Plant xeriscape perennials in fall

Photo: Contributed

Leadwort (Cerastostigma plumbaginoides) is a dramatic, vividly-coloured perennial ground cover that blooms in late summer and fall, when many other perennials are fading. It will be available for sale at the Okanagan Xeriscape Associaion annual fall plant sale Sept. 21, along with lots of other drought-tolerant perennials.

Fall is now acknowledged to be a better time for most perennial planting, due to cooler ambient air temperatures and warm soil—a perfect combination, leading to strong root establishment prior to plants going into dormancy for the winter.

The Okanagan Xeriscape Association is constantly sourcing new and interesting xeric plants for you to purchase and establish in your own gardens, and our selection at this fall’s sale will be no exception.

The Okanagan Xeriscape Association will hold its third annual fall plant sale at the UnH2O garden in front of the H2O Aquatic Centre (4075 Gordon Drive in Kelowna) Sept. 21 from 10 a.m. to noon, followed by the OXA annual general meeting. We will have ground covers, perennials, ornamental grasses and shrubs available for purchase, all of which have been chosen specifically to thrive in our Okanagan Valley climate.

I find ground covers to be invaluable in the landscape and I tend to use them as living mulches. One of the ground covers that really comes into its own in the fall is Ceratostigma plumbaginoides, commonly known as Leadwort. This perennial ground cover is easily grown in dry, poor soil, blooming into the fall with small Gentian-blue flowers held above shiny green leaves which transition to bright red as the temperature begins to drop.

The contrast of those two primary colours on one plant is simply stunning. Ceratostigma plumbaginoides is useful in areas with a significant presence of deer, as deer seem to resist browsing this perennial.

One of the stand-by perennials for late-summer and fall is any member of the Rudbeckia family of cultivars, commonly known as Black-eyes Susan or Cone Flower. One that is sure to catch your attention is the show-stopping Rudbeckia lancinata “Herbstsonne” because it is huge, often reaching heights of seven feet.

Due to its height, it is ideally sited at the back of the perennial border in full sun where its daisy yellow blooms are sure to delight well into fall, after which the seed heads are visited by a variety of birds.

Ornamental grasses shine in the fall and Little Bluestem “Standing Ovation” Shizachyrium scorparium is no exception. This perennial Plant of the Year earns its bragging rights as only the second ornamental grass to ever be awarded the title. This clump-forming grass retains its compact form with its blue and purple summer foliage transitioning into bright russet-orange as the season progresses. Reaching two to three feet in height, it is a wonderful grass to be used in front of the taller Panicum virgatum cultivars.

A native shrub that I have become absolutely enamoured with, and have used frequently in plantings, is Fallugia paradoxa, Apache plume. This shrub is native to the southwest U.S. and northern Mexico and features white flowers followed by wispy seed heads. Growing three to five feet tall and wide, this shrub is ideally situated in the middle of a border. It is an extremely long blooming native, putting on a show from May into September. But the attraction for me are the seed heads, similar to those of Pulsatilla vulgaris or Geum triflorum. Those seed heads persist into winter, offering food for a variety of birds, most notably goldfinches.

These and many others will be available for purchase, so come and see us on Sept. 21.

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As in years past, the Make Water Work challenge encourages homeowners to take the pledge to make water work smarter on their landscapes. By heading to the website at makewaterwork.ca and pledging, for instance, to choose plants suitable to our dry environment, you will become eligible to win one of two prizes of $500.

The pledge encourages you to make better choices about your water consumption so there will be enough water for firefighting, aquatic health, and agriculture in our valley.

The Okanagan Xeriscape Association is grateful for the ongoing financial support of the Okanagan Basin Water Board and is proud to be collaborating with them on their Make Water Work campaign.

Sigrie Kendrick is a master gardener and executive-director of the non-profit Okanagan Xeriscape Association.

(Editor's note: The column that was originally submitted and appeared in this space Wednesday morning was replaced at the author's request.)

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.