Autumn has arrived. Nature's last heralds of summer often appear in the form of late summer flowers and fruit, which once again reflect the warmth of the previous months. During this transitional period, the fields begin to glow in golden tones as the days get shorter and the sun gets lower. In the gardens and meadows, late sunflowers, cosmos and dahlias are still in bloom, the last colors of summer, like vivid memories of the warm season. 
Autumn asters also open their purple and pink flowers and glow in the low sun, while the first leaves on the trees are already turning bright red and yellow.
At this time of year, many fruits ripen, providing plenty of food for animals and us humans. The apple trees bend under their weight, and berry bushes such as elderberries and rosehips offer an abundance of fruit that is prized by birds and other animals. Migratory birds begin to gather and prepare for their journey south, while squirrels busily collect nuts and hide them away for the winter.
The approaching darker season brings with it a noticeable change in the air. The coolness of the mornings indicates that summer is coming to an end. Wisps of mist drift over fields and rivers, lending the landscape a mysterious atmosphere. The light becomes softer and the colors of nature appear more intense, almost like a last, powerful appearance before the coming hibernation.
These days invite us to enjoy the last warm rays of sunshine and prepare ourselves inwardly for the quieter, cozier months of the year. The last harbingers of summer and the beginning of autumn thus represent a time of change, in which transience and renewal lie close together and nature bids farewell in a magnificent display of color until winter arrives.
- The small sunflower - Helianthus occidentalis - is also known as the western sunflower. It blooms bright dark yellow and has a wild appearance. Bees love this charming wild form and it also cuts a fine figure in ikebana
- Celosia argentea var. plumosa - also known as feather bush celosia - looks elegant in the middle arrangement in combination with miscanthus leaves and autumn asters.
- In the arrangement on the right, a number of Helianthus flowers are again competing for attention, complemented by Sorghum halepense and small rose hips.
The common foxtail grass, also known as wild barley grass, sways in the autumn wind over some of the last pelargoniums in the Jiyūka combination and gives the arrangement a delicate swing.