achieve a more uniform growing habit.

✂️ Three Ways to Execute the Chop

Depending on your design goals, you can use different slicing strategies:

Hand hovers over a green plant in a sunlit garden, with blurred white flowers behind.
On this Aster, Ike decided to execute a "full chop".

  • First, The Full Chop: Cut 100% of the stems back by one-third to one-half to create a uniform, compact mound.

Hand gently holds a white coneflower among blooming garden plants, with soft-focus colorful flowers in the background.
The staggered chop makes way for more blooms without sacrificing earlier buds.

  • Then there’s The Staggered Chop: Only cut back the front or outer half of the stems, leaving the other half completely untouched. As the uncut stems’ blooms fade, the chopped stems will take over the show.

Bearded man in a dark green hoodie reaches toward yellow-orange coneflowers in a sunny garden, with SGC text on his sleeve.
Create a staircase of flowers that hide their own stems with the tiered chop!

  • You could also try The Tiered Chop: Cut the front portion by half, the middle section by one-third, and leave the back untouched. This creates a staircase of continuous flowers that visually masks leggy lower stems.


  • Daylily
  • Peony
  • Foxglove
  • Liatris

⚠️ What to Absolutely Avoid Chopping

Make sure to do your research first as you don’t want to Chelsea Chop perennials that only produce a single flower spike per season, bulbous plants, or woody shrubs. If you cut back plants like Lilies, Peonies, Foxgloves, or Liatris, you will accidentally cut off their only flower buds for the year.

Sunlit nursery greenhouse with red chrysanthemums, fall foliage, and potted plants; a small sign reads Tool Sun's.
Deep red mums accenting our native perennial display in Ewing

Now don’t get us wrong–we love our gorgeous mums–we’re overflowing with them! However, with some species selection and care, you can let your mums shine even brighter this season by providing them with a late-blooming perennial backdrop, and now you know the best plants to pick here at Bountiful Gardens this Fall! Come choose your favorite mum alternatives!

Autumn flower market with rows of red, yellow, and orange mums, pumpkins, and a CHECK-OUT booth under a clear sky.
If you still want mums, come on down! We've got them all!

 
 
 

Comments

bottom of page