Fall Flowers, Team Colors

Celebrate the football season with flowers, foliage and fruit in team colors.

football_plants

By: Susan Morgan

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Kick off the fall season with a bit of team spirit in your garden. Let your neighbors know who you're rooting for with a color display of your favorite football team's colors. From flowers and foliage to fruit and fall color, nature can help you support your team.

"Orange" you gonna use this color?

football_zinnia_profusion_fire

Zinnia 'Profusion Fire'

From Texas burnt orange to Tennessee bright orange, these plants serve up a version or two of this hue:

zinnia 'Profusion Orange', 'Profusion Fire' and 'Profusion Apricot'

coleus, options include 'Rustic Orange'

Mexican sunflower (Tithonia)

Echinacea 'Mango Meadowbrite'

lantana, options include 'Miss Huff' and 'Spreading Sunset'

Osteospermum 'Orange Symphony'

dahlia

strawflower (Bracteantha bracteata 'Sundaze Bronze Orange')

Heuchera 'Amber Waves'

witchhazel (Hamamelis sp.)

dwarf fothergilla (Fothergilla gardenii 'September Morn')

serviceberry (Amelanchier arborea 'Forest Prince')

Color me red

Whether it's Alabama crimson or Washington maroon, nature loves this color.

football_celosia

Celosia 'Fresh Look Red' and Coleus 'Crimson Velvet'

Celosia 'Fresh Look Red'

coleus 'Crimson Velvet'

Dahlia, options include 'Bishop of Llandaff'

Penstemon 'Husker Red'

Achillea 'Paprika'

ornamental peppers (Capsicum annuum), such as 'Chilly Chili'

Lantana 'Dallas Red'

Gaillardia 'Fanfare'

Acalypha 'Macafeeana'

Acalypha hispida

Acalypha repens

red shield hibiscus (Hibiscus acetosella 'Red Shield')

holly, includes Ilex opaca, I. cornuta, I. verticillata and I. decidua

maple, includes Acer rubrum 'Red Sunset', A. japonicum and A. ginnala 'Flame'

heavenly bamboo (Nandina domestica)

"Yellow" out loud for your team

This catchy color is mostly an accent for teams' primary colors, but nature provides plenty in both foliage and flowers.

football_rudbeckia

Rudbeckia sp.

yarrow (Achillea)

goldenrod (Solidago)

swamp sunflower (Helianthus angustifolius)

tickseed (Coreopsis sp.)

daylily (Hemerocallis sp.)

Celosia 'Fresh Look Gold'

lantana 'New Gold'

golden variegated sweet flag (Acorus gramineus 'Ogon')

Osteospermum 'Lemon Symphony'

Argyranthemum 'Butterfly'

sedum 'Angelina'

golden creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia 'Aurea')

birch (Betula sp.)

aspen, poplar (Populus sp.)

True blue

Though blue is a bit challenging to get in the natural world, here are some plants that could work for Penn State and New England fans.

football_plumbago

Plumbago

Plumbago auriculata

Ageratum sp.

blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)

Scabiosa 'Butterfly Blue'

No lack of black

Los Angeles and Pittsburgh fans can find plenty of black or very dark foliage and flowers:

football_black_mondo_grass

Black mondo grass

viola 'Bowles Black'

Alternanthera 'Black Knight'

coleus, options include 'Othello' and 'Dark Star'

canna 'Australia'

Ipomoea 'Blackie'

black ornamental millet (Pennisetum glaucum 'Purple Majesty')

black elephant ear (Colocasia 'Black Magic')

Heuchera 'Obsidian'

ornamental pepper 'Black Pearl'

Acalypha 'Chocolate Ruffles'

Sambucus nigra 'Eva'

black mondo grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens')

Ajuga 'Catlins Giant'

bugbane (Cimicifuga 'Black Negligee', also called Actaea)

House divided

Does one part of the family support one team while the other supports the opposition? Why not compromise by using combinations of plants from the list above? For example, the Ohio State fan in the family can plant canna 'Australia' and red celosia with the golden flowers of Rudbeckia for the Iowa fan's team colors. Be a good sport — maybe you'll come up with the ultimate plant partnership.