Autumn at the Toronto Botanical Garden: An Early Look

Fall Flowers at the TBG

A lull before my many (I hope) fall cleanup jobs gave me a chance to visit one of my favourite places in Toronto during my favourite time of the year: the Toronto Botanical Garden in autumn. While it wasn't a classic crisp and sunny fall day when I recently dropped by the TBG (more overcast and humid), I nevertheless happily spent an hour or so taking many pictures of fall blooming perennials hardy to zone 5 Toronto (and a few to-be-discarded annuals). It's still a little early for many of the shrubs and trees to show off their vibrant fall foliage colours so I focused on the autumn bloomers. 

Anemone tomentosa ‘Robustissima’
(Grape Leaf Anemone) at the
Toronto Botanical Garden's
Entry Garden Walk 

Anemone tomentosa ‘Robustissima’
(Grape Leaf Anemone) fall flowers
at the Toronto Botanical Garden's
Garden Hall Courtyard 

Autumn Crocus (Colchicum autumnale)
fall flowers at the Toronto Botanical Garden's
Entry Garden Walk

Autumn Fountain Grass and
New England Asters
at the Toronto Botanical Garden's
Perennial Borders 

Autumn Goldenrods at the
Toronto Botanical Garden's
Perennial Borders 

Autumn New England Asters and
Fountain Grass at Toronto Botanical
Garden's Perennial Border 

Autumn New England Asters and
Goldenrod at the Toronto Botanical
Garden's Woodland Walk 

Autumn New England Asters and
Purple Coneflowers at the Toronto
Botanical Garden's Perennial Borders 

Autumn Purple Coneflowers and
New England Asters at the
Toronto Botanical Garden's
Perennial Borders 

Calico Aster (Symphyotrichum lateriflorum)
at the Toronto Botanical Garden Nature

Colchicum autumnale (Autumn Crocus)
fall flowers at the Toronto Botanical
Garden's Entry Garden Walk 

Dahlia 'Knockout' or 'Mystic Illusion'
flower detail at the
Toronto Botanical Garden 

Grape Leaf Anemone
(Anemone tomentosa ‘Robustissima’)
fall flowers at the
Toronto Botanical Garden's
Garden Hall Courtyard 

Phlomis tuberosa 'Amazone' (Jerusalem Sage)
autumn flowers at the Toronto Botanical
Garden's Entry Garden Walk 

Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
seedheads at the Toronto Botanical Garden's
Entry Garden Walk 

Reblooming Bearded Iris 'Immortality'
fall flowers at the Toronto Botanical
Garden's Entry Garden Walk 

Rosa 'AuSome' (Rose-Marie Modern Shrub Rose)
at the Toronto Botanical Garden's
Floral Hall Courtyard 

Rosa 'AuSome' (Rose-Marie Modern Shrub Rose)
bloom at the Toronto Botanical Garden's
Floral Hall Courtyard 

Rudbeckia subtomentosa 'Henry Eilers'
(Sweet Coneflower) and Tall Verbena
at the Toronto Botanical Garden's
Westview Terrace 

Salvia 'Mystic Spires Blue' and
Lantana camara 'Luscious Bananarama'
flowers at the Toronto Botanical Garden 

Toronto Botanical Garden
Nature's Walk Fall Colours 

Toronto Botanical Garden
Perennial Border Fall Colours 

Verbena bonariensis (Tall Verbena)
at the Toronto Botanical Garden's
Entry Garden Walk 

It's Canadian Thanksgiving this weekend and I'm very thankful for being able to visit the Toronto Botanical Garden. And judging by the crowd milling around during this recent visit, I'm not the only one to feel the same!

A Fall Visit to the Toronto Botanical Garden

Autumn splendor at the TBG: an early look

An early look but a late post! I took these pictures at the beginning of the month and haven't had a chance until today to put them in one place. So without further ado....

Toronto Botanical Garden
Purple Coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea) 

Echinacea and Rose of Sharon fall blooms
 at the Toronto Botanical Garden 

Fall is my favourite time to visit gardens (actually, to work in them too) with lower temperature and humidity levels. Crowds are usually thinner as well so that makes my photo taking easier! I had a free day earlier this month so off to the Toronto Botanical Garden I went. I'll likely visit the TBG again later in the autumn to especially enjoy the foliage displays of the Japanese maples. But for now, please enjoy these pictures of early autumn (well, technically late summer) in Toronto.

