Plants called Dragon has ideas for a themed planting design for Chinese New Year 2024 and beyond. Indeed the plants don’t have to be for Chinese New Year, it could just be that you’re fond of fiery dragons! It has the potential to be a magical theme with a bold, fiery colour scheme for your garden. But then not all dragons are red, so shades of green would also give you a dragon inspired theme. Read on to find out more…
There’s a link for a free downloadable plant list at the end as well as blog links from previous years’ Chinese themed planting ideas. Plus other themed planting schemes to inspire you.
Dragon plants are the perfect way to add some mystical flair to your garden. With their bold colors and unique shapes, these plants conjure up images of fiery beasts guarding treasure. In this article, we’ll explore some of the best plants with “dragon” in their name and how to use them in garden designs.
A List of Dragon Plants
Here are some of the most popular plants with “dragon” in their common or botanical name
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Dragon Arum (Dracunculus vulgaris) – A striking plant with dark purple flowers resembling a dragon’s open mouth. Provides late spring interest.
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Dragon’s Blood Sedum (Sedum spurium ‘Dragon’s Blood’) – A hardy succulent with bright red foliage that keeps its color all season. Great for borders and containers.
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Dragon Wing Begonia (Begonia x hybrida Dragon Wing series) – Vibrant red or pink flowering begonias that bloom continuously in shade. Nice mounded form.
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Dragonhead Mint (Physostegia virginiana) – Spikes of purple flowers resembling dragon heads appear mid to late summer. Attracts pollinators.
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Dragon’s Breath Celosia (Celosia argentea ‘Dragon’s Breath’) – Unique plumed flowers in shades of red/orange/yellow resembling flames Adds texture
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Dragon’s Blood Tree (Dracaena draco) – A subtropical tree with blood-red sap and spiky leaves. Stunning accent plant for warm climates.
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Dragon Fruit (Hylocereus undatus) – Climbing cacti grown for sweet pink fruit. Requires trellis support.
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Dragon Tongue Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) – Purple and cream mottled bean pods add interest to edible gardens.
As you can see, there’s a diverse range of plants that reference dragons in their name The bold colors and unique forms of these plants let you create a visually striking, mythical theme in garden beds, borders, and containers
Using Dragon Plants in Garden Designs
When designing a landscape featuring dragon plants, first consider your climate and growing conditions. Dragon Arum, Dragon’s Blood Sedum, and other perennials may thrive in full sun and well-drained soil. Dragon Wing Begonias and other tropicals require some afternoon shade and consistent moisture.
Next, think about color combinations. Fiery reds, oranges, and purples evoke the image of a flaming dragon. Contrast these hot hues with cool greens like hosta, ferns, or dark foliaged heucheras. Accent with bright yellows to mimic flickering flames.
Incorporate a mix of heights, forms, and textures for visual interest. Upright Dragonhead Mint can provide vertical contrast to low, mounding Dragon’s Blood Sedum. Fine-textured Dragon Tongue Beans vines climb trellises while bold-leafed cannas anchor the border below.
Use dragon plants near water features, boulders, and hardscaping to represent a dragon’s lair. Underplant them with groundcovers like ajuga or creeping thyme to portray treasure scattered across the landscape.
Container gardens also allow you to highlight dragon plants. Try Dragon Arum emerging from a dark glazed pot or Dragon Wing Begonias cascading over the sides. Use trellised Dragon Fruit cacti to add height.
With thoughtful plant choices and design, your landscape can truly capture the mystical essence of dragons. Have fun playing with color, form, and texture to create your own fiery dragon’s lair!
Notable Dragon Plants
Here we’ll take a closer look at some of the unique dragon plants mentioned earlier:
Dragon Arum
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Botanical Name: Dracunculus vulgaris
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Features: Deep purple/black flowers with spotted spadix, resembling a dragon’s open mouth. Blooms late spring.
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Care: Likes partial sun. Prefers moist, organically rich soil. Toxic, so site away from pets and children.
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Uses: Striking focal point for shaded borders or woodland gardens. Provides late spring interest.
