01/09/2026
5 Plants for Late Summer, Early Autumn Colour 🍂
Just because summer's winding down doesn't mean your garden has to. Our Nursery Manager Dave has picked five that keep the colour going right through the season change.
1. Hydrangea paniculata 'Wim's Red'
Conical flowerheads open creamy-white from midsummer, then deepen progressively to pink and red as they age, so you get a genuine two-tone effect on the plant at once. Blooms on new wood, so a hard prune in late winter won't cost you next year's flowers.
2. Ceratostigma willmottianum
Clusters of vivid gentian-blue flowers from August through October, with the foliage turning red and bronze alongside them, a genuinely striking combination right at the end of the season. Low and spreading, perfect for the front of a border, and reshoots reliably from the base even after a hard winter.
3. Callicarpa dichotoma 'Issai'
Small pink summer flowers are just the warm-up act. From September, clusters of intense violet-purple berries appear along the stems and often outlast the leaves. 'Issai' fruits reliably even as a young plant and stays compact, ideal for smaller borders.
4. Viburnum tinus 'Rock 'n' Rolla'
A compact form of a proper garden reliable. Flat white flower clusters open from pink buds mainly across autumn into winter, followed by blue-black berries. Dense, glossy, year-round structure, with the berries adding late-season interest and feeding the birds.
5. Fatsia japonica
Bold, glossy, hand-shaped evergreen leaves give strong architectural presence all year round, then striking spherical white flowerheads appear from October into November, ageing to black berries through winter. Brilliant for shade, and useful late structure once most other flowering's finished.
Come and see all five in person, and let us help you plan the next stretch of colour in your garden.
📍 Cedar Nursery, Cobham, Surrey
