10 Ways to Enjoy Fall in Your Outdoor Spaces
Add seasonal container plants, light a fire, harvest veggies or simply spend time relishing the changing season
Shorter days, a chill in the air and a touch of golden sunlight herald the start of fall. The bright blooms of spring and summer may be fading, making way for autumn foliage; the list of garden tasks is getting shorter. Best of all, there’s still plenty of time to enjoy your garden and appreciate the richness of a fall landscape.
2. Keep It Light
Add decorative lighting to extend your time outside into the evening hours. String lights, especially those with a golden glow, help brighten outdoor gathering spots. Lanterns, lamps and candles can illuminate areas farther out in your yard.
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Add decorative lighting to extend your time outside into the evening hours. String lights, especially those with a golden glow, help brighten outdoor gathering spots. Lanterns, lamps and candles can illuminate areas farther out in your yard.
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3. Warm Things Up
A fire feature provides heat and outdoor interest, drawing people outside even as the weather turns chilly. There are plenty of fire feature options, from permanent fireplaces and fire pits to portable ones — some even double as barbecues. Bring in freestanding heaters or install permanent fixtures on walls or overhead to warm up other areas of the yard.
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A fire feature provides heat and outdoor interest, drawing people outside even as the weather turns chilly. There are plenty of fire feature options, from permanent fireplaces and fire pits to portable ones — some even double as barbecues. Bring in freestanding heaters or install permanent fixtures on walls or overhead to warm up other areas of the yard.
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4. Make It Cozy
Have blankets and throws on hand outside to encourage family and friends to linger, with or without a fire. An outdoor rug under a dining table or in a seating area lends an even cozier vibe.
Browse blankets and throws
Have blankets and throws on hand outside to encourage family and friends to linger, with or without a fire. An outdoor rug under a dining table or in a seating area lends an even cozier vibe.
Browse blankets and throws
5. Keep Harvesting
The arrival of fall doesn’t mean the end of the growing season. Keep picking summer vegetables and crops that are still producing. You can extend the growing season by planting quick-growing cool-climate vegetables such as beets, carrots, kale, lettuce, radishes and Swiss chard.
6 Ways to Keep Your Edible Garden Going Until Spring
The arrival of fall doesn’t mean the end of the growing season. Keep picking summer vegetables and crops that are still producing. You can extend the growing season by planting quick-growing cool-climate vegetables such as beets, carrots, kale, lettuce, radishes and Swiss chard.
6 Ways to Keep Your Edible Garden Going Until Spring
6. Throw an Autumn Party
Celebrate fall flavors from the garden, toast the end of heat spells or invite fellow sports fans to watch the game on an outdoor TV. There are plenty of reasons to entertain outside in the fall, and the cooler temperatures make it a pleasure to be outside. Display your autumn decor and bring out seasonal treats, such as pumpkin bars and apple cider.
10 Ideas for Styling Your Patio for Outdoor Dining This Fall
Celebrate fall flavors from the garden, toast the end of heat spells or invite fellow sports fans to watch the game on an outdoor TV. There are plenty of reasons to entertain outside in the fall, and the cooler temperatures make it a pleasure to be outside. Display your autumn decor and bring out seasonal treats, such as pumpkin bars and apple cider.
10 Ideas for Styling Your Patio for Outdoor Dining This Fall
7. Celebrate Leaves
Take in the fall foliage on a hiking trail, at a local park or in your yard. Turn raking leaves from a chore into a chance to appreciate Mother Nature’s show. Once you have a pile of leaves, it might just be time to channel your inner child and jump in.
Rather than immediately bagging your leaves, consider using some or all of them as a natural mulch. You can spread a thin layer over your garden beds or lawn, allowing the leaves to decompose and add nutrients to the soil. Don’t make the layer too thick, especially over a lawn, as you don’t want to kill whatever might be growing underneath. Use a lawnmower or garden shredder to turn the leaves into smaller pieces.
5 Ways to Put Fall Leaves to Work in Your Garden
Take in the fall foliage on a hiking trail, at a local park or in your yard. Turn raking leaves from a chore into a chance to appreciate Mother Nature’s show. Once you have a pile of leaves, it might just be time to channel your inner child and jump in.
Rather than immediately bagging your leaves, consider using some or all of them as a natural mulch. You can spread a thin layer over your garden beds or lawn, allowing the leaves to decompose and add nutrients to the soil. Don’t make the layer too thick, especially over a lawn, as you don’t want to kill whatever might be growing underneath. Use a lawnmower or garden shredder to turn the leaves into smaller pieces.
5 Ways to Put Fall Leaves to Work in Your Garden
8. Dress Up Your Porch
Nothing says fall like seasonal decor on a porch or flanking an entryway. Start with traditional fall container plants, such as mums, then add other potted plants. Change out your welcome mat and add a fall-inspired wreath to the door. Small hay bales and dried cornstalks add a rustic touch. Don’t forget the pumpkins — they’re surprisingly long-lasting if you don’t pierce the skin.
Nothing says fall like seasonal decor on a porch or flanking an entryway. Start with traditional fall container plants, such as mums, then add other potted plants. Change out your welcome mat and add a fall-inspired wreath to the door. Small hay bales and dried cornstalks add a rustic touch. Don’t forget the pumpkins — they’re surprisingly long-lasting if you don’t pierce the skin.
9. Bring Fall Colors Indoors
Gather fall flowers and foliage to bring a piece of your garden inside. Mums and dahlias make beautiful arrangements. Consider adding fading hydrangea blooms and rose tips, leaves from maple and oak trees, and maybe some stalks from ornamental grasses to fill things out. You also could keep it simple with a spray or two of leafy branches or berries.
Gather fall flowers and foliage to bring a piece of your garden inside. Mums and dahlias make beautiful arrangements. Consider adding fading hydrangea blooms and rose tips, leaves from maple and oak trees, and maybe some stalks from ornamental grasses to fill things out. You also could keep it simple with a spray or two of leafy branches or berries.
10. Relax and Enjoy
Savor the season. Spend time on your porch or in your yard and reflect on the past summer. Take a break from fall’s hectic days to appreciate where you are now.
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Savor the season. Spend time on your porch or in your yard and reflect on the past summer. Take a break from fall’s hectic days to appreciate where you are now.
More on Houzz
Read more stories about landscape design
Browse landscape photos
Hire a landscape contractor
Shop for your outdoor spaces
Perk up fading containers and planting beds with seasonal colors. Look for annuals in traditional autumn hues such as yellow and orange. Mix them with jewel tones ranging from dark reds to shades of purple. Add foliage in deeper shades of green or cream, and place tan and brown grasses and seed heads as exclamation points.
For fall colors that repeat, look for summer-to-fall blooming perennials to enjoy now and in the future.
20 Favorite Flowers for the Fall Landscape