Halloween Garden: Black and Orange Flowers
Love Halloween? You can have a black and orange garden all year!
(Having one bloom black and orange in time for Halloween is trickier: it depends on your climate.)
I like to mix two colors of the same flower for maximum impact.
Here are some suggestions for flowers that come in both black and orange:
Amaranths: I have a fondness for these strange flowers, and Amaranth ‘Oeschberg’ is almost black. Pair it with a bronze variety.
Asian Lilies come in black and orange. There are many varieties of orange—try “Apeldoorn.” For black, “Landini” is stunning.
Cosmos come in orange (“Cosmic Orange,” “Bright Lights,” and other varieties) and a dark brownish-black (Chocolate Cosmos.) Cosmos blooms in the summer but may hang on until Halloween in warmer climates.
Dahlias come in dark blackish-purple and also in orange. “Crossfield Ebony” is a nice dark pom pom; also check out Old House Gardens for some fabulous old-fashioned ones in both colors.
Daylilies come in many shades of orange, including the most common species-type. Plant them with “black” cultivars, including “Midnight Oil” and “Midnight Raider” which are a nice dark purple, or “Night Wings” which is a dark red but looks black most or the time.
Dianthus barbaratus var. nigrenscens “Sooty” is so dark red it looks black, and while there aren’t any true orange dianthus, some of the reds are orange-y.
Fritillaria imperialis rubra is a dark rusty orange. Fritilliara nigra is a dark brownish black. Persian fritillary is a little easier to find, but it’s not as dark as nigra.
Gladiolus usually bloom in early summer. They come in almost-black and bright orange.
“Peter Pears” is a nice orange, or try a Parrot Glad. Keep an eye out at your local garden center for dark glads.
Hollyhocks come in orange, and have stunning black varieties, including Nigra or “’The Watchman.”
Irises are some of the only truly black flowers. Orange varieties are actually less common than black, but try the orange German Iris “Thai Orange” with the black German Iris “Superstition.” There are many black tall bearded irises, pair them with the orange tall bearded iris “Sweet Orange.” For Louisiana Irises, “Dean Lea” is orange, and “Black Gamecock” is very dark.
Pansies can be planted for the autumn in southern climates. There are orange varieties, as well as purples that are so darks they seem black until you get up close. Some of the darkest pansies are “Black Prince” and “Zorro.”
Poppies come in variety of colors. California poppies come a variety of lovely oranges—plant them with black varieties like the peony-flowered poppy “Black Cloud.” The oriental poppy “Prince of Orange” is actually a reddish-orange.
Roses come in a variety of colors: white, yellow, orange, pink, red, purple, brown, and even green. They do not come in black or blue. The floribunda “Greensleeves” starts out pinkish, then opens green, but the petals turn black and stay on the stem past their prime, so this might be used as a “black” rose.
I suggest you juxtapose a brown rose with a bright orange rose for a Halloween feel. In the south, roses are still blooming for Halloween (at least mine are!) Try the climber Westerland, the polyantha Orange Hearts, or the floribunda “Playboy” for orange. For a brown rose, try the climber “Butterscotch”, the floribunda “Brown Velvet,” or the shrub rose “Distant Drums” (pink and brown.)
Rudebeckia ”Green Wizard” is a petal-less selection with huge black cones, and there are some varieties that are rust-colored, or try the orange-with-yellow-tips “Prairie Glow.”
Scabiosa “Ace of Spades” is a wonderful almost-black. A related flower, Scabiosa stellata or Starflower is a bit orange-y.
Snapdragons come in orange, and also in shades of darkest red like the “Black Prince.”
Sunflowers bloom in the fall, and while they don’t come in black, there are many really dark reds that you can grow with the orange varieties.
Sweet Peas “Midnight,” “Black Knight” and “Windsor” are dark. Pair them with a peach or coral sweet pea.
Tulips bloom in the spring, but they have many dark varieties (the most common is “Queen of the Night”) and some orange ones. Try “Black and White” with “General de Wet” for an exotic-looking combo.
Bi-color orange/black flowers include:
Tiger lilies with their bright orange petals and black “freckles.”
Dahlias Bishop of Llandaff and Bishop’s Children which have dark foliage and red-orange blooms.
Gaillardia (blanketflower) now comes in many varieties, and some are orange with very dark red.
“Midnight Treasure” daylily has an orange-yellow center and almost black tips.
Sweet Pea “Henry Eckford” is bright orange, according to Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds: http://rareseeds.com/seeds/Sweet-Peas !