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Mums and asters are favorite fall flowers, but there are many more fall beauties to choose from.
Autumn Joy is probably one of the best known sedums, but there are lots of cultivars that reach their peak in fall.

Consider Angelina sedum. Its chartreuse foliage looks good all season and often turns amber in fall and winter.

Willow amsonia has blue flowers in spring, nice foliage all season, finishing off the year with a yellow glow.

Goldenrod, one of our native plants, has lots of attractive cultivars, like Fireworks. It's good in the garden or as a cut flower.

False aster, boltonia, is a graceful addition to the fall garden with it fine texture and open growth habit.

For shady damp sites consider turtlehead. A close look at the flowers reveals the source of its common name.

Another shade tolerant fall bloomer is Brunette bugbane. The white fragrant flowers dance above the colorful foliage.

A bit more information: Add to the colorful fall display with some shrubs known for their fall color. Chokeberry (Aronia) will tolerate shade and moist soils and provide a rich red in the landscape. Many of the viburnums provide several seasons of interest including fall color that ranges from yellow, red, purple or a combination of all three. Virginia sweetspire (Itea) has yellow, orange or red fall color that persists into late fall. Common witchhazel's yellow fall foliage gives way to fragrant yellow flowers that can last into early December.

For more gardening tips, podcasts and more, visit www.melindamyers.com

About Melinda Myers
Melinda Myers, best known for her gardener friendly and practical approach to gardening, has more than 30 years of horticulture experience in both hands-on and instructional settings. She has a bachelor's degree in horticulture from The Ohio State University and a master's degree in horticulture from University of Wisconsin-Madison, is a certified arborist, and was a horticulture instructor with tenure.

Outside the classroom, Melinda shares her expertise through a variety of media outlets. She has written over 20 books, including Can't Miss Small Space Gardening. She hosts "Great Lakes Gardener," seen on PBS stations throughout the United States, and "Melinda's Garden Moments", which air on network television stations throughout the country. She appears regularly as a guest expert on various national and local television and radio shows. She also writes the twice monthly "Gardeners' Questions" newspaper column and is a contributing editor and columnist for Birds & Blooms magazine. In addition, she hosted "The Plant Doctor" radio program for over 20 years and was a columnist and contributing editor for Backyard Living magazine.

For her work, community service and media presence, Melinda has received recognition and numerous awards, including the 2003 Garden Globe Award for radio talent and the Quill and Trowel Award for her television work, both from the Garden Writers Association. She has also received the Garden Communicator's Award from the American Nursery and Landscape Association and the Gold Leaf Award for Arbor Day from the International Society of Arboriculture.

For more information, visit Myers' web site www.melindamyers.com.