Fall, also known as Pumpkin Spice Season, is well underway. The leaves are changing colour and we’re saying so long to another garden season. But wait! There’s still plenty of enjoyment to be had from your hard-working garden. Temperatures may be falling, but Autumn is the perfect time to squeeze in a few more plants, and to slow down and connect with family, friends, and neighbours by hosting a backyard party.
Autumn Entertaining Ideas
This is a list of our favourite ideas to inspire your outdoor party plans and keep us in mind if you’re looking for decorations like pumpkins, gourds and flowers for your next event. Eising Porch Packages make decorating fun and easy!
Outdoor Movie or Game Night
Bring the patio furniture close to the house to protect everyone from a fall breeze, grab the basket of blankets or throws, warm some cider, and pop the popcorn. There’s nothing like a beautiful Autumn evening, now that the bugs are gone, to enjoy a night under the stars watching a great movie, your favourite team sport, or cracking open a fun board game.
Candy Apples Extravaganza
Create a self-serve candy apple bar with slices of apples on wooden skewers, bowls of dips like caramel, chocolate, hazelnut spread, and almond butter, and small bowls of toppings like mini marshmallows, sprinkles, and chocolate chips.
Harvest Abundance
Fall is the perfect time to enjoy a potluck featuring everything in season, or preserved from the garden. Sweet potatoes, squash, and yes, even Pumpkin Spice. Decorate the table with seasonal fruit, flowers, potted fall plants from Eising Greenhouses and fairy lights to add to the ambience. Maybe even a grazing board packed with favourite snacks.
Wreath or Garland Making Party
Looking to layer your Fall décor on the front door or a fireplace but don’t have a wreath or garland? Pick out a design with friends, and have everyone contribute one item for everyone to use. Forage for items in your yard, or buy them, then get together and create!
Backyard Bonfire
If you’re lucky enough to have a fire pit, or chiminea, Fall is the perfect time to host a backyard bonfire on a cool night. Marshmallows and hot chocolate will make it super cozy!
Oktoberfest Party
You may not want to hire the polka band, but soft pretzels, sausage, and local apple cider should definitely be on the menu. Fill a galvanized tub with ice, and add mason jars with premade drinks to make hosting a breeze.
Pumpkin Painting Party
All you’ll need is a pile of pumpkins and gourds, an inexpensive tablecloth, paint supplies, and some inspiration. It’s a canvas that can be painted over and over, so don’t be afraid to get creative. Kids love this, but so do adults!
Whatever you’re planning, we hope that you enjoy the season. You know where to find us: 814 Cockshutt Road in Simcoe, ON
P.S. Autumn is also the perfect time to plant perennials, shrubs and trees - stop by and peruse the garden centre to find some great last minute garden additions!
Perennials are fantastic for bringing reliable garden colour that comes back every year, but if they only flower for a brief window in summer, it can be a bit of a bummer. Finding perennials that bloom all spring, summer and fall can be tricky. However, blooms aren't always necessary—plenty of perennials have colourful foliage and ornamental features that delight throughout the seasons!
Get Amazing Colour With All Our Favourite Perennials For Spring, Summer & Fall
For incredible blooms and bold, unexpected foliage colour that never fails to disappoint, plant these beauties now! Hurry before those summer temperatures get scorching hot!
Autumn Joy Stonecrop
When spring and summer flowers fade, this hardy perennial succulent continues to impress us with its dusty rose blooms. As they mature, the cloud-like flower clusters will take on a deeper bronze tint, perfectly complementing the surrounding autumn scenery. It grows best in full sun with sandy, well-draining soil—and can thrive in poor, rockier soils, so it doesn’t need a ton of fertilizer. A little bit of all-purpose fertilizer applied in spring can help give a boost, but too much fertilizer can cause this low-maintenance plant to get a bit leggy.
Siberian Iris
While the bearded iris has long been considered a spring favourite, its beardless cousin, the Siberian iris is worthy of a spot in your perennial garden! Its prolific blooms emerge in spring and continue into summer, with single plants sending up as many as 20 flower shoots. There are many different colours to choose from, like deep blue, burgundy or rich gold, and some have earlier or later bloom times than average. So, if you plant a colourful variety of Siberian irises with different flowering times, you’ll get quite a spectacular display!
Coral Bells
Also known as Heuchera, this ornamental foliage plant is famous for its ultra-vivid leaves, available in pretty much every colour in the rainbow. In fact, there are multicoloured rainbow varieties too! Even in a garden bursting with magnificent blooms, coral bells will still catch your eye with their distinctive, lobed foliage that looks almost like maple leaves. They do produce some cute, delicate flowers atop tall stalks in summer—usually pink or white—but it’s the glossy leaves that send our hearts aflutter!
