Walking the Garden, October 2026
Onward to Next Spring
Once October rolls around, I am forced to acknowledge that Fall has definitely arrived.
The days are so much shorter; there is a nip in the morning and evening air; the leaves are falling from all the deciduous trees, and many of the perennials are showing serious signs of wear and tear.
The Ivy geraniums (Pelargonium peltatum) in a hanging basket at the front, however, are refusing to accept defeat.
Shasta Daisies produce their best show starting in early June. Once the flowers die, I usually cut them back to the last bud on the stem. They will often continue to produce a modest number of blooms for a few weeks. Finally, they are done. That is, until October, when suddenly some rogue flowers appear, as seen below.
Another Fall classic is the Nippon Daisies (Nipponanthemum nipponicum, commonly called Nippon daisy or Montauk daisy). The large buds began appearing in late September; then, on October 2, the first one opened and was immediately attacked by a snail; note the ragged petals.
The next photo shows the Nippon Daisies in full display mode a couple of weeks later.
Our Cotoneaster shrub at the front provides three seasons of interest, with the pink blooms in spring followed by the red berries in mid-summer, which hang on until late fall.
Adjacent to the Cotoneaster is the Chocolate White Snakeroot (Ageratina altissima ‘Chocolate '), which comes into its own in mid-October.
What I like about the Chocolate White Snakeroot (Ageratina altissima ‘Chocolate ’) is that it produces flowers so late in the season, and that it has these beautiful deep red leaves and stems which contrast with the white flowers.
The wine-coloured chrysanthemums below were just demanding to come home. I found them at the Apple Market, the family-owned store where I do most of our food shopping.
I have never seen such fat and perfect domes of Chrysanthemums. They were gorgeous when I bought them and have continued, unchanged, with no sign of dying flowers.
The Apple Market has a wide assortment of fresh fruit and vegetables, and always a nice selection of cut flowers, and a variety of potted plants all year around. In the spring and summer they have a great supply of annuals and perennials. But, for me the best part is that all the staff know us by our first names, and remember our preferences. How nice is that?
I am constantly surprised and pleased by how beautiful the Hydrangeas are. Starting in July, they produce white flowers. In mid-August, the flowers take on a slightly rosy tinge. As the days get shorter and cooler, the colour gets deeper.
Even though I have been a professional gardener for more than 40 years, I continue to learn about garden stuff. For example, Hydrangeas are a group of plants that are endlessly both interesting and baffling to me.
I will hone in on the two main types: The ones with large, leathery leaves and puffy, round groups of flowers per stem (Macrophyla), and the ones with thinner, narrower leaves and the long, cone-shaped flower types (Paniculata).
When I first started the gardening thing in Canada, in the 1980s, every effort I made to grow Hydrangeas failed. So I avoided them. Then in 2016, I found a drop-dead gorgeous Hydrangea called Hydrangea paniculata “Phantom,” which I was assured was a sure-fire plant. I started with one, the one in the photo below, and have since added several others to different spots around the garden. They have never let me down.
Having achieved success with the Phantoms, I have gotten braver with other hydrangeas.
I got Hydrangea Macrophyla “Let's Dance” as shown in the photo below, in 2023, hoping that it would prosper in the partial shade of the back garden. I was thrilled when it flowered beautifully the following year, and it has continued to do so, in spite of having less than perfect soil. I particularly appreciate that it continues to flower late into Fall, providing a welcome splash of colour.
Another little win with the Macrophyla hydrangeas is with the ones I have along the front fence. I got these from a neighbour. They refused to flower for her, and for several years, refused to flower for me; then, this year, surprise!
Get Louise Peacock’s stories in your inbox
Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.
They began flowering in August, and have continued up until now. They are pretty undersized, but I am hoping that now that I have removed the large groups of Rudbeckia (which were overwhelming and hiding them) they will do better.
Recently, a lot of us Canadians have become very conscious of our Canadian identity; as a result, one is seeing a lot of Canadian flags on display. We have a steel front door, and I found a magnetic flag for it.😆
Since it is Fall, I caved and put a Fall-themed wreath on the door. Granted, it was a really nicely made one, but it is basically fake. A local squirrel mistook it for real. We heard strange rattling against the door, and a look at the door cam revealed a squirrel digging about in the wreath. It bit off a fake berry and left in a hurry when we banged against the door.
It has not been back.
As Fall continues to cause the assorted plants to fade and die, some of the annuals in pots and containers continue to put on a brave face. It rained overnight, and I was taken with the sun lighting up raindrops on this last Fibrous Begonia in a fence planter.
Every year you hear me rave about the CatMint (Nepeta Cattus) growing beside the driveway. Here I go again. How nice is it that just when most perennials are packing it in, the CatMint is coming into its second flowering phase.
Snapdragons are an annual favorite. Every year at this time, I tell myself that I will get more next spring. Spring arrives, and I forget how nice they are and fail to get enough. Watching the bees carefully push their way into the flower is tremendous fun.
I love the Calendula Daisies. Easy care. Self-seed generously. Are medicinal. The deeper orange flowers can be dried and the petals used as a low-cost alternative to Saffron.
Below are a bunch that self-seeded along our fence-line.
Chrysanthemums do not really like our climate zone, which is 5B — 6. There are two types that do survive, to my knowledge. One is the pale pink Clara Curtis, which we have. The other is a pale yellow one whose name I do not know, but I did recently get one from a client (who also doesn’t know its name), and fortunately for me, it rooted and this year produced flowers, as seen in the next photo.
Another Apple Market find was this interesting Euphorbia plant called “Milii” or Crown of Thorns plant. Initially, I just bought one two years ago. I liked it so much that I got two the following year. This year I really splurged. I got four. Two for our garden. One for the front pot, and one for the biggest back pot. I also got two as gifts for neighbours.
In its own environment, which I think is Madagascar, this beautiful plant grows into a sizeable bush. Here, it is a lovely container plant, and it flowers brightly and continuously, from when we get it, in late May, until a hard frost gets it, possibly late October or November.
At our home, we joke a lot about making sure that we enjoy the outdoors for as long as possible, because come the snow, we will be staring sadly out the windows, noses pressed against the cold glass, longing for summer.
Therefore, we leave a couple of patio chairs outdoors until the weather gets really cold, and on sunny days, if it stays about 20 Celsius, we grab our mugs of tea and cookies and sit outside, enjoying the last colour in the garden.
On October 31, at 3 pm, the photo below shows the view we enjoyed, with the Phantom Hydrangeas and the Giant Miscanthus grasses taking center stage, and the “Autumn Flame” Maple peeking in on the right.
To end October, I couldn’t resist one last photo of the Giant Miscanthus grass.
See you in November!
