The Flower You Can Plant In The Fall To Enjoy For Its Unique Colors

Fall can be a great time to prepare your garden for spring. This means not only enjoying the last of your summer blooms but adding new plants that will fill your garden with color and life once the warmth of spring returns. However, not every plant can handle a winter underground, which is why picking the perfect plant for your garden is essential. Fortunately, for those in warmer regions, you can plant this eye-catching flower in the fall to enjoy its unique pastel colors come spring.

Forget-me-nots (Myosotis sylvatica) have an iconic, charming appearance, with delicate blue petals and bright yellow centers. If you live in a colder region, you may need to wait until spring to add these plants to your garden, even if you're starting the seeds indoors. However, in the warmer climates where forget-me-nots are hardy, you can plant them in the fall to enjoy their timeless spring blooms.

Before adding this unique flower to your garden, however, it's important to know that forget-me-nots are strong self-seeding flowers. This means that it can easily spread throughout your garden, and, since they're perennials, you can enjoy them year after year. However, because of this, they may also be considered invasive in some areas. As a result, it's essential to learn how these plants grow in your specific area before sowing seeds.

While checking if forget-me-nots are invasive in your area, you may also want to consider whether you should grow them as a perennial or an annual. Forget-me-not flowers are hardy in USDA zones 3 through 8. They also do best in areas that offer the right type of soil, whether that's in the ground or a planter. While good drainage is essential, forget-me-nots do prefer soil that is moist and contains plenty of nutrients. As far as sunlight goes, plan your garden around giving these flowers anywhere from partial shade to full sun exposure each day.

Giving your forget-me-nots the right start is only one step in growing these eye-catching flowers in your garden. They'll also need a bit of ongoing care as they grow, especially if you want them to bloom throughout the summer months. If having your flowers reseed and regrow is a priority, you can skip deadheading. However, to encourage more blooms, it's important to deadhead your forget-me-nots regularly, removing any spent or lackluster flowers.

Because they can attract pollinators, including butterflies, forget-me-nots can be perfect for the gardener interested in starting a pollinator garden. And, because there are different varieties of these flowers, don't fret if blue isn't your color — forget-me-nots also come in pink or white. Just make sure to double-check growing conditions when experimenting with other varieties, as some may differ in hardiness.