In the Field with Melissa | October Edition
👩‍🌾 By Melissa Berrier, Landscape Design and Sales
Frederick Landscaping | Serving Maryland

October is when the garden begins to quiet down, but that doesn’t mean it gets boring. If anything, it becomes more interesting. The bold flowers fade and in their place we get textures, seed heads and a whole new color palette. This month’s fieldwork has taken me from client gardens to roadside discoveries and it’s all reminding me that fall beauty lives in the details.

 

🍂 Foliage Worth a Second Look

Forsythia may be the spring overachiever everyone loves to hate, but this one caught my eye on a drive home. Its purplish red fall color is surprisingly showy and totally underrated.

🍄 Spooky Season Finds

Jack-o’-lantern mushrooms: glowing (yes, bioluminescent!) and totally toxic. I found these growing along a roadside between site visits; beautiful but don’t mistake them for the edible chanterelle mushrooms. The night picture was borrowed from Google but now I want to re-trace my drive and find my way back in the evening! Perfect for spooky season garden vibes.

 

🌼 Misunderstood Fall Favorites

Goldenrod gets blamed for fall allergies, but ragweed is the real culprit. Goldenrod is insect-pollinated with heavier pollen and vibrant blooms that are important for pollinators. It’s a native plant worth keeping around.

 

 

🍇Fall Fruits & Berries

Dogwoods are doing double duty right now. Our native varieties offer bright red berries for the birds while Kousa dogwoods produce larger, spiky fruit; beautiful, but messy. Pro tip: plant Kousa farther from hardscape to avoid cleanup.

 

Beautyberry is living up to its name: neon purple berries almost don’t look real; more like something from a candy aisle than a native shrub. (Honestly, they remind me of Nerds candy.)

 

 

And then there’s mile-a-minute weed. Its blue berries look tempting but don’t be fooled; mile-a-minute weed is one of the most aggressive invasive plants in our region. It grows fast (hence the name), smothers native plants and quickly takes over natural areas.

Unfortunately, I spotted this one near Gambrill State Park Frederick Overlook recently, scrambling over everything near the trails. If you see it in your own garden, the best thing to do is pull it before it sets seed.

It’s a good reminder that not all colorful plants are keepers; some are best admired briefly, then removed quickly.

 

💡 Bonus Field Notes

Helenium (Sneezeweed): 

Despite the name, sneezeweed won’t make you sneeze; its pollen is insect-pollinated, not airborne. The name comes from a historical use: early settlers and Native tribes made snuff from dried flowers to induce sneezing as a remedy, not because the plant causes allergies. Today, it’s just a bright, pollinator-friendly fall bloomer worth having around.

I spotted these beauties on a visit to one of our favorite garden centers!

 

 

Plumbago + Nippon Daisy: 

I caught this duo blooming in Baker Park, and the blue and white combo instantly transported me to Penn State memories. (We Are…still plant nerds, apparently.)

 

 

 

🌻 Flower-Picking Tip

The other weekend’s pick-your-own sunflower stop reminded me: if you’re growing or picking sunflowers for bouquets or events, look for sterile varieties. They won’t drop pollen which is ideal for weddings or white tablecloth settings. If not, just keep the vase somewhere you don’t mind a little golden dust.

 

🧹 Fall Cleanup Reminder

Fall isn’t just for admiring textures and berries; it’s also a good time for getting your garden ready for winter. That means clearing out what’s past its prime, cutting back and planting while the soil is still workable.

Let’s get it done. Our fall cleanup services are booking now. Schedule yours to head into winter with a garden that’s neat, healthy and ready for the next season.

Take a few extra moments as you move through the garden this month; you never know what you’ll notice when you look beyond the blooms.

That’s this month’s field research. See you next month!
– Melissa