Hosta
The hosta is an absolute must-have for any shade garden. This perennial thrives in shaded areas, and it can get scorched from too much direct sun. The attractive leaves are quite large and slightly curved, forming a round, mounded shape that looks neat and tidy, making hosta great for border planting. We recommend planting a variegated variety with splashes of white or different shades of green to bring visual interest that lasts. On top of having gorgeous leaves, hostas will also sprout some cute, lavender-tinted flowers in summer, so you’ll have those to look forward to!
Autumn Brilliance Fern
Judging by the name, you might assume this fabulous fern transitions to orange in the autumn, but it’s the opposite! In spring, new fronds emerge a brilliant orange and mature into an emerald green shade. Don’t worry, you still get a little pop of autumn colour later in the season! Once September rolls around, bright red spores, or “sori,” appear on the undersides of the leaves. The frilled, wispy fronds add texture and movement to the landscape, and they do exceptionally well in shady areas covered by tree canopies. It likes the soil to be moist and well-draining, so mix in lots of compost when you plant, and water generously!
Pennisetum
Ornamental tufted grasses have such a dreamy, graceful quality to them. We love the way they dance in the breeze! The red and purple varieties are especially pretty if you’re looking for some long-lasting perennial colour, and their feathery plumes will stand out in any garden. Because of their height, Pennisetum plants look great as a “thriller” plant—something tall and flashy to act as a focal point in mixed arrangements in the garden or containers. Plant it near the back of your garden, so it doesn’t block any shorter plants from view.
On the hunt for perennials that will bloom all summer or offer stunning all-summer foliage? We’ve got an incredible collection in store for our Simcoe gardeners this year, and we’re so eager to show you what’s new and noteworthy! Visit us soon and one of our team members will be happy to help you find the perfect perennial assortment to make your garden look amazing all year.
We love choosing what bulbs to plant in autumn—there’s something exciting about designing your spring garden and waiting for all those colourful flowers to emerge at the first signs of warmer weather. But have you ever wondered why bulbs need to be planted so many months in advance?
Planting flower bulbs at the wrong time can stunt their growth or inhibit blooming altogether, so understanding the science behind it can help to ensure your spring garden is successful. Here’s a breakdown of why spring-flowering bulbs need to stay in the ground over the winter, and how to get the best results from planting.
When Should I Plant Spring-Blooming Bulbs?
Flower bulbs that bloom in spring are naturally accustomed to staying in the ground over the winter. This cold period is essential to kickstarting their bloom cycle—the cold is like a period of hibernation, and once the temperature begins to rise, this signals to the bulb that it’s time to start growing! Without the transition from cold to warm, your flower bulbs will get confused and won’t develop properly.
While the bulb is hanging out in the soil for several months, this also gives them an opportunity to soak up tons of nutrients from the soil, so they’re ready to spring into action as soon as it’s warm out. This is why it’s always a good idea to mix in lots of compost and remove any weeds from the soil, so your bulbs take in all that extra good stuff, and the weeds won’t end up hogging all the resources.
Ideally, you’ll want to plant your bulbs about 6 weeks before the ground is about to freeze up. Since our weather can be a bit unpredictable in autumn, wait until the temperatures consistently hover around 5-10°C. These are comfortable conditions for your flower bulbs to go in the ground.
Tips for Planting Flower Bulbs
There’s a bit more to planting flower bulbs than simply digging a hole and tossing them in, so follow these basic guidelines to make sure they’re planted properly:
- Choose a spot that gets at least 6 hours of direct sunlight every day. This will help your flowers bloom brightly.
- Plant them with the pointy side facing upward.
- Check the directions on the packaging to see the correct planting depth. Planting them too deeply can result in lots of leaves, but no flowers. Smaller bulbs usually only need to be planted about 4 inches deep, but larger bulbs like daffodils may need closer to 6–8 inches.
- Consider applying a layer of mulch to help block out weeds and regulate the soil temperature.
- Don’t add any fertilizer to the soil until spring, when you see the first signs of sprouting. Fertilizer just confuses plants in the fall and winter while they’re supposed to be resting, so hold off on using any and just stick with compost for building up soil nutrients.
What Bulbs are Planted in Fall?
