Featured Plants of Fall

Latin Name

Common Name

Lobelia siphilitica

Key Characteristics

Height Color

Comments

great blue lobella

2'–3'

Blue/Purple

Good nectar source; exceptional bumble bee plant

Morella pensylvanica

common bayberry

5'–12'

–

Salt tolerant; female plants have waxy coated fruit

Muhlenbergia capillaris

hair-awn muhly

2'–3'

–

Warm season grass; clouds of feathery pink blooms

Nyssa sylvatica

sour gum

30'–50'

Red/Pink

Brilliant fall color

Oxydendrum arboreum

sourwood

25'–30'

White

Fragrant flowers in drooping panicles; good fall color

Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Mindia’

Coppertina® Atlantic ninebark

5'–10'

White

Attractive flower clusters; exfoliating bark; fall color

Quercus coccinea

scarlet oak

70'–75'

–

Fast growing large tree; supports many native insects and wildlife

Rhexia virginica

Virginia meadow-beauty

1'–2'

Red/Pink

Good for pond edges

Rhus copallinum

winged sumac

7'–15'

Yellow

Attractive fall color; naturalizes well

Sambucus canadensis

American elderberry

5'–12'

White

Can form colonies; fruit is edible; fragrant flowers

Sassafras albidum

common sassafras

30'–60'

Yellow

Good fall color; can form thickets

Schizachyrium scoparium

little bluestem

2'–4'

–

Attractive warm season grass; tolerates drought

Solidago caesia

blue-stemmed goldenrod

1'–3'

Yellow

One of the few goldenrods tolerant of shade

Solidago rugosa ‘Fireworks’

Fireworks wrinkle-leaf goldenrod

3'–4'

Yellow

Tolerates moist soil

Solidago speciosa

showy goldenrod

3'–5'

Yellow

Drought tolerant; dense cluster of blooms

Solidago sphacelata ‘Golden Fleece’ Golden fleece autumn goldenrod

12"–18"

Yellow

Plants form mat-like groundcover

Sorghastrum nutans

yellow Indiangrass

3'–5'

–

Attractive grass; spreads readily by seeds

Spiranthes odorata

fragrant ladies’-tresses

9"–18"

White

Fragrant flowers; can form colonies

Sporobolus heterolepis

prairie dropseed

18"–36"

–

Soft–textured mounds; long-lived, refined plant

Symphyotrichum cordifolium

blue wood aster

2'–4'

Blue/Purple

Masses of attractive flowers; readily reseeds

Symphyotrichum georgianum

Georgia aster

2'–4'

Blue/Purple

Attractive large flower heads

Symphyotrichum laeve var. laeve ‘Bluebird’

Bluebird smooth aster

2'–4'

Blue/Purple

Best overall aster in Mt. Cuba Center trial

Symphyotrichum novae–angliae New England aster

1'–8'

Blue/Purple

Purple Dome; mounded habit

Symphyotrichum oblongifolium October Skies aromatic aster ‘October Skies’

1'–3'

Blue/Purple

Tolerates poor soil and drought; masses of blooms

Vernonia noveboracensis

New York ironweed

4'–6'

Blue/Purple

Effective in meadows and naturalized areas

Viburnum acerifolium

mapleleaf viburnum

3'–6'

White

Striking pinkish-purple foliage display in autumn

Viburnum dentatum

arrowwood

9'

White

Great for screening and wildlife habitat

Viburnum prunifolium

black haw

10'–20'

White

Large multi-stemmed shrub or small tree

Xanthorhiza simplicissima

yellowroot

2'–3'

Red/Pink

Spreading roots can hold erosion prone areas

For a list of businesses that sell native plants or seeds, visit mtcubacenter.org/directory.

