Rudbeckia 'Herbstsonne'
stands 6 feet tall in the garden, towering over many of the other perennials. This plant is upright in nature and forms large clumps that are showered with yellow composite flowers. It has a long bloom time, starting in midsummer and continues through to the beginning of fall. I find this is very eye catching and works well in the back of any perennial border.

Another one of my favorites is Arum italicum 'Pictum'. What a wonderful plant for year round interest. As you can see from the photo, the foliage has gone dormant and the remaining spikes are covered with light green berries. These soon will start to turn a brilliant orange. This tuberous perennial has arrow shaped leaves that are mottled with a creamy venation. It is quite striking and prefers the shade.

Anemone hupehensis can be seen blooming all throughout the garden and will continue to do so well into the fall. It is a long, prolific bloomer that looks superb when planted in mass. There are many cultivars available in a range of colors. Light and dark pink, white, and dark reddish pink are just a sampling. Some also have double flowers, like Anemone hupehensis 'Prince Henry'.

Belamcanda chinensis, commonly called blackberry lily, is another great perennial with multi-seasonal appeal. After it has finished flowering, numerous capsules form. When mature, these pods will split open, exposing clusters of black seeds that do look very much like blackberries. These seeds will remain throughout the winter. The plant itself has blade-like foliage similar to the iris, so it can add a different texture to your leafy perennial borders.

Gentiana asclepiadea, commonly called willow gentian, has just started to bloom. Its trumpet shaped flowers in various shades of blue are welcome in the garden when most other perennials are boasting their yellow and orange hues. Graceful arching branches produce many clusters of these star shaped flowers. This plant, as it matures, forms a nice size clump ranging from 24 to 30" in height with a width of 18 to 24".

As the summer seems to be flying by, I just want to remind you to mark your calendars for the 6 and 7 of September. It is time for the Fall Plant Sale. As I look out at my perennial borders at home I can see that certain areas are lacking color or the textures just aren't varied enough. Fall is the best time to plant and I am hopeful to put away the rain gear and get out there and dig!!!