Make September a sumptuous celebration

It’s not all over in September. Indeed, many people choose this month as their favourite when it comes to drama in the garden. The show is by no means over as days shorten and summer draws to a close. It’s a grand time of year to tidy away some of the excess and allow the garden to keep on giving. If your outdoor space is looking past its best, this is an opportunity to add to your plant palette. After all, wise gardeners plant today if they believe in tomorrow.

Looking good in September

Top marks go to the huge range of ornamental grasses that are now reaching their peak in terms of beauty. There’s a grass to suit just about every type of space, from pots and containers to beds, herbaceous borders, roof gardens, wildlife gardens and coastal locations. The effect at this time of year is stunning. Swathes of gently swaying grasses lighten the soul. Some measure just a few centimetres high whilst others tower to three metres and more. The seed heads can be pink, purple, cream and white. A few grasses look like lambs’ tails and several resemble giant plumes on a circus horse’s head. If you want something completely reliable in freedraining soil and a sunny position, try Anemanthele lessoniana, or pheasant’s tail grass. It’s a semievergreen mound of golden and green loveliness that is steaked with red at this time of year. It has an arching habit and waves its slender foliage gently in a breeze. During winter it provides a fiery, uplifting display. Don’t expect it to stay where you put it – this will pop up in various places and move itself around your garden, giving you a burst of glory that lasts for months on end. Use some of the larger grasses, including Miscanthus, as specimen plants amongst your borders. They will add froth and glory that improves throughout the year. When most plants are fading, these grasses will be stealing the show with their clump-forming habit and spectacular autumn flowers. Many deciduous grasses look stunning from late summer through to March, at which point they require cutting back hard, almost to the ground.

Contrast and drama

Pay attention to foliage if you want to create some astonishing contrast. Acers, in particular, are now

working their way to a crescendo. Their colour takes on a vibrancy that will improve over the next few weeks as the leaves turn gradually crimson, purple, bronze and brilliant yellow, according to variety. It’s all about placement. Position them where the leaves will provide the most pleasure. A red acer planted in front of a yellow or lime-green backdrop, for example, will provide a focal point. Look to the principles of a colour wheel to understand the relationship between hues and tones. Opposites provide drama and contrast, whilst the neighbouring colours will bring subtlety, peace and calm. A similar effect can be achieved closer to the soil by making the most of ground-cover plants such as heuchera, sometimes known as coral bells. There are red, yellow, lime green and orange-leafed varieties of this somewhat overlooked perennial. Plant them in groups, next to others with contrasting foliage, to brighten up the autumn understorey. The same applies to heathers, which seem to have fallen out of favour just now. Their late-summer and autumn flowers, in pinks, purples and white, light up the garden with a warm glow at this time of year. Erica varieties like free-draining soil in light shade and they can look stunning when planted amongst rocks and boulders, or towards the front of borders. Calluna, or ling heathers, like full sun in acid soil, so there is a heather suitable for almost any location except full shade or bog.

More shrubs and perennials for September

The sunny yellow flowers of rudbeckia ‘Goldsturm’ create a late-summer splash of colour during September. This award-winning beauty ensures that sunshine will stay in your garden right through to October and beyond. It works well with ornamental grasses and other daisy types including heleniums. These will keep on giving until late autumn. The crimson red flower of helenium ‘Moerheim Beauty’ is one of the best. Then there are asters, with their astonishing display of daisy-like purple, lilac and pink blooms. During a warm September they will be covered in bees and butterflies as they set the garden alight with a splash of vibrant colour. Asters are known as a symbol of love and wisdom – let’s all have some of these!