For instant spring colour as soon as the snow melts and the temperature rises, grab some of these spring-blooming bulbs to plant in fall in Ontario that we carry here at Eising:
- Tulip
- Daffodil
- Crocus
- Iris
- Allium
- Hyacinth
- Snowdrops
- Garlic
Ready to start designing your spring garden? We’d love to help! Visit Eising, and we’ll show you our incredible collection of the best spring bulbs to plant now, in every beautiful colour imaginable!
With school back in session and summer 2020 coming to an end, now is the perfect time to refresh your wardrobe for fall. Picking out some sweet new threads always seems to bring an extra little burst of motivation and pep in your step. We scoured fashion mags and trend forecasts to find out what styles are on the horizon for fall, and then carefully curated an amazing collection for the Sassyfras Boutique. Start the season off right with some of these trend-savvy looks from our Ontario fall 2020 wardrobe collection.
The Latest In Denim
Denim will always be a timeless staple for any fall wardrobe, but the key to rocking it is making sure your style is modern and fresh! This year, we’re all about the straight leg and skinny leg styles, and we’re ditching the bootcut and baggy jeans. Straight cut jeans make your gams look long and lean, which is always a bonus! Plus, they’re easy to dress up or down, depending on what kind of footwear you go for. Skinny jeans and ballet flats or heels are a surprisingly chic combo! We just got a brand new shipment from Jag Jeans, so if you want some great quality denim that lasts, hurry over and try some on before stock runs out!
We’ve got some fabulous denim coats in store as well, and lately we’ve been seeing a lot of dresses and skirts paired up with denim coats to dress them down a bit. Lately, with fewer events and fancy occasions to attend, we don’t have as many excuses to wear our fluttery dresses and skirts, but sometimes it’s kinda fun to wear them for everyday wear! By layering a denim jacket over top, you can keep things casual, but still a little flirty and fun.
Jewel Toned Florals
It shouldn’t come as a shock that we’re all about the floral prints—we are attached to a garden centre, after all! While we usually associate florals with spring and summer, you can still totally rock them in the fall if you choose the right colour palette. Rich, deeper colours feel more of-the-season, so instead of the typical spring pastels and vibrant summer neons, transition to jewel-toned patterns. Our A-line midi skirt by Tribal has a stunning rose print with splashes of rich plum, amber, spruce, and burgundy, overlaid on charcoal chiffon, resulting in a super versatile piece that can easily transition from day to night.
Breezy Printed Kimonos And Overcoats
Ditch the old hoodies and worn out cardigans and try something a little more daring! Statement kimonos and patterned overcoats with geometric prints are an easy way to add some attitude and artistic flair to an otherwise casual outfit. Put on a simple pair of jeans and a black tank top, layer on our new Tribal kimono, and you’ve got yourself an effortlessly cool outfit. They pair especially well with a long, dangly necklace and a couple of stacked bracelets.
Utility Jackets in Statement Colours
Tailored coats with an androgynous vibe are blowing up the runways right now, and we really love when those pieces feature rich, warm tones that complement your autumn wardrobe. It’ll be golden hour all day long in our new mustard jacket that practically glows in the sunlight. Though the colour is quite vibrant, it’s surprisingly versatile, and pairs well with plenty of other cute fall colours like burgundy, navy, plum, charcoal, and the two hottest colours of the season: cafe au lait and chocolate brown.
There are so many more incredible styles coming into the store, so follow us on Instagram to catch updates on our latest looks. We’ve got fabulous designs from b.Young, Fransa, Dex Plus, Parsley & Sage, and LNBF—a comfy, casual collection featuring luxurious bamboo fabrics. Visit us in-store to see all our new stuff, plus some summer clearance items at incredible discounts! We look forward to helping you give your closet a much-deserved update.
Planting new trees into the landscape is always a worthwhile investment! Not only are they pretty to look at and provide cool shade on hot days, but they add a pretty significant increase in property value. Watching trees transition through each season is always a delight, but trees in autumn are especially beautiful. But did you know that autumn is actuaslly the perfect time to plant many of our favourite trees?
The root ball of a tree is quite sensitive. After all, it acts like their “brain” or central nervous system, so if you stress those roots out too much, you’re going to have a very tired looking tree on your hands. Here in Southern Ontario, if you plant in late spring or in the middle of summer, those high temperatures may be a bit too much for the roots to handle. The cool, mild temperatures of autumn are just right for transplanting.
6 Trees You Can Plant In Fall
Want to liven up your landscape with some colourful foliage? These ornamental trees for fall are so distinctly beautiful in their own different ways—it’s hard to pick just one!
