Updated October 20th, 2022
Autumn in Your MetroParks’ Gardens
Heads up! This article was last updated 2 years ago.
Winding down, cleaning up, getting ready. Gardening season isn’t over yet! Fall is the time to begin preparing for winter and spring in the garden, but there’s still so much beauty to enjoy. Some annual blossoms are fading, while others like geranium, marigolds and begonias still look fantastic. Don’t forget to save some marigold seed for next year! Many perennials, including natives, are putting on a great show–sedum of every shape and size, fall blooming iris, dahlias, rudbeckia, golden rod, asters, boneset, heuchera, tricyrtis (toad lily), grasses, berries, and seed pods.
For a beautiful beginning to fall, nothing beats the sweep of yellow golden rod that you can see in many of the park prairies now. The entry drives to Carriage Hill, Possum Creek, Germantown, and Wegerzyn are great spots to view this natural parade. In the garden parks—Cox, Wegerzyn, and Aullwood, enjoy the wonderful color of beautyberry– luminous clusters of purple or white berries, as well as viburnum and holly–either red or purple-blue berries. While the calendar says fall, climate change makes our fall foliage peak now later in October. It also means that many plants hang on longer for us to enjoy before they need to be removed for winter. Fall also marks a change in the color palate—away from pastel, more to darker, deeper tones in foliage, flowers, and seeds.
If you haven’t visited, your MetroParks’ gardens are still going strong. Yellow and purple blooms and foliage are especially prevalent. Below are some recent highlights.
