Sowing Wild Beauty: When (and What) to Plant for a Blooming Spring

There’s something deeply satisfying about tucking flower seeds into the soil just as the world begins to quiet. While most people are pulling their gardens to rest, I find myself walking the fields with a pouch of seeds in my pocket, scattering next year’s blooms into the cool, waiting earth.

Out here on the Colorado Front Range, fall is one of the best times to plant certain flowers and herbs—especially native wildflowers, hardy perennials, and medicinal plants that thrive in our unpredictable climate. These are the kinds of plants that want winter. They need the snow, the freeze, the long pause. And if you give them that now, they’ll reward you with early, abundant growth come spring.

Here’s a little guide to help you get your fall sowing just right—based on what’s worked well for us here at Three Leaf Farm.

Why Fall Planting Works

Some seeds are hard-wired to wait. They’re built to fall to the ground in autumn, settle in, and slumber through the snow. That cold stretch—the freezing and thawing, the moisture from melting snow—is exactly what they need to soften their seed coat and signal that it’s time to grow.

We call it dormant seeding—sowing seeds after a hard frost, so they don’t sprout too early. They just rest, held by the soil, until the warming light of spring calls them up.

It’s one of the most hopeful things I know: planting beauty you won’t see for months, but trusting it will come.

Best Timing for Colorado’s Front Range

  • Mid-August to Late September
    Sow wildflowers, herbs, and cold-hardy perennials. These will nestle in before winter and get a head start in spring.

  • October to November
    After a good hard frost, plant your seeds so they’ll sleep through winter and wake in spring. This is especially good for varieties that need cold stratification.

  • Cold Frames or Indoor Starts (Sept–Oct)
    If you like to get a jump on early blooms or greens, you can also start certain varieties in trays now to transplant once the ground thaws.

A Landscape of Microclimates

At Three Leaf Farm, we’re lucky to steward a truly unique piece of land. Nestled just outside of Boulder, our farm includes a surprising variety of micro-ecosystems—sun-drenched prairie, shady forest edges, seasonal wetlands, dryland fields, and irrigated gardens all coexist within our fence lines. This diversity creates a beautiful mosaic of growing conditions, allowing us to cultivate a wide range of native plants, flowers, and herbs that thrive in different soil types and moisture levels.

It also means we get to experiment—finding what grows best in each little pocket of land and honoring the natural gifts of the place. Many of the plants listed below grow wild here, while others are lovingly tended in our gardens. Whether you have a backyard, a balcony, or a sprawling farm of your own, there’s something on this list that can work for your space too.

Favorite Fall-Sown Flowers for the Front Range

These are the flowers I return to year after year—low-maintenance, resilient, and so very rewarding.

Native Wildflowers & Hardy Perennials

  • Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) – a pollinator magnet and immune ally

  • Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) – golden and cheerful, even in rough soil

  • Penstemon (Penstemon spp.) – delicate bells in every shade, loved by hummingbirds

  • Blanket Flower (Gaillardia aristata) – hardy and sun-loving

  • Showy Milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) – essential for monarchs and a joy to watch bloom

  • Blue Flax (Linum lewisii) – soft blue blossoms that open with the morning

  • Prairie Coneflower (Ratibida columnifera) – bold and drought-tolerant

  • Lupine (Lupinus perennis or Lupinus argenteus) – adds nitrogen to the soil and looks stunning doing it

  • Rocky Mountain Bee Plant (Cleome serrulata) – tall, pink, and buzzing with life

Cold-Hardy Annuals

  • Poppies (Papaver rhoeas, Papaver nudicaule, Eschscholzia californica) – delicate but resilient; fall is the best time to sow them

  • Larkspur (Consolida ajacis) – tall and romantic

  • Nigella (Nigella damascena) – soft, frilly, and a favorite for seed-saving

  • Calendula (Calendula officinalis) – medicinal, edible, and golden bright

  • Bachelor’s Button (Centaurea cyanus) – classic and carefree

  • Sweet Alyssum (Lobularia maritima) – sweet-smelling and great for borders or bees

Medicinal Herbs You Can Sow in Fall

Fall is also a wonderful time to start many medicinal herbs—especially those that benefit from cold stratification or natural overwintering. These plants are deeply woven into our lives here at the farm, whether we’re drying them for tea, tinctures, or adding them to blends for our wellness line.

  • St. John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum) – sun-loving perennial; fall sowing improves germination

  • Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) – a gentle, self-seeding annual that blooms early in spring

  • Blue Vervain (Verbena hastata) – a moisture-loving perennial; cold required for germination

  • Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) – thrives in dry areas, grows wild here

  • Valerian (Valeriana officinalis) – prefers rich soil and partial shade

  • Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) – fall sowing is hit-or-miss, but established plants overwinter beautifully

  • Anise Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) – aromatic, pollinator-friendly, and easily fall-sown

  • Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca) – a strong, dependable herb that benefits from fall planting

  • Wild Bergamot (Bee Balm) (Monarda fistulosa) – medicinal and pollinator-loved

  • Sweet Violet (Viola odorata) – a fragrant, cooling groundcover that thrives in shady beds; fall sowing encourages spring germination

How to Plant in Fall

  • Prep the Soil: Clear weeds and lightly rake the surface. You want good seed-to-soil contact, but not deep planting.

  • Scatter and Press: Broadcast your seeds by hand, then gently press them in. Don’t bury them—many wildflowers need light to germinate.

  • Water Once, Then Wait: A light watering after sowing helps settle everything, but let winter take it from there. Snow is your irrigation.

  • Label Your Beds: Trust me—come spring, you’ll want to know what you planted.

  • Optional Mulch: If your space is really windy, a light layer of straw can help hold things in place. Just don’t smother tiny seeds.

This kind of planting isn’t about instant gratification. It’s a slow magic. It’s faith in the unseen. At the farm, this season always feels like a quiet promise—that beneath the browning stems and falling leaves, something new is already on its way.

So if you’ve got a bit of earth and a pocket of seeds, now is the time. Bless them with your intention, whisper a little wish, and let the land do what it does best.

Spring will be here before you know it—with petals in her hair.

— Sara

Sara Martinelli