Today I’m sharing pictures of green flowers. These curiosities of the plant kingdom challenge our preconceptions. Green is the colour we imagine leaves and stems to be; flowers are supposed to be more showy to grab our attention.
While green flowers may seem unusual, some widely grown perennials are more often green than not, including hellebores and euphorbias.
The ‘petals’ of some green flowers are technically modified sepals or bracts, sepals making up the leafy outer layer that protect petals developing in bud (think of a rose bud).
Other flowers have long been artificially dyed green, dating back at least to Oscar Wilde’s green carnation of the early 1890s.
Many of these floral rebels go against the perceived wisdom that insects need colourful signposts to help them find nectar and pollen, although lime green can be pretty showy!
Scroll on for novelties including a more-green-than-white snowdrop, a green red hot poker and a greenish Asiatic lily (you be the judge).
I hope you’ve enjoyed these little reset buttons for anyone who thinks plants need flashy petals to make their world go around.
Aren’t they wonderful? Even when they’re not dressed to impress.
Susan Rushton 
I enjoyed this. As it happens, I’ve intended to post photos of three of our native plants which also have green flowers. You’ve reminded me that I forgot one: the pitcher plant. Whether native or bred, a green flower always catches my eye.
I was really surprised and delighted to find pitcher plants on a less well travelled part of our local moorland – and then sorry to realise that they were considered weeds. Such wonderful flowers too.
Weeds? No way! They’re such an important part of bogs — at least, here. In fact, there are places that have been set aside just to nurture and preserve them. I suppose they could be considered invasive in places where they aren’t native, but here we have native species that we cherish.
I should have said invasive. I cherish them in any case.
I love green flowers. I actually have the green rose.
That’s a curiosity – a sign of a collector!
Lovely greens.
Thank you!
A wonderful gallery of green Susan 🙂
I’m glad you liked it.
My favorite is the bells of Ireland. I saw green orchids in Venice once that were striking.
I added an orchid, following your prompt.
What a lovely celebration of greens…!
Thank you!
Wonderful post, Susan. I do love the use of chartreuse in the garden. I grow Nicotiana langsdorffii (love those green bells) and don’t forget Alchemillis mollis! 🙂
Alchemilla mollis is my biggest omission.
These green florals are very mesmerizing. This is the first time I’m seeing these many green ones.
I’m glad you found them interesting.
“Reset” is exactly right! I had no idea there were so many green flowers, and I find that they require some re-thinking on my part. To steal a line, “it’s not easy seeing green.” As always, thanks for new thoughts!
I do wonder how the insects manage. We humans perhaps enjoy green flowers for their inscape – that air of being naturally unnatural.
These are all wonderful photos. 😀 😀
Thanks, Cee.
This was soothing. I love green flowers
I’m glad you felt soothed.
That echinaea is gorgeous, as is the snowdrop. I do miss my hellebores, but you can’t have it all.
Hellebores are easy to miss. I grew some from seed many years ago that I often think back to.
🤗💖