Tulip Tree
This tree has so much style, and it grows surprisingly quickly, so if you’re a bit of an impatient gardener, you’ll love watching the tulip tree develop over the years. It gets its name from its gorgeous spring flowers, which you probably have guessed, look quite similar to the classic tulip! While it puts on quite a show in spring, it has a reputation for being especially beautiful in fall, when its sunny golden foliage turns a fiery orange shade.
Because the tulip tree grows so quickly, its branches tend to be a bit thin, so you may want to put it in a spot that gets some protection from the wind. Just make sure it gets at least some partial sun and isn’t too shaded, or else its leaves may turn brown. Regular pruning of your tulip tree and cleanup of any damaged branches will help keep things neat and help prevent pests from showing up.
Autumn Blaze Maple
There’s something so charming about a giant maple, and the blazing red leaves of this maple tree in autumn look so classically Canadian! It’s a perennial favourite, because it’s actually a cross between the red maple and the silver maple, and it seems to have taken on the best traits of both. Overall, it has stunning colours, a nice, balanced branching habit, and pretty sturdy limbs despite being a very fast grower.
Autumn blaze maples need full sun to grow to their best potential, but the condition of the soil is much less critical. This variety is actually quite drought tolerant and doesn’t mind poorer soils—just be sure you water it very regularly for those first couple of months after planting to help the roots establish.
Eastern Redbud
You’ll always look forward to spring in your yard with this show-stopping beauty around! It bursts into bright magenta blossoms and looks like it’s straight off the pages of a fairytale book. They don’t grow especially big—about 30 feet tall and wide at its largest—so if you’re looking for something a little smaller scale, the eastern redbud will suit the landscape nicely.
Ideally, you’ll want to plant your tree in a spot that gets direct sunlight in the morning, but a bit of shade in the afternoon, so a North or East-facing spot in the yard would work best. Plant it at least 8 feet away from any buildings to give it adequate room to spread, and try to put it in a spot that isn’t at the bottom of any slopes. This could cause too much moisture to collect near its roots, and this tree doesn’t like to sit in soggy soil. So long as the soil is quick-draining and isn’t piled up around the trunk of the tree, you aren’t likely to encounter any problems.
Emerald Cedar
We had to add a nice evergreen into the mix! Having vibrant foliage to admire year-round is always such a treat. This narrow variety is upright and handsome, reaching around 12 feet at maturity, so it’s super easy to integrate into the landscape and works particularly well as a hedge border. Its emerald green foliage is finely textured and lush all year long; it’s so classically refined!
This evergreen prefers full to partial sun. It likes well-drained soils, but isn’t very drought-tolerant and prefers moderate moisture, so if we go through a long stretch without rain, you’ll definitely want to water the roots with the hose to keep conditions comfortable. You aren’t likely to have too many pests issues with the emerald cedar, but in December, you may want to wrap it up with burlap to prevent the foliage from getting winter burn.
Heritage Birch
The bark of the birch tree is so uniquely beautiful and textured—we love the way it naturally peels off like paper, revealing fresh new bark underneath. The mature bark of the heritage birch almost has a pinkish tint to it, revealing creamy white new growth underneath. Growing up to around 70 feet tall and wide, it’s quite a sight to behold when grown with multiple trunks, instead of being trained into a single-trunked tree.
The heritage birch actually prefers its soil to be a bit more on the moist side and is more tolerant of clay soils compared to many other common landscape trees. It’s also quite heat tolerant, so as long as it gets some extra water, it shouldn’t be too fazed by a summer heatwave. If you’re going to prune your heritage birch, wait until fall to do so—in spring, the sap is a lot runnier and will make quite a mess!
Autumn Brilliance Serviceberry
This compact tree loves to show off its personality, covered with pretty white flowers every spring, and outdoing itself with orangey-red fall foliage. It produces berries from late spring and into summer, and it has smooth grayish-silver bark. It’s a nice small tree at just 25 feet maximum height. This is a great shade choice for small-scale landscapes. This serviceberry is suitable for planting under power lines.
Serviceberries grow best in full to part sun, and should not be allowed to dry out. This serviceberry is relatively low maintenance, and a beautiful addition to any yard.
Ready to plant some new trees at home? We’ve still got plenty in stock at Eising, and if you aren’t feeling super confident in your own tree-planting abilities, our experts are happy to provide landscaping services. Visit us in-store, or shop online to see our selection of trees that are ready for fall planting, and if you’d like to arrange for home delivery or curbside pickup, we can make that happen!