Plants With Big Leaves and White Flowers – An Exotic Addition to Your Garden
Having plants with big, lush leaves and white flowers in your garden or home can add an exotic, tropical feel The contrast of the vibrant green leaves against the pure white blooms creates a stunning visual effect In this article, we will look at some of the most popular big leafed plants that also produce beautiful white flowers.
Elephant Ear PlantThe elephant ear plant (Colocasia) is famous for its huge heart-shaped green leaves that can grow up to 3 feet long. Some varieties like the ‘White Lava’ and ‘Maui Sunrise’ have variegated leaves with splashes of white. The elephant ear produces a signature tropical look especially planted near water. It can also grow well in containers.
Bird of Paradise
The unique bird of paradise (Strelitzia) blooms look like a brightly colored bird in flight. It has big banana-like leaves and grows up to 6-7 feet tall indoors. The giant gray-green leaves provide perfect contrast to the vibrant orange and blue flower that sits atop a long stalk. It thrives in bright, indirect light.
Umbrella Plant
With its big, glossy green palmate leaves, the umbrella plant (Schefflera arboricola) looks like an umbrella! This tropical foliage plant is easy to grow indoors in bright, indirect sunlight. It grows up to 6-8 feet tall and its mature size can be easily restricted by pruning. The small white flower clusters create a nice contrast against the foliage.
Gardenia
A flowering shrub native to the tropics, gardenias are prized for their elegant white blooms and shiny green leaves. They are famously fragrant. Grow them in acidic, well-draining soil in full sun to part shade. Protect them from winter frost. Popular varieties include ‘Frost Proof’ and ‘Radicans’.
Fiddle Leaf Fig
The fiddle leaf fig (Ficus lyrata) is loved for its large, glossy, violin-shaped leaves. Their bold texture makes them a statement piece in home decor. Slow growing, they can reach up to 10 feet tall indoors. Variegated varieties like ‘Too Little’ offer white-splashed leaves. Provide bright, indirect light and prune to shape.
Peace Lily
A favorite indoor plant, peace lilies (Spathiphyllum) produce lush green leaves up to 6 inches wide and fragrant white flowers that resemble calla lilies. They bloom in spring and summer and can reach about 4 feet tall. Peace lilies thrive in medium to bright, indirect light and moist soil.
Lily of the Valley
This perennial produces dainty, bell-shaped white flowers on arching stems above a spread of lush green leaves. It blooms in spring and thrives in the shade. Grow lily of the valley in well-draining soil. All parts are poisonous if ingested. It grows 6-8 inches tall.
White Petunias
Petunias are popular annuals that bloom all summer long in sunny spots. The trailing white varieties like ‘White Flash’ and ‘Snowstorm’ look gorgeous in hanging baskets, with their green foliage and mounds of pure white flowers. They also attract pollinators to your garden.
Sweet Olive
Sweet olive (Osmanthus fragrans) is a medium sized shrub prized for its tiny yet extremely fragrant white flowers in spring. It has leathery dark green leaves and makes a great hedge. Grow it in full sun or part shade. It thrives in zones 7-10 and can reach 10 feet tall.
Mock Orange
The mock orange (Philadelphus) is a flowering shrub that blooms in late spring or early summer. It gets its name from its sweet orange blossom fragrance. Varieties like ‘Snowbelle’ and ‘Snowflake’ have an abundance of sweetly scented white flowers contrasting beautifully against the green leaves.
Jasmine
Both Japanese star jasmine (Trachelospermum asiaticum) and Confederate jasmine (T. jasminoides) produce clusters of fragrant white flowers in summer against dark green foliage. They make excellent groundcovers and vines on trellises. Jasmines grow fast in full sun to part shade in warmer zones.
Magnolia
Magnolia trees and shrubs bloom in spring, with white, purple, pink or yellow flowers. Popular white flowering magnolias include the star magnolia (M. stellata), with its starry white blooms, and the saucer magnolia (M. x soulangeana), which has huge, fragrant white blossoms with purple interiors.
Camellia
Camellias are broadleaf evergreens prized for their gorgeous flowers in winter and spring. Camellia japonica and Camellia sasanqua varieties offer a range of white blooms, single or double, against glossy green leaves. Give them rich, acidic soil and part shade. Protect from harsh winter sun.
Garden Phlox
Also called summer phlox, garden phlox (Phlox paniculata) is an old-fashioned perennial loved for its clusters of fragrant flowers in summer. Popular white varieties include ‘David’s Lavender’, ‘Bright Eyes’ and ‘White Flame’. Phlox does best in full sun and moist, rich soil. Deadhead to encourage more blooms.
