Fact Sheet: Autumn Trees

Autumn is a remarkable season in the cooler parts of Australia. It’s when sugars are withdrawn from the leaves and they turn wonderful reds, oranges and yellows before being shed. As the French philosopher Albert Camus said: “Autumn is a second spring when every leaf becomes a flower.” When it comes to choosing an autumn foliage plant for your garden, it’s important to think carefully about its function in the garden. Trees, shrubs, hedging plants and tub specimens, all display exquisite autumn foliage. Some to look out for include:• When choosing a large tree, you can’t go past the American oaks. The scarlet oak Quercus coccinea has colour that varies from a wonderful intense scarlet to plummy purples. The leaf shape is also quite exquisite. It’s one of the trees that contributes to the autumn colour of north-eastern America which is world famous. Bring this tree to Australia and it brings the wonderful colour with it.• Another North American tree is the wonderful red maple Acer rubrum ‘Fairview Flame’ - its colours are vibrant. But where the scarlet oak might grow to 15 metres or more, the red maple will only reach 10 or 11 metres and forms a lovely pyramidal-shaped tree. • The Liquidambar is familiar to many people but look out for a cultivar called ‘Gold Dust.’ The leaves are green, but have a spattering of yellow. In autumn they turn magical yellows and it’s just breathtaking. The tree grows to about 10 or 11 metres and would make a splendid feature on the front lawn. • When it comes to yellow foliage you can go past the Ginkgo biloba or Maidenhair tree. It has distinctively shaped leaves, is quite beautiful and in autumn, turns an exquisite butter yellow. It’s native to China, where it has been in cultivation for thousands of years, and has a vertical form. It’s also a male which means you don’t get fruit - these can be smelly on female forms of the tree. And just a little tip – use the leaves after they fall, to make a fantastic bookmark.• Some trees hold their autumn colour for a long time. Among those are the Manchurian pears Pyrus ussuriensis. They hold their leaves for a long time, and also leaf up early in spring. Look out for other cultivars with a columnar habit including ‘Aristocrat’, ‘Capital’ and ‘Chanticleer’. • When it comes to small trees the crepe myrtles or Lagerstroemias are hard to beat - they have fantastic flowers, wonderful bark, and incredible autumn colour. Look out for ‘Lipan’ with its orange foliage and ‘Zuni’ with its red foliage but the best is ‘Sioux’. These will form trees to about 4 metres, and also do well in tubs -perfect for a patio where you want shade and autumn colour.• Also good for containers are the many Japanese maples Acer palmatum ‘Shishigashira’ with its tiny leaves and intense red colours - a splendid contrast to the leaves that remain green. ‘Omurayama’ turns yellow.• The purple leafed Berberis thunbergii ‘Atropurpurea’ is an old fashioned plant but really drought tolerant and it produces red autumn foliage - perfect against the purple leaves. It is a plant that can be hedged. • But for a really good coloured autumn hedge, you can’t beat the spindle bush Euonymus alatus ‘Compactus.’ To grow it well, avoid wet soils. By carefully select the right autumn plants, you can get a wonderful succession of colour. Try planting them against a contrasting foil like a beautiful conifer or even against a building. With the right plant choice autumn colour can bring a new dimension to the garden.