Design With the Fall in Mind

Cranberry Crush hibiscus

This combination, called Fall-ing in Love, showcases Toffee Twist, an ornamental grass. Other featured plants: Glacier ivy, Amethyst Myst heuchera, Orange Symphony osteospermum and leadwort (Ceratostigma plumbaginoides)

Flirtation Orange Diascia

Proven Winners plants in their distinctive pots

Fall is a great time to freshen up your garden with new plants. You can rejuvenate a spring-planted container with a new plant, redesign a section of your garden or create something entirely new in colors of the season. What's more, you can dress up your pots and planters with selections that flourish in cooler autumn temperatures. With a piece of garden fabric, you can extend the blooming season even further by protecting the plants when frost is predicted. Garden Quilt protects down to 24 degrees F.

To get inspiration for fall, we talked to Danielle Ernest of Proven Winners. With their distinctive packaging, Proven Winners plants can be found in garden centers across the nation. The detailed plant tags ensure success — and creativity — for all levels of gardeners.

Here are Danielle's picks for fall:

Annuals

Flirtation Orange Diascia: This exceptional autumn beauty loves cool weather. The vibrant orange blooms of this Flirtation are large and flat with a layering of flower upon flower that creates a stunning bloom display. The sturdy, semi-trailing habit makes it perfect for fall-inspired hanging baskets or containers; you could also add the Flirtation to an area of your landscape that could use a fall makeover.

Superbells Calibrachoa hybrids: Superbells showcase warm autumn colors, and their superb performance in cool weather make them the perfect choice to usher in the fall season. Plant a container or hanging basket with one brilliant yellow, red, orange, or plum variety — or mix and match them in containers or the landscape. With growth habits that range from small and compact to cascading, Superbells create endless possibilities in the garden and a new feel for a new season.

Perennials

Hibiscus Summerific Series: Offering double or more the bloom time of older hibiscus varieties, these hybrids from Walters Gardens, Inc. will be the focal point of your colorful landscape from midsummer into fall. Each variety in the series offers something unique. Berrylicious produces gigantic 8- to 9-inch, mauve lavender on dense plants; Cranberry Crush is a short, compact selection with scarlet blossoms; Summer Storm has purple-black foliage, which makes a dramatic backdrop for the pink flowers. Depending on the variety, these perennial hibiscus grow to 3 to 5 feet. All are hardy in zones 4 to 9.

Hardy ornamental grasses: Nothing says fall like the feathery plumes and rich color of ornamental grasses. New to the Proven Winners collection this year are three hardy grasses that offer beautiful fall color, a better habit, and improved garden performance over comparable selections:

• Panicum virgatum "Cheyenne Sky" (Height and spread: 36 x 18 in.; hardy in zones 4 to 9)
• Panicum virgatum "Dust Devil" (48-54 x 32 in.; hardy in zones 4 to 9)
• Pennisetum alopecuroides "Desert Plains" (3-4 ft. x 3-4 ft.; hardy in zones 5 to 9)

Shrubs

Little Lime Hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata): Little Lime has the same flowers and lime-tinted blooms as Limelight, but in a smaller package. The height and spread is just 4 feet. Summer flowers open soft green and turn pink and burgundy in fall. Hardy in zones 3 to 9.

Lil Miss Sunshine Bluebeard (Caryopteris x clandonensis): This cross between Petit Bleu and Sunshine Blue has shiny yellow foliage all summer, with a neat, compact habit. Height and spread is 3 feet. Contrasting blue flowers appear in late summer. Deer resistant. Hardy in zones 5 to 9.