Dragon Wing Begonia
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Botanical Name: Begonia x hybrida Dragon Wing series
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Features: Profuse red, pink, or white blooms. Pointed angel wing leaves. Blooms spring to fall.
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Care: Thrives in partial shade with consistent watering. Does well in containers. Overwinters indoors as houseplant.
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Uses: Adds long-lasting color to shady beds, borders, hanging baskets. Cascades nicely.
Dragon’s Blood Sedum
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Botanical Name: Sedum spurium ‘Dragon’s Blood’
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Features: Bronze-red succulent foliage keeps color all season. Pink blooms summer to fall.
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Care: Extremely drought tolerant and low maintenance. Spreads readily. Cut back in spring.
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Uses: Striking groundcover for borders, rock gardens, green roofs. Great for containers.
Dragonhead Mint
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Botanical Name: Physostegia virginiana
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Features: Spikes of tubular purple flowers resembling dragon heads mid to late summer. Attracts pollinators.
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Care: Hardy perennial for full sun to partial shade. Prune spent flower stems after blooming.
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Uses: Mass in borders or cut for bouquets. Deer resistant. Attracts hummingbirds and butterflies.
With its fiery colors and medieval mystique, there’s no shortage of creative ways to incorporate dragon plants into your landscape. Let your imagination run wild as you craft dynamic dragon-themed gardens this season.
Herbaceous Perennial Plants called Dragon
- Arum Dragon lily, Dracunculus vulgaris Dragon
- Catnip, Nepeta Blue Dragon
- Coreopsis rosea Dragon, tickseed
- Day lily, Hemerocallis ‘Great Red Dragon’
- Geranium ‘Dragon Heart’
- Hosta ‘Dragon Tails’
- Iris ‘Black Dragon’, bearded iris
- Lamium maculatum ‘Purple Dragon’
- Ophiopogon nigrescens, Black Dragon Grass
- Persicaria microcephala ‘Red Dragon’, Bistort
- Polyanthus ‘Fire Dragon’
- Snapdragon, Antirrhinum majus
And then a bit more about some of these dragon plants…
Dracunculus vulgaris, also known as the Dragon lily or Dragon Arum is a plant to add fire to your woodland edge border where it can catch the sun. The dark red/ black flower appears from May but can be a bit of a stinker so preferably keep it away from paths. Also be aware that the foliage can cause skin irritation. But it’s a striking Gothic plant to add to your garden nonetheless!
Coreopsis rosea Dragon, is one of the Bloomsation series of tickseeds. A compact plant, it should be covered in red flowers from late spring to the first frosts, especially if you remember to deadhead it. It’s small size makes it suitable for containers and window boxes. In autumn cut back to short stems and apply a mulch. It should be hardy except in the hardest of winters.
Hemerocallis ‘Great Red Dragon’ grows to about 1 metre tall and will flower profusely in a sunny spot. Whilst it will need watering in very dry conditions, this day lily is tolerant of heavy clay and poorer soils. Oh and its happy in coastal gardens too, so a good ‘doer’. NB whilst each flower lasts only for a day, there will be plenty on each stem that will bloom consecutively.
Those of you who know me or are regular readers of the Plews blog will know how much I love hardy Geraniums. And this one is a real stunner with magenta petals and a dark, almost black centre to each flower. Palmate foliage gives ground cover up to a couple eof feet in diameter when mature. I first saw it in Scotland some years ago and (obviously) had to buy a plant for myself. Having divided it and potted up a piece to take when I moved gardens, it’s coped with being in a pot for 3 years, only getting planted in to a new border last autumn. I’m pretty sure its survived hard frost without any protection other than a mulch as there are signs of new foliage at the base. I think we can consider it a beautiful and hardy Geranium!
This is a beautiful miniature Hosta, with narrow yellow-green leaves which have a wavy, or ruffled margin. As a miniature Hosta, it is well suited to growing in a pot, preferring a free draining soil. And of course, like the majority of Hostas, likes semi-shade. It will develop into mound of foliage as it matures.
