Some ideas for late bloomers in Missouri

A: There are several Missouri native perennials that bloom later in the summer and into the fall that do well in home gardens provided they get appropriate amounts of sun and moisture.

For full sun areas in the yard, Missouri native ironweeds (Vernonia sp.), goldenrods (Solidago sp.), coneflowers (Rudbeckia and Echinacea sp.), asters (Aster and Symphyotrichum spp.), perennial sunflowers (Helianthus sp.) and prairie dock (Silphium sp.) provide great color at the end of summer and into fall.

Fall-blooming native perennials for shaded areas are a bit less numerous and include plants like cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis), littleflower alumroot (Heuchera parviflora var. Puberula) and common dittany (Cunila origanoides).

You can also add textural interest to shady areas by including native ferns like Christmas (Polystichum acrostichoides), cinnamon (Osmundastrum cinnamomeum), and royal ferns (Osmunda regalis) and sedges such as Pennsylvania (Carex pensylvanica), white-tinged (C. albicans) and palm sedge (C. muskingumensis).

Finally, native ornamental grasses like switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) and purple lovegrass (Eragrostis spectabilis) for sunny spots and American beakgrain (Diarrhena sp.) and northern sea oats (Chasmanthium latifolium) for shadier areas can add interesting texture to the fall landscape, and often provide food and shelter for wildlife. Learn more about these and other Missouri native plant species by searching the Missouri Botanical Garden’s Plant Finder database here: missouribotanicalgarden.org/plantfinder/plantfindersearch.aspx