November 16, 2008

Fall Color Revisited

fall colors, balloon flowers

summer blooms, balloon flowers

Hope that you all have put some pansies in the ground and have ordered your daffodils to be planted soon. While we are enjoying those wonderful pansy faces, we can still enjoy the remnants of fall color in the garden. Many of the leaves have finished their show and are now spread all over lawns and sidewalks, waiting to be raked. Others are still turning, extending the leaf changing season a little longer. The Japanese Maples, especially the dwarf ones, are like small explosions of color all over the yard. We often think of fall color only in terms of trees and their foliage but fall color can also occur close to the ground. One of my favorites to provide an extra burst of fall color is the balloon flower or Platycodon grandiflorus – which is a mouthful for such a delicate little perennial. This summer bloomer comes in a variety of sizes and colors, from a dwarf which grows only 8 inches tall (‘Misato Purple’) to ones that grow more than two feet tall. Balloon flowers will begin to bloom in early summer and will continue all summer if you keep the spent flowers pinched. The flowers first form a bud which resembles a balloon – reminding me of a small purse; the buds then open up to flowers that look like little stars. Although the most commonly seen color is a blue - purple, balloon flowers also come in pink. There is even a double-flowered one. I have had the tall blue ones, the pink ones, and the dwarf purple; the dwarf purple did best for me. My biggest problem was the creatures who ate the roots – possibly voles (who snacked on everything in my garden). Balloon flowers don’t seem to be troubled by insects or disease and I have had them for about five years lining the front of the border. They do like water during the growing season and will tolerate full sun but like most Southerners prefer some rest from the hot afternoon sun. Balloon flowers take a little longer to break their winter dormancy; if you are one of those folks who forget where you planted something you may want to mark their home in your garden. If you dig up one accidentally, just put it back. It is important to pinch the spent blooms from your balloon flowers to keep them blooming but don’t take the whole stem off. For me deadheading flowers in the garden is a very therapeutic task. It brings me up close and personal with the blooms and appeals to the neat freak in me who rejoices in a tidy garden.

In the fall the leaves of the balloon flowers take on a bright yellow hue (with a touch of orange), adding one last vibrant burst of color to the front of the flowerbed before dying back completely. Photos above show this charmer in summer and fall. Balloon flowers are one of the dearest perennials for the summer garden – they are not hard to find and will bring you much joy next summer (and next fall).