Watch your garden transform into a riot of colour with some well-chosen seasonal plants...

As summer turns into autumn, colour in your garden can be transformed into a sea of amber, orange, red and burgundy, if you choose the right plants.

In Indian summers, when the weather is still good enough to sit out, it's great to have some pots on your patio full of plants with rich, warm colours.

So, how can you ensure pots of colour as the nights draw in but the days are still sunny?

You have to remember that, while summer flowers may still be in full bloom through the autumn if you have fed, watered and dead-headed them regularly, the colours may look a bit incongruous against the backdrop of autumn as leaves turn from green to gold, burnt orange and red.

To match the autumn surroundings, plant up pots of orange-berried winter cherries and ornamental peppers try some dwarf Michaelmas daisies, Chrysanthemums and cape heaths, and you will not be disappointed.

Many such plants combine well with ivies and other hardy foliage plants such as ornamental kale, but remember to keep them sheltered and protected from hard frost.

Asters look fabulous combined with gold variegated trailing ivies and heathers with lime-green or flame coloured foliage.

Find some pot chrysanthemums in shades of orange, deep red and brown and they look great in blue-glazed patio pots, one either side of a doorway, for instance.

For a splash of red, plant up a clump of Japanese blood grass (Imperata), which grows to about 14in in height and has fantastic red-tinged tips on its leaves.

It goes well with purple ajuga or the black grass, Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens'.

Stand-alone architectural plants can also create a stunning impact at this time of year, including phormium hybrids and the striking red-purple Cordyline australis Torby Red. Try planting a small Japanese maple in a large pot as a singular specimen, and enjoy the amazing change of colour from green to crimson or orange in autumn.

Of course, bulbs are always an option for autumn - those which do well in pots and reach their best in early autumn include the nerine (autumn lily), which are ideal for a sunny wall or fence. Try N. bowdenii, which produces clusters of pretty pink flowers, or the Schizostylis (Kaffir lily), an elegant South African plant with clumps of narrow, sword-shaped leaves and dainty flowers which are good for cutting.

And don't forget some winter-flowering pansies, available from autumn and go on right through to spring.

BEST OF THE BUNCH: ICE PLANT

If you want to attract butterflies to your garden in late summer and autumn, look no further than the ice plant, a perennial which has pretty domed heads of pink flowers above thick, succulent leaves. They are easy to grow, like lots of sun and well-drained soil, and will provide colour where everything else has faded. Good varieties include Autumn Joy, pictured, whose pink flowers last a long time. Other good varieties include S. telephium Atropurpureum or the purple-bronze S. Lynda et Rodney, a tall-growing variety.