Download this plant list at mtcubacenter.org/plantsoffall 3120 Barley Mill Road / Hockessin, DE 19707 / 302.239.4244

Latin Name

Common Name

Acer rubrum

red maple

40'–80'

Red/Pink

Attractive deciduous tree; vivid red fall color

Aconitum uncinatum

climbing monkshood

2'–5'

Blue/Purple

Perennial vine; weakly erect or leaning on other plans

Actaea pachypoda

white baneberry

20"–30"

White

Easily grown and long-lived; poisonous; also called doll’s eyes

Actaea podocarpa

American bugbane

3'–6'

White

Flowers lack petals; stamens are showy like a bottlebrush

Ageratina altissima var. altissima

white snakeroot

1'–4'

White

Mammalian herbivores, including deer, generally avoid

Amsonia hubrichtii

Hubricht’s bluestar

2'–3'

Blue/Purple

Long-lived perennial; golden yellow fall color

Add beauty and attract beneficial wildlife to your home landscape with these native plants, chosen for their seasonal interest and ecological benefits. Find all of these plants in Mt. Cuba’s gardens, marked by a plant highlight label (shown above).

Andropogon virginicus

broomsedge bluestem

4'

–

Warm season grass; tolerates nutrient poor soil

Aronia melanocarpa

black chokeberry

3'–6’

White

Showy fruit; purple/red fall color; can form colonies

Asimina triloba

pawpaw

15'–20'

Red/Pink

Forming thickets from root sprouts; fruit is edible

Callicarpa americana

American beautyberry

3'–8'

Red/Pink

Grown for the berry-like purple fruit clustered on stems

Carya ovata

shagbark hickory

70'–100'

–

Slow–growing; long-lived; great fall color

To learn more about Mt. Cuba Center’s featured seasonal plants, register for our Native Plants of Spring, Summer, and Fall courses at mtcubacenter.org.

Chasmanthium latifolium

wild oats

2'–5'

–

Clump forming grass; ornamental seed heads

Chelone lyonii ‘Hot Lips’

Hot Lips Lyon’s turtlehead

16"–40"

Red/Pink

Doesn’t tolerate drought; excellent choice for containers

Conoclinium coelestinum

mistflower

1'–3'

Blue/Purple

Lavender stamens produce the fuzzy appearance of the flower

Coreopsis tripteris

tall tickseed

6'–9'

Yellow

Prolonged bloom time from late-summer to early-fall

Crataegus viridis ‘Winter King’

Winter King green hawthorn

20'–35'

White

Ornamental bright red persistent fruit

Deschampsia cespitosa

tufted hairgrass

12"–42"

–

Cool season grass; tolerates heavy soils; tall cloud-like blooms

Full Sun

Diospyros virginiana

common persimmon

30'–50'

–

Desirable edible fruit used for breads, jams; wildlife value

Part Shade/Part Sun

Euonymus americanus

bursting–heart

4'–6'

Yellow

Unusual attractive orange-red seeds

Eupatorium hyssopifolium

hyssop–leaf thoroughwort

1'–3'

White

Clouds of tiny white flowers; effective in meadows

Eurybia divaricata

white wood aster

1'–3'

White

Zig-zag stems; nectar plant for butterflies and insects

Euthamia caroliniana

slender goldentop

1'–3'

Yellow

Can spread aggressively; suitable for meadows

Franklinia alatamaha

franklinia

10'–20'

White

Small tree; visited by bumblebees and swallowtail butterflies

Gentiana clausa

closed bottle gentian

20"–30"

Blue/Purple

Bumblebees push their way into closed corolla lobes

Hamamelis virginiana

common witch–hazel

15'–20'

Yellow

Fragrant flowers can bloom October through December

Shrub

Helianthus angustifolius

swamp sunflower

2'–5'

Yellow

Important late nectar and pollen source

Herbaceous (Not Woody)

Heuchera villosa

hairy alumroot

2'–3'

White

Heat and humidity tolerant; clump forming

Vine

Ilex opaca

American holly

5'–40'

White

Female plants with ornamental red berries; need two for pollination

Grass or Grass-like

Ilex verticillata

winterberry

6'–8'

White

Ornamental with red berries; need two for pollination

Juniperus virginiana

eastern red cedar

30'–65'

–

Great for screening; berry like cones attract birds

Lindera benzoin

spicebush

6'–12'

Yellow

Aromatic; female plants produce red fruits

Liquidambar styraciflua

sweet gum

60'–80'

–

Attractive fall colors ranging from yellow to orange, red and purple

CHARACTERISTICS LEGEND

Full Shade Moist to Wet Soil Average, Well-drained Soil Dry Soil Tree

Pollinator/Wildlife Significance Generally available at Garden Centers

Key Characteristics

Height

Color

Comments

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