When we think about flowers the colors that most often come to mind are vibrant, eye catching hues, often riffs on primary colors. But what about plants with green flowers? Are there green flowers? Many plants bloom in shades of green but are often innocuous and barely noticeable, but there are some truly striking green flowers that can add some drama to the landscape.
Are There Green Flowers?
Yes, green flowers exist in nature but are less commonly used in the garden. Green flowers are often found in floral bouquets however; sometimes as nature made them and sometimes dyed green.
Gardeners often overlook including green flowers into the garden, probably because they worry they will just blend in with other foliage, but some plants have stunning green flowers that can stand alone as specimens or compliment other plants.
About Growing Green Flowers
It is interesting that there seem to be so few green flower varieties, or is it that people aren’t interested in growing green flowers?
Flowers are often colored to attract their pollinators, the bees. The bees need to differentiate between the green foliage and the flower. Wind pollinated trees however do not rely on bees so their blooms are often in shades of green. Other flowers that are green are often accompanied by a strong aroma to lure pollinators in.
In any case, green blooms have their place in the garden and as mentioned may often have the benefit of a pleasant fragrance along with a unique appearance that can set off other colored blooms or accent different shades of green.
Green Flower Varieties
Orchids are extremely popular plants due to their wide variety of shapes, sizes and colors including green. The green Cymbidium orchid boasts lime green blooms accented with a red “lip” looks gorgeous growing indoors or in wedding bouquets.
Green carnations do indeed exist although some florists simply buy white carnations and dye them in a variety of tints.
Green chrysanthemums are a gorgeous shade of chartreuse and look stunning combined with purple bloomers. Spider mums can also be found in shades of green.
Celosia comes in a variety of brilliant reds, pinks, yellows and oranges but there is also a lovely green cockscomb, a Celosia varietal that has whorled brain-like lobes.
Some typical entrants to the garden also come in green hues. These include coneflower, daylily, dianthus, gladiola, rose, zinnia, and even hydrangea.
Additional Plants with Green Flowers
For something with a unique growth habit, try growing green flowering amaranth or Bells of Ireland. Amaranth, also called ‘love-lies-bleeding, blooms with tussle-like flowers and works well in baskets or floral arrangements.
Bell’s of Ireland are cool weather blooms that can last for up to 10 weeks. They produce densely packed green blooms around a vertical spike from the middle of summer into the fall.
Lastly, and yet one of the first flowers of the growing season is green hellebore. Also referred to as the “Christmas or Lenten Rose”, green hellebore can bloom in late December in USDA zone 7 or warmer or in early spring in cooler climates.
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