Replacing summer colors in a Maplewood garden with hearty annuals and earthy hues
As summer turns to fall and the temperature and collective mood both shift to “sweater weather,” summer annuals can be replaced with autumn tones and textures. This purple, white, and pink cottage garden was due for a fall refresh.The changeover is both functional and aesthetic: hearty annuals that are built for cooler temps also bring richer, earthier, jewel-toned hues that evoke the feeling of fall. Here we let annual salvia stick around from summer, as its deep blue-purple spires echo the shape of feathery perennial grasses, and will anchor and transition the garden’s color palette into autumn. Magenta spikes of celosia dance in the background, and periwinkle, pink, and violet asters, along with plum mums, electric purple pansies, and dusty blue-purple cabbages form layers of textured color for a charming, cozy cottage look.