Deadnettles are so-called as they don’t sting like your average nettle does. And so they make excellent ground cover semi-evergreen perennials for shady and semi-shady areas of your garden. (Truth be told, unless your garden is very exposed they tend to keep their foliage year round). Lamium maculatum ‘Purple Dragon’ has magenta-purple flowers sporadically from late spring through to autumn. But it’s the foliage that takes pride of place, and this lamium has small silver leaves, with green scalloped edges.
Some gardeners prefer foliage to be green and have flowers for variety. I’m one of those gardeners who likes a range of foliage colours, not for garish display, but give interesting planting combinations. For example, the young Persicaria ‘Red Dragon’ foliage growing up through a sea of forget-me-nots or the mature leaves arching over lime green rounded foliage of Alchemilla mollis. The bronze/ red / purple patterned leaves may need a haircut during the summer if you feel they’re encroaching on other plants, but otherwise it’s an easy maintenance addition to the border.
One of the showstopper series of Polyanthus, which are famed for their large and unusual coloured blooms. First purchased for a client who adored bright bold colour combinations, I’ve since become a lover of this Polyanthus too. If you feel its too bright as bedding plants in your borders, why not have ‘Fire Dragon’ in a pot by your front door? It’s guaranteed to brighten up dull late winter and early spring mornings.
Last, but definitely not least! Snapdragons are so called because of the dragon-like face shape of their flower and the way they snap together when you press and release the bloom. (A remembered pleasure from childhood for many of us). The Botanical Latin name Antirrhinum means ‘like a snout’.
Antirrhinum can be both annuals and short lived perennials. Favourites for a cottage garden planting scheme, they’re also finding favour in domestic cutting gardens.
Just one plant is picked out from each of the following lists; one that I felt you would find most useful or inspiring.
- Edgeworthia chrysantha ‘Red Dragon’, Japanese Paperbush
- Rock Rose ‘Fire Dragon’
Often called rock rose, Helianthemum are low growing shrubs excellent for rockeries, small borders and containers. Tolerant of many soil types they are happy in most types of habitats including coastal gardens and city gardens.
A List of Flowers and Plants called Dragon
Well there’s actually there’s more than one list, but the ones here have (mainly) the herbaceous perennials. In the freebie pdf plant list (see link below) I’ve included houseplants, herbs and shrubs as that’s more of a shopping list format for you.
The list is alphabetical by common name, with the Latin name included to be sure that right plant is being talked about (or bought). Then for some of the plants, I give brief care tips and planting suggestions. This isn’t an overall definitive list, and if you know of some I’ve missed out, do please let me know!
Easy maintenance herbaceous perennials make good garden plants. Many of them can be grown in raised beds and containers as well as in borders. And if you start looking for them now in plant nurseries and garden centres, they’ll should look good growing outside in your garden this year. But I’ve included a couple of shrubs in here too, because why not.
KreekCraft Gets Rainbow Dragon Pepper in Grow a Garden
FAQ
What plant is named after a dragon?
The Genus name Dracaena comes from the word “Drakaina,” which is Greek for female dragon. The species name draco is the Latin word for dragon.
What plant represents a dragon?
- Arum Dragon lily, Dracunculus vulgaris Dragon.
- Catnip, Nepeta Blue Dragon.
- Coreopsis rosea Dragon, tickseed.
- Day lily, Hemerocallis ‘Great Red Dragon’
- Geranium ‘Dragon Heart’
- Hosta ‘Dragon Tails’
- Iris ‘Black Dragon’, bearded iris.
- Lamium maculatum ‘Purple Dragon’
Is there a flower called dragon?
Antirrhinum is a genus of plants in the Plantaginaceae family, commonly known as dragon flowers or snapdragons because of the flowers’ fancied resemblance to the face of a dragon that opens and closes its mouth when laterally squeezed. They are also sometimes called toadflax or dog flower.
What is the name of the indoor plant with a dragon in the name?
Dracaena marginata ‘Colorama’ (Dragon Tree) Dracaena marginata ‘Colorama’, commonly known as the Colorama Dragon Tree, stands out as a vibrant and visually striking plant within the Dracaena genus.