Your options for dry shade just got more interesting
If it’s a tropical or subtropical look you want for your garden, you can hardly go wrong with ‘Spider’s Web’ Japanese aralia. In cool regions, it makes a splendid summertime annual or container plant and can be successfully overwintered as a houseplant or greenhouse plant to use again in the garden the following year. In warmer climates, where winter temperatures are moderate and freezing weather is spare or fleeting, it will thrive in the garden year-round and make impressive clumps of foliage, with leaves reaching 2 feet in diameter on plants up to 5 feet tall. Japanese aralia thrives in rich, well-amended soil in partial to full shade and is a tough plant once established. ‘Spider’s Web’ will more than hold its own in dry shade, with its unique and beautiful white-variegated leaf margins.
Zones: 8 to 11
Size: Up to 5 feet tall and wide
Conditions: Partial to full shade; rich, humusy, moist, well-drained soil
Jazz up masses of smaller leaves
Cup plant is one of three species of Silphium (also known as rosinweed) that are worthwhile additions to the back of the border or for naturalizing in open meadows and prairie plantings. Some might consider it coarse, but cup plant’s bold foliage (and soaring height) is perfect for breaking up the monotony of smaller-leaved perennials. Because it is a prairie native, cup plant is also an ideal complement to ornamental grasses. Its leaves, which might be more than a foot long and nearly as wide, are borne opposite one another and clasp the stem to form a “cup” where rainwater collects, which supports a variety of grassland birds and beneficial insects in its native habitat. Daisylike, bright yellow flowers appear in mid- to late summer, and the seeds, which mature in autumn, are a favorite of finches.
Zones: 5 to 9
Size: Up to 8 feet tall and 3 feet wide
Conditions: Full sun; moist to wet soil; tolerant of clay soil
19 Indoor Stylish Plants with Big Leaves | Big Leaf Indoor Plants | Plant and Planting
FAQ
What house plant has large green leaves and white flowers?
Peace Lilies are one of the most popular houseplants and have been so for years. We love their glossy, dark green leaves but most of all the long-lasting white flowers that rise above. This is all about Peace Lily care and how to keep your looking good.
What is the name of the plant that has big leaves?
What are the most common big-leaf plants? Popular houseplants with big leaves include monstera, elephant ear, calathea orbifolia, dieffenbachia, banana plant, and others. Outdoors, hostas are favored for their outsized leaves.
What is a green leaf plant with one white flower?
With its spectacular white lily-like flowers and glistening dark green foliage, the Spathiphyllum plant is one of the most elegant and easiest indoor houseplants to grow. Commonly known as the Peace Lily, Spath Lily, or White Sails, Spathiphyllum is often associated with peace, prosperity, purity, and sympathy.
What plant has dark green leaves and white flowers?
Quick Facts about Peace Lilies
Most commonly these plants have dark green leaves and white “flowers.” However, what most people think of as the flower is actually a specialized leaf bract that grows hooded over the flowers.
What bushes have white flowers?
This shrub is also known as Japanese Pieris. It reaches up to a height of 9-12 feet with white, drooping, bell-shaped flowers and evergreen foliage. Cultivar like ‘Mountain Fire’ produces leaves in attractive red color. It is one of the best bushes with white flowers on the list! Grow Andromeda in a well-draining, slightly acidic, and moist soil.
What are some white flowers with green leaves?
Below are some white flowers with green leaves: 1. White Roses You cannot talk about white flowers without including these. They are characterized by white petals, green leaves, and an elegant fragrance that make them suitable for a garden. They symbolize purity and loyalty. Over the years, white roses have become the most popular wedding flowers.
What flowers go well with an all-white garden?
All white is the most common monochromatic color-themed garden, and instead of being boring, it gives a sophisticated air to the landscape. Check out our list of 20 wonderful white flowers to incorporate into your garden!
Which houseplants have big colorful leaves?
Another unique houseplant with big colorful leaves is the Croton. The foliage of this stunning plant is among the most colorful and exotic as long as tropical indoor plants are concerned. Its colors range from red to green, yellow to orange, and bright orange.
What plants have big leaves?
The Sacred Lotus is one of the plants with big leaves that makes you feel like you’re in the tropics. You can grow it in water in a pot that doesn’t drain. It has about 24-inch-wide leaves and needs full sun to bloom well. You may even find it under the name Nelumbo Nucifera. 20. Giant Rhubarb
What are tropical plants with big leaves?
Tropical plants with big leaves are leafy species growing outdoors in USDA zones 10 to 12 and do best in bright, indirect sunlight and relatively humid atmospheres like jungles or the tropics. In this article, we will look at some of the most popular plants with big leaves that’ll make a statement in your room and complement your home décor.