15 Best Fall Flowers for Pots to Enjoy Some Late-Season Color

African Daisy

Also called osteospermums, African daisies are low-growing plants that make great fall flowers for pots because they bloom best in cooler weather. The flowers come in a range of autumnal colors, as well as white and purple.

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Amaranth

Amaranth (Amaranthus hypochondriacus) looks stunning both in fall porch pots and in autumn flower arrangements in your home. Its bold color and upright flowers make it an excellent “thriller” plant for the center of your container garden.

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Aster

Fall-blooming asters (Symphyotrichum spp.) produce tons of small, daisy-like flowers in shades of purple, pink, or white. The blossoms attract butterflies and other pollinators. These plants grow best in full sun and average to moist soil conditions.

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Balloon Flower

Close up of Platycodon 'Astra Blue' — Marty Baldwin

The pretty purple blooms of balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus) are an unusual fall flower for pots, because they're more typically grown in perennial gardens. But they'll also grow well in containers in a sunny spot. Deadhead faded flowers regularly to extend the bloom period up until first frost.

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Celosia

The long-lasting flowers of celosia make an attractive addition to both your fall container gardens and vases. These annual flowers come in a range of warm colors such as red, yellow, and orange. They also come in three different types (plume, candle, and crested), each of which can add interesting texture to fall containers.

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Chrysanthemums

'Hillside Pink Sheffield' chrysanthemum — Bill Holt

Chrysanthemums enjoy cooler temperatures when they are in pots and planters, so add them to your garden once fall temperatures arrive. This will ensure that the blooms’ colors do not fade too quickly. To get the most bloom power possible and to prevent the plant from developing diseases, keep your mums in full sun.

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Coral Bells

While coral bells (Heuchera spp.) do produce wands of small flowers in spring and summer, by fall it's their leaves that add gorgeous color to containers. These perennial plants come in all sorts of autumnal colors such as deep purple, red, and orange, and can take chilly temperatures without missing a beat.

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Dahlia

Dahlias are arguably one of the most beautiful fall flowers for pots. They thrive in full sun, but can also thrive in a little shade if your pots are near trees or on a covered patio. Dahlias come in a wide range of colors, shapes, and sizes, but shorter varieties work best for containers.

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Gloriosa Daisy

double black-eyed susan goldilocks — Marty Baldwin

Gloriosa daisies are a type of black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) with showy, daisy-like flowers from summer into fall. The blooms usually have golden-yellow and rusty-red bicolored petals around a dark center eye. Some double varieties are extra petal-packed, such as 'Goldilocks' (shown here). Gloriosas are short-lived perennials in warmer areas, but are usually grown as annuals.

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Goldenrod

The feathery yellow flowers of goldenrod (Solidago spp.) appear from late summer into fall. Many types of goldenrod can get very tall, so look for dwarf varieties, such as 'Little Lemon' (shown here), that work well in fall containers. You can also use the cheery flowers as filler in autumnal floral arrangements.

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Pansies and Violas

multicolored pansies with purple, white, and light orange flowers — Peter Krumhardt

Cute and colorful pansies and violas are easy to tuck in among larger container plants to fill out the display. They bloom best in cooler seasons, even continuing to produce flowers throughout the winter months in the southern part of the United States. In colder climates, they may overwinter if you keep your pots in a protected location.

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Strawflower

Strawflowers (Xerochrysum bracteatum) bloom from summer into fall in a variety of warm colors as well as pink and white. The flowers have a stiff, strawlike texture that helps them hold up through cold snaps and heat waves alike. Strawflowers are also drought-tolerant so group them in fall containers with other plants that need the same amount of watering.

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Sneezeweed

In late summer to fall, sneezeweed (Helenium spp.) produces sweet little flowers in yellow, red, gold, and orange. Pollinators love these perennial plants but pests generally leave them alone. Deadhead faded flowers to encourage new ones to develop and keep the plant looking tidier.

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Stonecrop

Also known as sedums, stonecrops (Hylotelephium spp.) are thick-stemmed, hardy perennials that come in lots of different varieties. Many of them bloom in late summer into fall, and have colorful foliage of yellow, pink, or red that look beautiful in fall containers.

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Zinnia

Vibrant, easy-care zinnias bloom from summer all the way into fall. These annuals will bloom best in full sun; they will produce fewer flowers and are more susceptible to disease if grown in part shade. Look for shorter varieties such as any in the Profusion series (such as ‘Cherry’ shown here) that will help add a splash of color to your fall containers.

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