Creating a moon garden brings a touch of magic to your outdoor space, allowing your garden to come alive under the moon's glow. Whether fragrant flowers or silvery foliage, these plants are perfect for crafting an enchanting nighttime experience. Here are 15 stunning moon garden plants that landscapers plan for next year!
1. Moonflower (Ipomoea alba)
Moonflower is a classic choice for any moon garden. Its large, white blooms unfurl in the evening, releasing a sweet fragrance that fills the night air. These climbers are perfect for trellises, adding height and a dramatic presence to your garden. They require full sun during the day to produce the best blooms, which makes them an enchanting addition for twilight enjoyment.
2. Night-Blooming Jasmine (Cestrum nocturnum)
Night-blooming jasmine is known for its incredible fragrance, intensifying as the sun sets. Its tubular white or pale green flowers are small but numerous, making it a perfect choice for sensory appeal. Plant this jasmine near seating areas to enjoy the heady scent during cool, moonlit nights.
3. Lamb's Ear (Stachys byzantine)
Lamb's Ear's soft, silvery leaves make it ideal for a moon garden. Their fuzzy texture and pale hue reflect moonlight beautifully, adding a gentle glow to garden beds. Lamb's Ear is also drought-tolerant and requires minimal care, making it an attractive and easy choice for landscapers.
4. Silver Artemisia (Artemisia spp.)
Silver Artemisia, also known as wormwood, adds a feathery, silver-green texture to your moon garden. Its foliage glistens under the moonlight, adding depth and contrast to flowering plants. Artemisia thrives in well-drained soil and full sun, making it an easy addition that ensures a shimmering effect even on nights.
5. White Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis 'Alba')
The white bleeding heart is a striking plant for a moon garden, with delicate, heart-shaped flowers that dangle from arching stems. Its romantic appearance is perfect for adding a touch of whimsy, while the flowers practically glow after dark. Plant these perennials in partial shade to ensure a steady show of enchanting blooms.
6. Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis)
Evening Primrose brings a touch of magic to your moonlit garden with its delicate yellow or white flowers that open each evening. As the sun sets, the blooms unfurl, adding an enchanting glow to the landscape, making it perfect for a moon garden. Its beauty, hardiness, and appeal to pollinators make it a wonderful addition to any moonlit outdoor space.
7. Angel's Trumpet (Brugmansia)
Angel's Trumpet is an impressive choice, featuring large trumpet-shaped blooms that hang gracefully and emit a rich fragrance. These blooms come in shades of white, pink, and yellow, but the white variety is ideal for reflecting moonlight. This tropical plant can grow into a small tree, creating a stunning focal point.
8. Dusty Miller (Senecio cineraria)
Dusty Miller's striking silvery foliage makes it a wonderful backdrop for moon garden flowers. Its lacy leaves catch and reflect moonlight, creating an ethereal glow. Dusty Miller is hardy and easy to grow, requiring little maintenance while providing a consistent silvery sheen to contrast the deeper greens in your garden.
9. Japanese Painted Fern (Athyrium niponicum)
The Japanese Painted Fern's elegant fronds bring a soft, silvery presence to a moon garden. This fern's foliage has subtle hints of green, lavender, and silver, creating an enchanting effect when illuminated by moonlight. It thrives in shaded areas, perfect for moon garden corners with little direct sun.
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10. White Lilac (Syringa vulgaris 'Alba')
White Lilac's clusters of white blossoms add beauty and enchanting fragrance to any moon garden. Blooming in late spring, these lovely flowers create visual interest while filling the air with their unmistakable sweet scent. Their blooms glow softly under the moonlight, adding a romantic ambiance to your garden. For the best experience, plant White Lilac near walkways or patios where you can enjoy their charm on crisp, moonlit evenings.
11. Snow-in-Summer (Cerastium tomentosum)
Snow-in-Summer is a charming ground cover that truly lives up to its name. During its blooming season, it transforms garden areas into a sea of delicate white. Its tiny white flowers blanket the ground, creating a lovely, snow-like effect in early summer. Even after the blooms fade, the silver-toned leaves continue to shine, reflecting moonlight and adding beauty to the garden.
12. Star Jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides)
Star Jasmine is a climbing vine that produces clusters of small, white star-shaped flowers that open in the evening. The fragrant blossoms add an intoxicating scent to the garden, while the bright petals beautifully reflect moonlight. Star Jasmine can be trained on arbors or trellises to create an archway of soft beauty.
13. White Astilbe (Astilbe 'Bridal Veil')
The feathery white plumes of White Astilbe add a dreamy softness to any moon garden, creating an elegant and ethereal look. This hardy perennial thrives in partial shade and moist soil, making it perfect for cooler, sheltered corners of your outdoor space. Its bright blooms catch the moonlight, standing out beautifully in the dim glow of the evening. With its fluffy texture, White Astilbe adds depth and interest, enhancing the visual appeal of shaded garden areas.
14. Bridal Wreath Spirea (Spiraea prunifolia)
Bridal Wreath Spirea blooms in spring with cascades of small white flowers resembling delicate snow. This easy-care shrub adds a romantic touch to any garden, with arching branches covered in blooms. As evening light fades, its blossoms softly glow, creating a magical and calming atmosphere. It’s perfect for adding structure and charm with minimal effort, making it an excellent choice for beginners and seasoned gardeners.
15. Nicotiana (Nicotiana alata)
Nicotiana, also known as flowering tobacco, features tubular white blooms that open in the evening and emit a sweet fragrance. These plants attract night-flying pollinators and add a lovely, delicate touch to the moon garden. Nicotiana is easy to grow and perfect for filling gaps among larger plants, creating a layered, immersive look.
Create Your Enchanted Moon Garden
A moon garden is a perfect way to enchant your outdoor space, focusing on plants that bloom at night or have reflective foliage. From fragrant night-bloomers like Night-Blooming Jasmine to silvery foliage plants like Lamb's Ear, each selection enhances the beauty of your garden after dark. Mix and match these stunning plants to design a garden that glows under the moonlight and creates a serene nighttime retreat.
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