By Nikki Phipps
(Author of The Bulb-o-licious Garden)
Moon gardening at night is a great way to enjoy white or light-colored, night blooming plants, in addition to those that release their intoxicating aromas in the evening. White flowers and light-colored foliage reflect the moonlight. Not only are these a beautiful sight to behold, or smell, but these night gardens also attract important pollinators, such as moths and bats. Keep reading for ideas for a moon garden.
Ideas for a Moon Garden
Creating a garden in the night is easy, and once completed, it will provide hours of relaxing nighttime enjoyment. When designing this type of garden, consider its location carefully. Having a place to sit and take in the view and scents is one of the most important aspects of the moon garden. Therefore, you may want to consider designing the garden around a patio or deck.
Likewise, you could simply locate the night garden near a window of the home or add a bench, swing, or other comfortable seating within the garden itself. While plants with white or light-colored flowers are common to the moon garden, you should also consider the foliage—with green leaves contrasting white blooms while silver or gray, blue-green, and variegated foliage enhance the garden as well. In fact, all-white gardens rely heavily on this light-colored or variegated foliage to heighten its overall effect.
Moon Garden Plants
There are many plants suitable for moon gardening. Popular night-flowering plants include:
Evening primrose
Moonflower
Angel’s trumpet
Night phlox
For intense fragrance, you might include:
Flowering tobacco
Columbine
Pinks
Honeysuckle
Mock orange
Great choices for moon gardening foliage plants include:
Silver Artemisia
Lamb’s ear
Herbs like silver sage or thyme.
Variegated shrubs and plants, like cannas and hostas, can make excellent choices as well. For additional interest, you could even consider implementing some white vegetable varieties like white eggplant and white pumpkins.
There is no right or wrong design for gardening at night. Moon garden plants are based solely on one’s own needs and preferences. However, there are many resources available, both online and in books, that can help provide additional design ideas and plants for creating a moon garden.
Suggestions (from Peacefulmind.com)  Adding crystals to your moon garden can bring a very special touch!  Use crystals related to the full moon to create borders, walking paths or surrounding certain flowers.  Along with selenite, consider, moonstone, rainbown opal, clear quartz, snow white quartz and howlite…All of these stones are related to the full moon.  Stones for the new moon can include obsidian, black tourmaline, black moonstone, tektite, onyx and sardonyx.
