Shrubs and Plants Flowering and looking good in October

This is Colchicum autumnale, commonly known as the autumn Crocus. It is a small plant, similar to a Crocus on which the flowers appear in the autumn and the leaves follow later in the year. It looks good naturalised in grass, and will grow in most conditions apart from wet and shade. It is a perennial returning each year in the autumn to flower.

Although not in full flower now, the fading heads of hydrangea flowers look fabulous, especially the russet reds. Hydrangea are a useful addition to a garden because they will tolerate a good degree of shade and also damp ground helpful to fill a tricky spot. There are a wide range of flower types and sizes to choose from- ideas and trowing tips.

You may associate Dahlia with summer borders, but they are often in flower well into October until the first frost. Dahlia are very long flowering for which reason they are a great border plant. Not straightforward to grow. In frost-prone areas, Dahlia needs to be lifted and stored over winter - tips on how to grow Dahlia and look after them over winter.

Roses also flower until the first frosts. In a mild autumn many keep on flowering but not all, so planting the correct variety can be important. Some roses finish flowering early in the season, such as Rosa rugosa but in stead they reward us with bright red hips. Not only do we enjoy rose hips they are taken by blackbirds, fieldfares and mistle thrushes.

Acer provides wonderful autumn colour. They are deciduous trees with a wide range of sizes, but there are many smaller varieties suitable for gardens and to grow in containers. A graceful habit, Acer, grows best away from harsh sunlight or cold winter winds which can burn the foilage 

If you have a large area to cover, Boston Ivy is one of the best climbing plants for autumn colour. It's foilage turns bright red in the autumn and stands out, especially if planted where the sun will make the leaves glow.It is self clinging and deciduous.

Nerine is a bulb which flowers in autumn shades of pink, red and white. Not all Nerines are hardy, illustrated is Nerine bowdenii, which is commonly grown as it is H5 hardy and has the AGM.

Nerine bulbs are best planted in late spring and in a warm dry part of the garden, They are usually pest free although slugs may give them a go.

This is Nerine bowdenii 'Alba' which I thought was worth a second post as its unusual to see the white variety grown. 

It is also fully hardy, and flowers in autumn, producing the best flowers in a sunny spot.

All varieties are available from crocus (affiliate link) Nerine bulbs are usually planted in spring.