Rosa 'Meidomonac' BONICA
at the Toronto Botanical Garden

Unidentified Summer Phlox
( Phlox paniculata ) fall bloom
at the Toronto Botanical Garden

Japanese Blood Grass (Imperata cylindrica)
at the Toronto Botanical Garden 

"Blue River II" Hardy Hibiscus bloom
at the Toronto Botanical Garden

Caryopteris x clandonensis 'Summer Sorbet' fall blooms
at the Toronto Botanical Garden

Euonymus phellomanus (corktree or spindle tree)
 berries at the Toronto Botanical Garden 

Goldenrod and rudbeckia fall blooms
at the Toronto Botanical Garden

Chinese chives ( Allium tuberosum ) blooms
at the Toronto Botanical Garden

Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) fall blooms
at the Toronto Botanical Garden 

Fall container at the Toronto Botanical Garden

Perennial border in the fall
at the Toronto Botanical Garden

I absolutely love this perennial border in the fall, not only because it shows my favourite colour combination of yellow and purple. Notice how there's wonderful layering going on with the herbaceous peonies, Joe Pye Weed, goldenrod, barberry and (I think) Heliopsis way in the back of the bed.

I'd take this over a row of "Emerald" white cedars eight days a week...

River birch ( Betula nigra ) bark
 at the Toronto Botanical Garden.
Quite "appeeling"! (Sorry.)

"Kopper King" Hardy Hibiscus bloom
at the Toronto Botanical Garden 

Beryl Ivey Knot Garden
at the Toronto Botanical Garden 

Toronto Botanical Garden
autumn perennial border

"Immortality" Bearded Iris
at the Toronto Botanical Garden 

Tropical Hibiscus 'Sunny Wind'
at the Toronto Botanical Garden

Anemone tomentosa 'Robustissima'
(Grape Leaf Japanese Anemone)
at the Toronto Botanical Garden

Late summer or early fall (you pick) at the Toronto Botanical Garden and Edwards Gardens

Spending part of Labor Day weekend at the TBG

Work has slowed down a little to give me some time to write about....flowers! My recent posts have covered garden maintenance "befores" and "afters" which, while perhaps cathartic for the clients, are not pleasing to the eye for the rest of us.

This Labour Day weekend was spent just relaxing around the house and enjoying the fantastic weather in Toronto. Sunny, upper 20s (Celsius) and no humidity. I'll take that anytime, especially given the torrid weather we've had in July and August.

Linda and I spent one morning at the Toronto Botanical Garden, along with many other visitors and more than a few wedding parties who were creating memories along side their respective brides and grooms.

Here are some "late summer/early autumn" pictures showing many plants that bloom at the TBG and elsewhere in Toronto right about now.

I can't/don't want to think about fall until after (Canadian) Thanksgiving in October, knowing what will soon follow! So enjoy the sun and warmth with me for a little longer...

Allium florets and a hungry bee

Anemone x hybrida "September Charm" 
Japanese/wind anemone 

Backlit Brugmansia flower:
I was trying to be "artsy"!

Blue and white Cardinal Flower (Lobelia siphilitica) 
at the Beryl Ivey Knot Garden 

Blue and white Lobelia siphilitica among the boxwood hedges

Blue Anise Sage (Salvia guaranitica "Black and Blue")  

Echinacea purpurea (Coneflowers) and 
Bear Breeches (Acanthus hungaricus) 

Hardy Hibiscus "Kopper King" 

The token succulent: 
Kalanchoe thyrsiflora (Paddle plant) 

"Kopper King" hardy Hibiscus, dinner plate size

Phlox paniculata "Robert Poore" Summer Phlox and 
Goldenrod (Solidago spp.) screaming for your attention

Pink Brugmansia flower, nicely lit for me

"No I.D." Pink Phlox paniculata (Summer Phlox). 
Perhaps a reader can help identify?

My kind of flagstone path: Russian Sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia) 
and Rudbeckia beg to touched as we pass by.

Tall Bearded Iris "Immortality". 
I assumed wrongly that all Irises have 
finished blooming by now. 
Such a clear and clean white!

Vernonia noveboracensis 
(New York Ironweed) 
Why don't we see more of this 
native plant in Toronto gardens?

Next to the TBG is the older Edwards Gardens section. I call the seasonal temporary plantings here "municipal" because of a reliance on bedding plants to create island beds of which Queen Victoria would approve and such a style is a favourite throughout the several municipalities making up Toronto in their public parks. These "show gardens" provide the colour many visitors (and taxpayers) expect to see in public spaces. (Will there a shift in the public's attitudes towards more sustainable horticultural practices and plants which require lower maintenance and other inputs?)


As the song goes, these tender bedding plants are "here for a good time, not a long time" and will be tossed away soon and be replaced by fall mums and other frost hardy annuals. So we might as well enjoy them for now!

I do admit I found the Musa spp.
(ornamental bananas) very striking!

Carpet bed hummingbird

"Cherry Brandy" Rudbeckia hybrid

A mass of begonias, salvia and ornamental bananas

Nothing subtle here with these "streams" of annuals

"Tiger Eye" Rudbeckia hybrid 

"Victoria Blue" Salvia farinacea (Mealy Cup Sage)

Xerochrysum bracteatum (Strawflower).
A new one for me...

A carpet bed celebrating our city's baseball team