A Four-Season Garden in Transition

Fall colors in front of the Tobacco Barn.

Fall blooms and falling leaves

The colors of fall are a spectacle unlike any other. Months of summery green transition into a show of colors as the shorter days and cooler temperatures trigger the plants’ dormancy response, in an effort to conserve energy and resources during the cold winter months. In fact, the freeze-thaw of winter is integral to the longevity, beauty, and reproduction of many plants here at Historic London Town and Gardens.

Through a complex process known as vernalization, many plants require a prolonged period of cold temperatures in order to flower the following spring. Flowers then lead the way to fruit, which lead to seeds, which then often require a second period of cold temperatures to germinate, called stratification. In short, even during the coldest months of the year, plants are preparing for the spring.

As the leaves change colors, showing off brilliant warm tones, the plant is actively working to prepare for dormancy. Looking up at the spectacle of fall color, we are reminded that just as the squirrels are storing seeds for the winter, the plants too are storing carbohydrates and other material in their roots for use during dormancy.

Despite the overarching themes of rest and dormancy, there are plants that choose to use the cooling weather as the perfect time to bloom, providing much needed food for local fauna. Asters, plumbago, and witch hazels use this time to bloom without competition, adding pops of color even into November before succumbing to the incoming cold.

Designed as a true Four-Season Garden, London Town boasts a varied collection of buds, blooms, and barks, ensuring that at any time of the year there is beauty to be found. As you wander the trails this fall, be on the lookout for next spring’s buds, set during the cold and protected by tight sheaths of bud scales, waiting for warmer temperatures and longer days.

Visitor photos of what's blooming at London Town this September, by Rob McKay. From left to right; Swamp hibiscus flower, Kousa dogwood fruit, Cutleaf coneflower, Viburnum fruit, Japanese anemone flower, and Ageratum flowers