The leaves on the trees have started turning, the evenings have cooled and there is even a belated semblance of rain – all signs that the most pleasant of seasons, autumn, has finally decided to make an appearance. Still, we are left with unsightly remembrances of summer past such as those scorched lawns, very tired hanging baskets and half-dead planters on our decks or by the front door which seem more suited for scary Halloween décor than for our celebration of harvest and hope which Thanksgiving provides.

Fortunately, there is a way to bring back those colourful days of summer with evergreen grasses, perennials and flowers which tolerate the cooler weather of fall and early winter. Plants which can be proudly displayed on our porches and patios, and because of those chilly temperatures you don’t have to water as often. So, without further ado, here are your best choices for a cool-season planter or hanging basket.

Planter Centrepieces

If you are looking to revamp a planter, then you want to start out by choosing your tallest element or centrepiece, which is usually a 1-gallon conifer. Common choices include Alberta Spruce (typical Christmas tree form), Golden Irish Yew (slender and slow growing), Columnar Japanese Holly (deep green and non-prickly), Lemon Cypress (lemon scented) or Chamaecyparis l. ‘Ellwoodii’, which has a distinct blue hue. The height and colour will dictate the size and tone of the companion plants, so it is best to start here.

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Bud Bloomers

Bud Bloomers are a class of Scotch Heather (Calluna vulgaris) whose flower buds do not open, so there is not much there for pollinators. Where they do excel is by retaining that bud colour for 3 to 4 months before they fade, unlike the standard varieties which only give you a few weeks of bloom before they brown. There are also foliage types with thick finger-like upright branches of green, golden yellow and amber which provide both foliar and colour contrast.

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Wintergreen

This Canadian native is extremely cold-hardy (USDA zone 3), bears lovely white urn-shaped blooms in summer as well as large red berries which persist through the cool weather, and glossy green foliage that takes on a burgundy hue as things get colder. Gaultheria procumbens also smells like old-fashioned bubble gum because it is still used to flavour many edible products.

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Dusty Miller

While Senecio cineraria (now Jacobaea maritima) is often sold as a bedding plant, it is quite cold tolerant and usually lasts through our coastal winters unless we experience below-freezing temperatures for an extended period. The bright silver foliage of both the broad and cutleaf forms make an excellent foil in mixed hanging baskets or planters, but if you want to keep them for more than one season, I suggest you cut the flowers out, as they tend to decline after blooming.

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Evergreen Ornamental Grasses

Evergreen grasses can provide height and be used to soften the edge of containers with their arching foliage. Several choice varieties include Carex ‘Evergold’, Black Mondo Grass (Ophiopogon ‘Nigrescens’), Liriope ‘Purple Explosion’ or the unusual Red Hook Sedge (Uncinia ‘Belinda’s Find’), all of which are shown here. A few other good choices would be Carex buchananii, Juncus ‘Blue Arrows’ or Carex testacea, which turns pumpkin orange when exposed to the cold.

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Winter Pansies and Violas

Yes, there are flowers that will continue to bloom throughout the fall and winter, although they might take a break during the coldest spells. These include Winter Pansies (Viola x wittrockiana) and Horned Violet (Viola cornuta), both of which come in a rainbow of hues, many of which are bicolour. While the Winter Pansies are much larger and showier in bloom, it is the diminutive Violas which provide the more consistent display with their hundreds of tiny flowers.

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Trailing Perennials

All hanging baskets and planters look better with a little foliage flowing over their edges and there are plenty of evergreen perennials that can provide that coverage. Shown are Golden Creeping Jenny (bullets straight down), Ajuga ‘Black Scallop’ (cusps the edge with lustrous burgundy-black foliage), Wire Vine (a fine green texture that blends well with everything) and a variegated English Ivy called ‘Gold Child’. A few other common choices include Sedum ‘Angelina’ (turns coppery in winter) or Vinca ‘Illumination’ (gold variegated foliage contrasted by lavender-blue flowers), both of which are features in their own right.

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Evergreen Ferns

For those of you that think green ferns are boring, I would like you to reconsider them for your winter planters, where they make excellent filler plants due to their unique textures. A few like Autumn Fern (Dryopteris erythrosora) will even provide coppery new growth while the others, which include Polypody, Japanese Tassel Fern, Korean Rock Fern or Holly Fern (Cyrtomium) are readily available in 4” pots which are handy to fill in those small voids.

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Heuchera

I consider Heuchera the ‘queens of winter colour’ with their jewel tone leaves which range from the brightest gold to the darkest burgundy, and everything in-between including peach, red, silver, green, copper and purple. This is usually the first choice I introduce customers to, because they are bound to find something they love with such an abundance of colour, and they look even better when they get rained on!

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Cyclamen

Most of us are familiar with the mini-florist Cyclamen which is often used as a long-lasting flowering houseplant. But more recent varieties have been bred to tolerate the outdoor cool weather and there is no end to the flower colours or leaf varieties out there, including some new purple-flowered cultivars. The trick here is to only use them under cover, as both the flowers and foliage resent constant rain, but given the right spot, they will bloom for weeks on end.

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Euphorbia

My second favourite foliage perennial (yes, they also flower, but in spring) which provides a bit more height than Heuchera and also some great variegation which really pops in aplanter or when used as a centrepiece in a hanging basket. Green and gold varieties (‘Efanthia’, ‘Helena’s Blush’, ‘Ascot Rainbow’) often take on a red hue in the colder weather while the deep burgundy of ‘Blackbird’ or the variegation of ‘Glacier Blue’ and ‘Tasmanian Tiger’ readily catches the eye.

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Minor Spring Bulbs

While you are designing your fall and winter planters, maybe take a few moments to incorporate a small splash of minor bulbs, which will make a showy display in earlyspring. A few of my favourites include the rockery daffodil Narcissus ‘Tete a Tete’, Grape Hyacinths (Muscari armeniacum), Crocus ‘Remembrance’ or even a few dwarf Tulips such as ‘Red Riding Hood’.

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Just Add a Pumpkin (or Gourd)

The final flourish of your hanging basket or planter creation could be as simple as placing a small ornamental pumpkin or gourd in the foreground, to add a little seasonal appeal. This is easily replaced with a sprig of holly as the Christmas holidays approach.

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All this cool-season colour is waiting for you at Amsterdam Garden Centre, along with our helpful staff, who will guide you through the designing process.

Copyright 2026 MK Lascelle