10 Best Night-Blooming Flowers For Your Garden

Many flowers close after the sun sets or the temperature goes down, meaning your outdoor spaces lose some of their visual appeal at night. If you enjoy spending time in your outdoor spaces late in the day or often entertain at night, then it is something you should consider.

Flowers that bloom at night can reflect the moonlight, add attraction for your guests to enjoy and are usually much more fragrant than the day-blooming flowers. One of the reasons night-blooms are usually more fragrant is that they must attract nocturnal pollinators that have to find them in the dark. For this reason, most night bloomers have white flowers that are more visible at night and reflect light. 

Let’s have a look at some of the best night-blooming flowers.

1. Night-Blooming Jasmine

Night-blooming Jasmine is grown often for its pleasant fragrance. This broadleaf evergreen shrub needs partial shade or full sun and moist, well-drained soil. It can grow to a height of 10 feet, and its columnar shape is most ideal for planting as a windbreak or privacy screen. Fragrant blooms appear from January through June. 

It is a low-maintenance shrub. It requires pruning to be in shape. Water Night-blooming Jasmine regularly, and fertilize in summer every few weeks. It produces green, white, cream, yellow, or pink flowers, and also produces white, purple, and red berries. Its fragrance is very strong and has a sweet scent diffusing several hundred feet around the plant.

USDA Hardiness Zones: 8 to 11

Cost: Expect to pay around $5 for a potted plant

2. Tuberose

Tuberose is a native plant of Mexico, and is often used in Hawaiian leis and grows actively in the heat of summer, blooming in August and September. Plant bulbs in full sun and well-drained soil, and ensure to plant them 8 inches apart in 2 feet of soil so they have enough space to grow.

Double Pearl and Single Mexican are examples of Tuberose varieties. Its care requires adding 3-4 inches of mulch to keep the soil moist, and using slow-release fertilizer at the start of summer. Tuberose produces large, white flowers on stems that reach upto 3 feet in height. It also produces peaches-and-cream-type aroma with floral notes

USDA Hardiness Zones: 7 to 10

Cost: You can buy 10 medium-sized bulbs for about $26.

3. Queen of the Night

Queen of the night is at times referred to as an orchid cactus and is a night-blooming cereus (cactus). Its large, white blooms open at dusk for only one night per year, changing to a closed bud form the next morning. Like several succulent plants, it does best in partial shade or full sun and needs well-drained soils and is suitable as a houseplant.

It is a low-maintenance plant requiring monthly watering in winter and bringing it indoors to protect it from the cold. It can be best grown in a container. It produces large, attractive, white blooms with a sweet fragrance. 

USDA Hardiness Zones: 10 to 12

Cost: Buy one rooted plant for about $10.

4. Flowering Tobacco

Place flowering tobacco near a patio or window doorway to enjoy the pleasant fragrance of these night blooming plants. Thriving best in partial shade or full sun, ensure to keep each plant 1 to 3 feet apart. It has large, trumpet-shaped blossoms that open every night in summer and fall, but its buds can still attract pollinators, such as hummingbirds and butterflies during the day.

Lime Green, Saratoga Rose, and Baby Bella Antique Red are some of the examples of flowering tobacco varieties. It requires watering regularly, as it has a low tolerance for drought. Consider planting it in spring after the last frost. It produces green, white, pink, purple, yellow, or red flowers, depending on type. The flowers produce a sweet fragrance that is reminiscent of jasmine.

USDA Hardiness Zones: 10 to 11

Cost: Get 750 seeds for around $3.

5. Night Gladiolus

The Night Gladiolus is named after the Latin word for “sword,” as they boast a long, pointed stalk and ostentatious blooms. It is resistant to drought and deer and blooms every night in early spring.

It requires planting in full sun, well-drained soil and doesn’t need much water. Give it ample space to grow. It produces yellow or white blooms with fragrance having a hint of spice.     

USDA Hardiness Zones: 7 to 8

Cost: Pay $4 for a packet of seeds.

6. Chocolate Daisy

As the name suggests, Chocolate Daisy produces the prominent smell of cocoa when it blooms every evening. Near sunrise, the flowers of this perennial fall to the ground. It looks similar to a daisy, is resistant to deer, and attracts pollinators with its sweet nectar.

It requires to be planted in well-drained soil and doesn’t need much fertilizer, water, or mulch. Deadhead it to promote new growth. The flowers have yellow petals with dark brown centers and bloom from April through November. The flowers emit a chocolate aroma.

USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 10

Cost: Buy 20 seeds for around $7.

7. Evening Rain Lilies

Evening rain lilies open up soon after a rain, therefore their name. It prefers full sun, but is able to grow in partial shade. Evening rain lilies produce smaller, pink or white blossoms with lilac-like scent from late summer to early fall.

Examples of evening rain lily varieties include ‒ Fedora (emits larger blooms). It is low-maintenance and is similar to many night-blooming plants. It requires a moderate amount of water, and plant it 6 inches apart to provide space for it to grow.

USDA Hardiness Zones: 7 to 10

Cost: Bulbs are available for about $4 each.

8. Mock Orange

Mock Orange is a deciduous shrub that does well in various well-drained soils. It should be located in partial shade or full sun. As it reaches 10 to 12 feet wide and high, it also works ideally as a privacy hedge around your moon garden.

Examples of Mock Orange varieties include ‒ Aurea, Romantic Knight, and Minnesota Snowflake. It is low-maintenance and winter-hardy. It requires watering when the soil feels dry to the touch. Consider fertilizing yearly with compost, rather than nitrogen. It produces white blooms with the fragrance having hints of citrus in early spring to early summer. 

USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 8

Cost: Buy a 3-foot, live shrub for $80.

9. Moonflower

Moonflower is known as a tropical white morning glory. This vining perennial is suitable for vertical gardening using a pergola, trellis, or other supportive structure. It blossoms in the late afternoon and lasts only through the night. The moonflower’s large, white blooms are heart-or trumpet-shaped and produce a strong, lemon scent. 

Examples of moonflower varieties include ‒ Blackcurrant Swirl and Evening Fragrance. It is a low-maintenance, deer-resistant, and drought-tolerant plant. Moonflower grows in a range of well-drained soils and can become invasive. Keep it in check by removing seed pods before they open. It produces white or purple blooms and flowers in summer and fall.   

USDA Hardiness Zones: 10 to 12

Cost: Buy a pack of 25 seeds for about $3.

10. Four O’Clocks

As its name says, these flowers are likely to bloom in the late afternoon, between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. It is also known as the Marvel-of-Peru, and these deciduous shrubs can be grown as either annuals or perennials, depending on climate. They attract hummingbirds and other pollinators. Grow four o’clocks in partial shade or full sun.

Examples of four o’clock varieties include Kaleidoscope, Alba, and Jingles. They are low-maintenance and resistant to disease, drought, and pests. Fertilize four o’clocks only if the leaves turn pale green. The flowers can be white, purple, magenta, pink, copper, or multicolored and are sweet with a subtle citrusy fragrance. Four o’clock blooms grow in clusters of one to five flowers and are funnel-shaped.

USDA Hardiness Zones: 9 to 10

Cost: A pack of seeds is available for around $5.

To know the best shade trees for your yard, read the article ‒ 10 best shade trees to grow in your yard.

To conclude, the best night-blooming flowers include ‒ Night-Blooming Jasmine, Tuberose, Queen of the Night, Flowering Tobacco, and Night Gladiolus, among others. Choose the one most suitable for your area and climate conditions. 

Contact Eden today for affordable landscaping services to keep your yard in good shape and looking splendid throughout the year.