I love the fall season in Mississippi when the temperatures start cooling down and our summer color gets its second wind. Let’s take a look at some colorful plants that aren’t quite ready to give up this year. Senorita Rosalita cleome is a great garden and landscape that freely flowers deep into the fall. In 2009 Senorita Rosalita was selected as a Mississippi Medallion winner and has not looked back. Senorita Rosalita does not produce viable seeds so there is no reseeding. The growth habit is compact being 24 inches tall and 20 inches wide. Purple & Bloom salvia is a fall garden favorite. Tall stalks of deep purple flowers emerge on striking black stems with fresh green foliage. It’s a fantastic garden performer that thrives in high heat and humidity, making it a must-have annual for Mississippi gardens, though it may be perennial in the southern counties of Mississippi. Scaevola is a great garden plant, and Whirlwind Blue Improved adds to the greatness. It makes a fantastic landscape carpet with it’s stunning blue- purple flowers that are fan-shaped. This will spread up to 16 inches wide with a height of about 8 inches. I’m impressed with the flowering of the Ka-Pow phlox. Normally flowering through August, our climate allows the plant to continue to put on a color show into the fall season. Ka-Pow Pink is covered with clusters of vibrant bright pink 5-petaled flowers. Ka-Pow Lavender displays pretty lavender flowers. I hope that you’ll appreciate our summer color into the fall season. I’m horticulturist Gary Bachman and I’ll see you next time on Southern Gardening.
