Fall is a lovely time to enjoy another stage of our plants – their changing leaf colours.
We’re all familiar with the famous Canadian maples and their reds, oranges and yellows but did you know that many other plants native to our country put on a good show, too?
Trees
Trees have height and grandeur that can cause one to stop and admire in any season, but fall colour adds yet another layer to the visual interest they offer. Maples are of course top of the list for so many, with but so, to is our native larch, also called tamarack. These deciduous trees are unusual in that their leaves are actually needles (similar to evergreen firs and spruces). They turn a golden yellow that, when lit up by the sun, can almost appear glowing. Several oak species have brown leaves which do add some contrast but Red Oaks take on, you guessed it, a red shade that is very attractive.
Shrubs
Our shrubs are definitely worth some attention, too! They are often small enough to fit the average garden plot and have pretty flowers that we get to delight in and pollinators get to feed on. Those blooms become colourful fruit that feed many species of birds and some mammals. Finally, they grace our garden with autumn foliage.
You can enjoy yellows on Spicebush, Common Ninebark and our witch hazels. You’ll typically see deep reds on dogwoods and Highbush Cranberry. Some have a range of colours with varying shades of salmon, orange and red, as with Fragrant Sumac, our currants like Golden Flowering Current and Chokeberry. One species of witch hazel even sports delicate yellow blooms in the autumn!
Herbaceous plants
Some perennials worth mentioning are Wild Geranium whose leaves turn a pinky red and False Solomon’s Seal yellow leaves. Even ferns get in on the act with a Royal Fern turning coppery orange.
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Sarah Coulber
Sarah is an Education Specialist at the Canadian Wildlife Federation. She writes about the benefits and ‘how-to’s’ of wildlife-friendly gardening, coordinates content for the Gardening for Wildlife web section, co-manages the wildlife-friendly demonstration gardens at CWF headquarters and assists Canadians looking to achieve similar results with their own properties.
2 comments
Thank you for all this good information, as always. But, I never seem to be able to find these plants for sale. I live 50km south of Ottawa. Where would I find: wild geranium, False Solomon’s Seal, or Grey Dogwood?
Yes, finding native plants has definitely been an issue over the years. Fortunately more and more growers are selling them, although I think some small nurseries were hit hard these past 2 seasons and closed down. But here is our list of suppliers that we know of. Some are 100% into natives and some stock a percentage. I have heard from those in the industry that thanks to those of us raising awareness/using our consumer power it is making a difference, so if you ask for them at a local nursery, you might find that it influences their buying in following years. One of the problems I’ve learned is that it requires an investment of time, space and money on the nurseries part in growing plants that often take a couple of years to mature enough to flower and sell that have previously not been commonly done, so knowing there is demand has encouraged many to invest the resources necessary. Best wishes!
https://cwf-fcf.org/en/explore/gardening-for-wildlife/plants/buy/native-plant-suppliers/