Elegance pansies perform in the fall

There’s nothing quite like walking into a garden center this time of year and being greeted by the bright, cheerful colors of pansies.

These familiar flowers are ready to take center stage in our gardens, containers and landscape beds as temperatures begin to cool across the South. I recently stopped to admire two beautiful new pansy selections: Elegance Antoinette and Elegance Twilight Mix.

These pansies are heavily ruffled with semi-double to double blooms that were bred by a horticulturist in Japan. Both offer wonderful color, but each has its own unique personality.

Elegance Antoinette pansies have beautifully layered pastel-colored blooms. The velvety petals gently overlap one another, creating a full, ruffled look. Their delicate color variations blend beautifully, with subtle shading across the petals and contrasting tones that become more pronounced near the center of each flower.

The blooms of Elegance Antoinette have a painted quality that encourages you to stop and appreciate the details. When planted in groups, they bring a soft sophistication to the cool-season garden.

Elegance Twilight Mix pansies are rich in shades of purple, lavender, blue, burgundy, yellow and creamy tones. The flowers’ distinctive dark markings radiate from the center, creating what gardeners often call the pansy’s face.

Like Elegance Antoinette, the petals of Elegance Twilight Mix look hand-painted, with colors blending and fading into one another. Dark markings add depth and contrast, while the overlapping petals give each flower a full, three-dimensional appearance. When several are grouped together, the combination is a lively display of color and texture.

Beyond their beauty, all types of pansies are relatively easy to grow when given the right conditions. They perform best during the cooler months of fall, winter and spring.

Choose a location with good drainage that receives full sun to partial shade. Water regularly, especially after planting and during dry periods. Although pansies appreciate consistent moisture, they do not like to sit in waterlogged soil.

Before planting, prepare the soil by incorporating organic matter if needed. A light application of a balanced, slow-release fertilizer helps support healthy growth and flowering. Remove faded flowers to keep plants looking tidy and to encourage continued blooms.

One of the best things about pansies is how easily they fit into almost any landscape design.

Combine different colors for a cheerful, mixed display, or plant a single color for a coordinated look. They pair beautifully with ornamental cabbage and kale, dusty miller and other cool-season plants that provide contrasting foliage and texture.

When temperatures drop, don’t let your garden lose its color. Explore the many pansy varieties available at your local garden center and find a few to brighten your landscape throughout the cool season.