The black rose and the black tulip have always been a gardener’s dream. We haven’t reached that dream yet, but we are getting closer. The flowers we call black are actually very, very dark red or purple flowers, so dark they appear black to us.
If you are like me and you want black flowers in your garden, here are some suggestions:
1) Violas and black thoughts (Viola)
Black violas are among the few truly black flowers. They bloom profusely and are easy to grow and maintain. They are edible.
2) Black Hawk (Aquilegia)
They are not really black, however they are very ornamental and will enhance the basic beauty of any garden. They are hardy and prolific. However, they prefer shady and humid places.
3) Black lilies (Hemerocallis)
The darkest is ‘Black Emanuelle’, although lilies are never really black, just dark brown and dark. Daylilies are also very easy flowers, all they need is plenty of sun, but they shade black daylilies in the midday sun, to prevent sunlight from fading the color.
4) Black mallow (Alcea Rosea var. Nigra)
This is a magnificent and useful plant. It can be eaten and used to dye food and yarn.
5) Black scabiosa, mourning bride (Scabiosa atropurpurea)
The flowers have a lovely scent and attract butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds to the garden. Cut, these flowers will last long in a vase.
6) Black tulips (Tulipa)
‘Queen of Night’ is my favorite. It is a spectacular tulip, dark maroon, almost black. Tulips are a bit tricky to grow, but not difficult.
7) Chocolate Cosmos (Cosmos atrosanguineus)
Chocolate Cosmos is aptly named as it sports the color of dark chocolate and emits a sweet chocolate scent. This flower, like the black scabious, will attract bees and butterflies to your garden.
8) Black ball cornflower (Centaurea cyanus)
This flower isn’t really black either, but I really like cornflowers. They like poor soil (they create fewer flowers in rich soil) and the flowers are edible, last long in a vase, and can be dried to preserve their beauty for interior decoration in the winter.
9) Black Iris (Iris)
Black Iris is another really beautiful flower. You need your soil to be constantly moist, so it’s good to plant lilies in a water garden or next to a pond.
10) Black peony poppy (Papaver somniferum var. Paeoniflorum)
Planting this luxurious flower is a very easy way to provide an intense and eye-catching touch of very dark purple to your garden.
11) Black Roses (Rosa)
There are no black roses, only very intense and red violets. If you like roses, like I do, you could consider ‘Deep Secret’, ‘Black Baccara’ or ‘Midnight Blue’ depending on whether you want a purple or red rose.
Most people recommend using yellow-green foliage to bring out the magnificent darkness of these beauties, but I personally prefer yellow, orange, and pink flowers, small areas of bright light as a backdrop. In my opinion, dark flowers alone with different shades of green are a bit boring.