Fall is truly my favorite season, and also my favorite time in the garden as nature puts on one last spectacular show! Today I thought it would be fun to share some ideas for combining plants, pumpkins and vintage treasures to create unique fall garden displays. We will taking a look at some of my older fall gardens (2011-2016) for inspiration. I have a better camera now so my photography skills have certainly improved, but there are still some ideas worth sharing in these photos. Here are some highlights from my fall gardens past.
When it comes to creating beautiful fall displays, “mum’s the word!” Actually it’s no secret! Mums are the quintessential fall flower and they are perfect for adding pops of color anywhere in the landscape, on the porch or deck. One of my favorite combination groupings is yellow mums alongside whatever green herbs may still be thriving in my garden when fall arrives. Actually I am always incorporating herbs in my fall displays in some way. I must have herbs, always and always! I also like to use old garden tools in my displays too. This rusty green spade is an oldie, but goody!
Did I mention I love herbs? They are so pretty mixed with pumpkins and gourds!
I also love to add a little junky chic whimsy to my outdoor fall “vignettes.” A few years ago I used my vintage Hull garden girl planter, a kitschy squirrel planter, and a vintage McCoy pot grouped with pumpkins, gourds, fragrant lemon thyme and an old galvanized bucket overflowing with chamomile for a fun outdoor tabletop vignette.
This is a photo of the window box of our previous home taken all the way back in 2011. It was mid-October and the weather was cool enough to use pansies in my displays. I have always loved the combination of cool toned purple pansies grouped with pink mums, especially in teal or aqua pots. This little terra cotta pot had the most wonderful patina of chipping paint and was perfect for the color combo I chose. I also chalk painted and distressed a plain wood gardening tool to match the pot and added it as an accent. I had used burlap in the window box earlier in the season, but as Halloween approached I added some gray creepy cloth and Spanish moss to make it more “hauntingly beautiful.”
In 2012 I tucked bright pumpkins into a forest of purple fountain grass, purple and green coleus, and dark wine Oxalis (shamrock) and the result was purely magical! Since then I have been hooked on using dark plants in my fall displays.
I will never forget the early, misty morning when I took these photos. There was just an inexplicable connection I had with the garden and fall in general, with the sunlight filtering through the trees casting a magical glow on all the lovely plants and pumpkins.
I really loved this display with the vibrant, rich moody hues! The juxtaposition of various kinds of foliage mixed with several pumpkin varieties was stunning. Although I had used autumn kale and cabbage before, this was the year I really fell in love with them and since then they are at the top of my list of favorite plants!
The darker hues really work well for Halloween too. A simple addition of a crow in this birdcage vignette adds just a touch of spooky without taking away from the elegance of the garden display.
This huge pumpkin on top of a giant antique garden urn was a real showstopper…for about two days! The deer love autumn treats too, you know!
More lovely combinations of fall plants with interesting colors and textures. The addition of a small gourd is a fun touch.
Autumn Kale and Japanese fern pair beautifully together with similar colors, but striking contrast in foliage textures.
In September I shared my French Country Inspired Heirlooms Pumpkins Display from 2013. I also love the soft muted colors of fall and this design was my favorite so far. There are a lot more photos in the post if you enjoy this look too!
If you still prefer more traditional autumnal oranges, reds, and golds, dark plants still look beautiful with them. I discovered jet black petunias a couple of years ago, and I learned if you can baby them long enough to make them last through October, they are stunning for late fall and Halloween!
Everyone loves old wagons and containers overflowing with fall’s bounty! Here I used a vintage Seven-Up soda crate packed with purple sweet potoato vine, various types of autumn kale, purple pansies, a bright yellow mum and the cutest “tiger striped” mini-pumpkins.
We moved to our yellow brick home in 2015 and I was thrilled to have large wide stairs to decorate for fall! I had intended to try all traditional fall colors for the front porch, but when I found a shabby-teal garden frog on clearance at Hobby Lobby for just a few dollars right before Halloween, I thought it would make a fun Halloween prop for my Trick-Or-Treaters. I ended up adding some cool tones in the display to tie in the frog. The result was a combination of all the fall colors I love, warm and cool, and the entry turned out beautifully…and the kids loved the frog.
