Your garden doesn't have to fade at the end of summer – fall-flowering bulbs for are the secret to extending the season

As the garden fades and the leaves turn yellow, fall-flowering bulbs erupt from the ground and remind us that the party most certainly isn't over yet

Autumn garden
(Image credit: Getty Images / Anikaart)

As the curtains drop on summer and fall is looming large, many of us turn our attention to fall-flowering bulbs. They're stalwarts in the garden, however, it's easy to forget to plant them, or get muddled between fall-flowering and spring bulbs.

Planting masses of fall-flowering bulbs means that when the garden seems to run out of steam, it is jolted back into action with colorful bulbs that light up the garden in late summer, fall, and in some cases in winter. But which to choose?

There are many fall-flowering bulbs available (and you'd have to look for them in flower if you wanted to plant them now), but it's hard to know which ones to invest money and time in. Here are six of the very best fall-flowering bulbs to look out for.

The best fall flowering bulbs

1. Cyclamen

Cyclamen

(Image credit: Cyrielle Beaubois)

There are several hardy and easy autumn-flowering cyclamen species you can grow in your garden. Hardy cyclamen (Cyclamen hederifolium) is a truly spectacular cyclamen that will tolerate almost any conditions. It is fully hardy and produces an abundance of dainty blooms which nod gracefully on wiry stems.

Cyclamen tubers, which are slightly different from bulbs, but behave, as far as the gardener is concerned, in the same way, produce foliage well into fall and into the spring, and then go dormant for the summer.

Cyclamen hederifolium is one of the very best plants for under trees, being a pretty woodland plant that brings some much much-needed color to the garden when everything else is slipping into a slumber.

Hardiness zone: 4-9

You can purchase Cylamen heerifolium at Plants Delights Nursery.

2. Oxalis

Pink and white oxalis

(Image credit: Getty Images / Clive Nichols)

Many people know how to grow oxalis as a houseplant, but it's my hope that more people will start to plant it outside in their gardens, especially those varieties that have a blooming period that spans multiple seasons.

Whilst some varieties are spring or summer flowering plants, there are a few stunning cultivars that bloom in October, November, and right up to Christmas.

These include the oh-so pretty Oxalis 'Autumn Pink', the boiled sweet look-a-like, Oxalis Versicolor (which looks as though it has been plucked from a Dr Seuss storybook), and Oxalis spiralis aurea, Amber Plum Crazy, which has beautiful auburn leaves, perfect for fall.

Hardiness zone: 5-10

You can purchase Oxalis bulbs from Dutch Grown.

3. Colchicum ' The Autumn Crocus'

Autumn flowering crocus

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Think of a crocus, and we tend to think of those little quintessential harbingers of spring. Pretty crocus heads piercing through the icy cold winter ground. So what, then, is the 'Autumn crocus'?

The Autumn crocus is not, in fact, a crocus at all but a species of Colchicum, a group of fall-flowering bulbs in the lily family (Lilaceae). Sometimes referred to as 'naked ladies' (as they don't produce foliage, only flowers), these larger-than-life blooms grow from bulb-like corms and flower non-stop in fall and into winter.

There are two colchiums worth keeping your eyes peeled for: Colchicum autumnale, which has a pretty pink color, and Colchicum speciosum 'Album', which is, of course, white.

Both of these species form large drifts and will grow in sun and shade.

Hardiness zones: 4-9

You can purchase Autumn-flowering Colchicum from Ferri Seeds.

4. Alstroemeria

Alstroemeria 'Third Harmonic'

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Alstroemerias are fantastic performing herbaceous perennials, which grow from bulb-like tubers, producing new stems each spring and flowering all summer and all autumn, then dying down over winter.

There is a wide range of cultivars to choose from, all of which are hardy and can tolerate cold temperatures, returning year after year, for many years.

That said, pick a place in your garden that receives as much sun as possible when deciding when to plant them, as they reach their maximum potential when they are able to get lots of light.

Hardiness zones: 6-10

You can purchase Alstroemeria from Edelweiss Perennials.

5. Nerine

Pink nerine flowers

(Image credit: Getty Images / Alexandra Scotcher)

During late fall, there is one plant that erupts in a riot of color that befits summer rather more than the sleepy cold months, but lights up the garden just when you thought everything was over.

All Nerine plants are perennial bulbs that bloom in fantastic colors from September- November. Most nerines are pink, but there are many varieties with white, vermillion red, and magenta flowers.

Plant nerine bulbs in late summer, and once established, nerines need little or no attention.

Hardiness zone: 8-11

You can purchase Nerines from Manor Stores.

6. Crocosmia

crocosmia and gladioli in pot

(Image credit: iBulb)

Crocosmia is, by in large, one of the most underrated cottage garden plants with so much to give to a garden, and the blazing spires of many Crocosmia varieties continue to bloom throughout summer and right through fall.

There are early-flowering crocosmia, mid-season flowering crocosmia, and late-season crocosmia. If you want these flame-like flowers in fall, it's the latter you want to keep your eyes peeled for.

A few varieties to consider for this are the tangerine colored Crocosmia 'Star Of The East', grown en masse at Great Dixter, and particularly superb around Halloween time when it looks staggering with its pumpkin orange spikes.

Crocosmia 'Late Lucifer', which, as befits its name, blooms several weeks later than its famous cousin, Crocosmia Lucifer and Crocosmia × crocosmioides 'Castle Ward Late which flowers well into late November.

Hardiness zones: 6-9

You can purchase Crocosmia corms at Nature Hills.


If you are planning to head out into the garden in the coming days to plant bulbs, then we strongly recommend getting a long-handled bulb planter like this bulb transplanter from Amazon to save you a backache. Remember, there is nothing a garden loves more than being planted with hundreds of bulbs, so plant generously in great swathes.

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UK Editor

Sophia Pouget de St Victor is the UK Editor at Homes & Gardens, leading the editorial direction for the UK facing Homes & Gardens website. She brings readers the latest trends, expert insights, and timeless design inspiration tailored for a UK audience.

She has previously worked in the luxury homes and interiors industry and studied Garden Design in London, where she mastered her passion for creating landscapes that have a visceral impact on their onlookers. Home, though, is where Sophia's heart is. While she adores a wide variety of interior styles, she prefers interiors with a uniqueness that challenges any definable style. That said, there's little she finds more indulgent than walking down Pimlico Road and admiring the window display at Robert Kime; she has always found his interiors perfectly judged for a home that exudes an easy, unforced elegance.

Sophia lives in West London with her partner, along with two very naughty wiry terriers, and a plump cat named Lettuce.

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