Blooms with a pale, white hue
Bring a touch of elegance and freshness to your garden with these stunning white-flowered plants. Whether you're looking to fill sunny borders, shady corners, or containers, there's a variety to suit every garden.
Oriental lilies and Easter lilies, with their large, fragrant blooms, are perfect for containers and sunny flower borders. Dahlias like 'Joe Swift' and 'My Love', which flower from late summer right through to the first frosts, also make beautiful additions.
For those seeking white blooms in late autumn, Nerine bowdenii 'Alba' offers lily-like flowers mostly in shades of pink or red, but also in pure white. Ammi, with its beautiful white umbels of flowers much loved by pollinators and excellent for cutting, is another late-season option.
Hydrangea paniculata begins flowering in midsummer and carries on well into autumn, their flowers often taking on new tints of color over time. Japanese anemones, with their open blooms in pale pink or white floating on tall stems, above attractive foliage, also flower from late summer to well into autumn.
Cyclamen hederifolium is a pretty hardy perennial, bearing delicate silver-lined dark green leaves and dainty blooms in shades of white or pink, in autumn. Gaura, with its bushy, informal growth, is perfect for filling gaps in sunny beds, borders, and containers.
Roses have many beautiful white or creamy white varieties, including the shrub roses 'Claire Austin', 'William and Catherine' and 'York Minster', or the ramblers including 'Iceberg', 'Wedding Day', 'Rambling Rector' and 'Félicité Perpétue'.
Viburnum tinus is an evergreen shrub with fragrant pinkish-white flowers in winter. Philadelphus has pure white blooms in late spring and early summer, reminiscent of orange blossom. Its height and spread is 2.5m x 2.5m (compact varieties are available).
Many white-flowered plants are richly scented, helping to attract nocturnal pollinators such as moths. Camellia sasanqua flowers in November and December when there are very few flowers elsewhere in the garden. Its foliage is evergreen, giving year-round interest. Echinacea 'White Swan' has drooping petals and a striking orange-green center, growing in a sunny spot. Chrysanthemums offer valuable late flowers from September through to November, with white varieties available. Cosmos 'Purity' is a pure, crisp white half-hardy annual that flowers its socks off from midsummer to the first frosts.
For a shady corner, consider black cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa), which produces tall wands of creamy white flowers in late summer to early fall, thrives in part to full shade, and prefers moist, rich soils. Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis) offer pure white, teardrop-shaped flowers blooming from late winter to early spring; they need full sun to partial shade and well-draining soil. White columbine (Aquilegia coerulea) has delicate star-shaped white flowers blooming late spring to early summer, growing 1-2 feet tall, suitable for partial shade. Hostas (various varieties) have many white-flowered varieties and thrive in partial to full shade with moist soil. White-flowering shrubs such as hydrangeas or rhododendrons can also add a pop of white in shade.
When buying online, identify your USDA hardiness zone to pick plants suited for your climate. Use filters for sunlight requirements (partial to full shade) and flower color (white). Check plant descriptions for soil and moisture needs. Order from reputable garden centers or nurseries specializing in native or shade plants.
Lonicera x purpusii 'Winter Beauty' bears sweetly fragrant creamy white flowers on bare stems from late winter. Sarcococca (sweet box) will provide year-round color, with the bonus of small but deliciously fragranced flowers from December to March. Colchicum autumnale 'Album' appears seemingly from nowhere in early autumn - their flowers appear before their foliage. Heather has dainty bells of white flowers in winter that are not affected by snow, ice, or cutting winds. Phlox is a stalwart of herbaceous borders and cottage gardens - long flowering, fragrant, and easy to grow in a sunny spot.
Jasmines have white, fragranced flowers. The most reliable jasmines in the UK climate are the evergreen star jasmine, Trachelospermum jasminoides and the common jasmine, Jasminum officinale. Abelia x grandiflora is an attractive semi-evergreen shrub that bears masses of scented white-pink flowers in late summer and autumn. Helleborus niger flowers throughout winter and into spring. Erigeron karvinskianus is a fabulous, frothy plant that looks great at the front of a border, growing in crevices in walls and paving, or spilling out of pots.
The petals of white flowers are often tinged with another color - pink, blue, or green, for example - which can help you to combine them easily with other plants. White-flowered plants bring a cool freshness to any garden and are particularly useful for lighting up shady corners. Symphyotrichum novi-belgii 'White Ladies' and 'Oktoberlicht' are white varieties of Michaelmas daisies or asters. Daphnes are an ideal shrub for smaller gardens, with delightfully scented flowers in the depths of winter.
White-flowered plants offer a versatile and beautiful addition to any garden, brightening up sunny borders, shady corners, and containers alike. With their delicate fragrance and wide variety of shapes and sizes, they are sure to bring a touch of elegance and freshness to your outdoor space.
Incorporating white-flowered plants into your home-and-garden can enhance your lifestyle. For instance, the home-and-garden section of your garden could host plants like white-flowered camellias that bloom in November and December, providing a touch of freshness during the colder months. Additionally, certain white-flowered plants, such as the stunning Oriental lilies or the fragrant jasmines, can transform your outdoor containers into charming displays.