The large purple variety of autumn Kale in this photo was one of the biggest and prettiest I have seen to date. It looked so pretty near the dark green pumpkin on the plant stand. Purple fountain grass is always a good idea for fall!
Last year Ms. Beatrice Bones helped tend to my fall flowers and plants! I experimented with adding succulents into the displays and loved the resulting array of colors and textures!
After looking at all these photos I have realized that it really doesn’t matter what color scheme you choose, you can’t go wrong with pumpkins, mums, autumn kale, fountain grass, gourds and vintage garden accents! Of course fodder shocks, straw bales and traditional Jack-O-Lantern orange pumpkins are wonderful too. Don’t forget to add a vintage treasure or two for extra fall fun!
I hope you have enjoyed this look back with me at my older fall gardens. If you are looking for more fall inspiration, don’t miss this amazing guest blog post by my friend Rita of Panoply blog, A Harvest Of Home And Garden Vignettes!
What color scheme do you prefer? I love to talk all things fall and gardens and I would love to hear your ideas too.
Also before I head off to look for heirloom pumpkins today, I have a couple of reminders to share:
*Don’t forget to enter the Jord Watch Giveway HERE! The contest ends 10/15!
Also just a reminder that the Hauntingly Beautiful Decor Link Party is ongoing through October and you are invited to link up any time. Hope to see you at the party!
Have a great week of fall fun!
Amber
12 Comments
I look forward to a Fall display all year, so much fun to mix it up with mums, pumpkins, and lot’s of vintage goodies! Those black Pansies are amazing, we don’t see many Pansies around here in the Fall, but I love the look of the orange mums and the delicate black blooms!
October 10, 2017 at 12:05 amDebra I thought I had commented so sorry if duplicate! The weather has been too hot for my black petunias to hold out! I am going to go back to the nursery where I got them and hope there are some survivors from this never ending summer! Even if I can only find a few and put them in a small witch cauldron with orange mums it will be fun! Thank you for visiting today!
October 10, 2017 at 5:21 amAmber, what a gorgeous post!! I am in love with the black petunias mixed in with your orange mums and all the colors and textures! I need your green thumb!!
October 10, 2017 at 5:40 pmThank you Kristin! It has been so unseasonably here hot this fall that even my green thumb has not helped my poor mums and black petunias. I am heading to the garden center this weekend to try to grab a few healthy plants for a few vignettes!
October 11, 2017 at 4:38 amEach of these is gorgeous! In past years I’ve spent so much time trying to get rid of the squirrels so I had pretty much given up on setting out pumpkins. After looking at these beauties I’m having second thoughts. Herbs tucked around the pumpkins and nestled into fountain grass is very creative. Thank you so much for the inspiration and Mr. Skeleton is pinned.
October 10, 2017 at 8:48 pmSuch nice comments Sandra! Thank you so much for visiting and pinning!
October 11, 2017 at 4:36 amYour autumn decor is awesome!
October 13, 2017 at 4:21 amOh thank you so much Elizabeth. I am so glad you stopped by! Do come back again soon!
October 13, 2017 at 7:38 pmYour fall garden displays are just lovely, Amber! Thanks for sharing @Vintage Charm!
October 16, 2017 at 2:18 amThank you very much Cecilia! I love partying with you!
October 16, 2017 at 3:19 amIt’s beautiful Amber. I love the unusual pumpkins and that sweet squirrel! Thanks for sharing with SYC.
November 8, 2017 at 3:58 amhugs,
Jann
Thanks Jann. I just knew you would love that squirrel! Seriously, I thought, “She is gonna love this little guy!” Thanks for hosting such a great party where I can share my vintage things with people who “get” it! xoxo
November 10, 2017 at 6:04 am