What’s Looking Good in Fullers Mill Garden from September Onwards

September marks the traditional turn from summer to autumn, when leaves take on glorious colours before falling.

Several plants embrace the season, especially Euonymus oxyphyllus and Euonymus europaeus ‘Red Cascade’, whose brilliant red foliage is striking. Cercidiphyllum japonicum also changes colour while releasing its distinctive candyfloss scent. Many trees and shrubs hold their leaves into October and beyond; among the last to turn is Ginkgo biloba, glowing butter yellow before its leaves seem to fall all at once.

Trees are not the only source of late-season colour. Asters flower in vivid pinks, soft mauves, blues and pure whites, with blooms ranging from tiny stars to 2cm across and plants from 15cm to 1.5 metres tall. Their reliable display complements our dahlias: the delicate, light-mauve Dahlia merckii; vibrant orange Dahlia ‘David Howard’, which flowers until the first frost; and red-flowered Dahlia ‘Bishop of Llandaff’, whose blooms rise above dark foliage beneath a walnut tree.

September also brings our annual Colchicum Day, celebrating the seasonal flower affectionately known as the “naked lady” because its blooms appear without leaves. The garden holds numerous species and cultivars, including our own Colchicum ‘Fullers Mill’, found growing among Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’, alongside Colchicum ‘Waterlily’, Colchicum x byzantinum ‘Innocence’ and Colchicum ‘August Flourish’. As the nights draw in, the flowers fade; the leaves return in early February.

The plants are not the only September highlight. Our newly opened lakeside walk hums with insect life drawn to the abundant wildflowers along its banks. Their colours shimmer in the still water, while shafts of sunlight filter through the trees and the evening sky is mirrored on the lake. It is a peaceful place to pause, notice the changing season and enjoy the garden from a fresh perspective.