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White flowers give your garden a magical touch. I’m especially thankful for their brightness in the evenings and in the shade. The petals of plants with white flowers seem to catch the light in a way that other brightly colors can’t. I really love white flowering plants (the contrast with my favorite dark plants is brilliant) – and I’m not the only one. Probably the most famous example is the White Garden at Sissinghurst – but you don’t need an English manor to capture that magic. With just a few well-chosen plants, you can create your own white corner or border. Here are some favorites from my own garden.
Inspiration: the White Garden at Sissinghurst
The most famous ode to the color white is undoubtedly the White Garden at Sissinghurst, perhaps England’s most iconic garden. In the 1940s, writer Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicolson created a monochrome garden that still attracts many visitors from all over the world today. The idea at the time was revolutionary: a garden where only white flowers and silvery foliage were allowed to grow.
But what instantly becomes clear when creating a white garden is that there are many shades of white! The Sissinghurst White Garden owes its success to playing with many shapes, textures and shades of white that together form a harmonious whole.
Some of my favorite plants with white flowers
While browsing through my own photos of my garden I found that I had already gathered quite some plants with white flowers. These are some lovely (and easy!) white flowering plants (they all do well in my USDA zone 8) to get you started with your own little ‘White Garden’ or border.
1. Helleborus orientalis: very early white flowers
At the end of the year, in December, I know I have one solid plant to look forward to: my white Helleborus orientalis. It usually starts flowering with subtle white flowers in January, meaning it’s one of the earliest suppliers of winter color. I planted just three small plants in 2019, in the dry shade of a tall conifer. Since then it has reliably returned every year. All I do for maintenance is yearly cutting away some straggly leaves. Their nodding white heads look so pretty, and their evergreen foliage adds structure all year round.
- Type: Perennial
- Flowers: January–April
- Height: up to 45 cm (18 in)
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2. Lewisia: small plants with white flowers
Lewisia is a charming alpine plant with delicate star-shaped flowers above fleshy rosettes of leaves. Currently my lewisias (I also have a pink one) reside in a shallow bowl on the garden table, where bees and hoverflies frequent them and I can watch them at eye-level. These white jewel-like flowers add freshness and light to rock gardens or containers. Lewisia likes well-drained, even gritty soil, and they keep on coming back throughout the growing season. Though small in size, they have a big personality.
- Type: Perennial
- Flowers: May–October
- Height: 10–20 cm (4–8 in)
3. Lathyrus odoratus ‘Spencer Old Times’: summer scent
Ah, the lovely sweet pea! This is one of my favorites in the cut flower garden, but it’s a fantastic climbing plant in any garden. The scent is heavenly and Lathyrus odoratus is available in my pretty colors. I usually grow multiple colors (from the darkest reds and purples to pink and white). The Lathyrus odoratus ‘Spencer Old Times’ has a nice purple-blue edge along the white petals, which gives the white petals a subtle extra touch.
Once they set seed, they will stop flowering, so pick Lathyrus flowers often (just put them in a vase) and the plant will keep on producing more new flowers.
- Type: Annual
- Flowers: June–September
- Height: up to 180 cm (6 ft) with support
4. Nicotiana alata: white flowers for evening perfume
The tobacco plant looks beautiful by day, but it really shines in the evening. Its drooping white trumpets open wide and release their incredible scent at dusk, attracting moths and other pollinators. These plants with white flowers are perfect for the back of a border (a great way to hide the leaves at the base of the plant), but it also grows well in a container. I sow this Nicotiana (in white and other colors) in spring, and then it flowers from June until the first frost somewhere in October.
- Type: Annual
- Flowers: June–October
- Height: up to 150 cm (5 ft)
5. Astrantia major ‘Sparkling Stars White’: favorite for bridal bouquets
The flowers of the Astrantia look so intricate and lace-like, it’s no wonder they are popular flowers in bridal bouquets. Its star-shaped flowers, surrounded by papery bracts, look almost like delicate snowflakes. This white variety (there’s also a pink version) has a refined, airy quality that softens bolder plants. It thrives in moist, humus-rich soil and is excellent for both cutting and drying. A subtle beauty that flowers for months.
- Type: Perennial
- Flowers: June–September
- Height: 60–75 cm (24–30 in)
6. Leucanthemum x superbum ‘Old Court Variety’: lovely white cut flower
What flower is more cheerful than the classic daisy? This hybrid Leucanthemum x superbum ‘Old Court Variety’ of course! The petals of this white flower with its yellow heart look spidery and really interesting on their tall stems – perfect for lush bouquets. This daisy is hardy, easy to grow, and looks wonderful in drifts. Bees and butterflies love it too, making it a pollinator-friendly choice for your garden.
- Type: Perennial
- Flowers: June–September
- Height: 60–90 cm (24–36 in)
7. Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’: white garden classic
This hydrangea is one of the most popular varieties for good reason. The ‘Annabelle’ is famous for her huge, snowball-like flower heads that start greenish, turn pure white, and then fade back to soft green as autumn approaches. Even in winter the papery white-brown heads still look ornamental. This shrub is an absolute showstopper, perfect as a focal point or in a mixed border. Just cut the whole plant back in spring and it will grow back strong every summer. This long flowering shrub is the backbone of many white gardens.
- Type: Shrub (perennial)
- Flowers: June–September
- Height: 120–150 cm (4–5 ft)
8. Anemone hybrida ‘Honorine Jobert’: autumn beauty
This elegant Japanese anemone is a standout late-summer and autumn flower. Its pure white petals with golden centers float gracefully above tall stems, adding brightness to the border just as other plants begin to fade. I planted my ‘Honorine Jobert’ somewhere in the middle of the border, with the green backdrop of a corkscrew hazel (Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’) and next to a pink-purple Eupatorium. The combination looked stunning this year.
- Type: Perennial
- Flowers: August–October
- Height: 100–120 cm (3–4 ft)
How to create your own white garden
A white garden doesn’t have to be big. You can just start with a border filled with plants with white flowers of all heights, leaf shapes, textures and flowering times. For example, combine the early hellebore with the summer-flowering hydrangea ‘Annabelle’ – and then let the white anemone steal the show early autumn. Add scent with Lathyrus and Nicotiana, and combine shapes such as the ball-shaped flowers of the ‘Annabelle’ hydrangea and the pincushion stars of Astrantia.
Add plants with silvery leaves
To complete your white garden or border, you can add grey and silvery leaves, like Stachys byzantina, Artemisia ludoviciana ‘Valerie Finnis’ or Brunnera macrophylla ”Sea Heart’. But also think of trees with silvery leaves, such as Elaeagnus ebbingei (oleaster), which is evergreen and tolerant of poor soils. For something taller, Populus alba (white poplar) has shimmering silver-backed leaves, while Salix alba ‘Sericea’ (white willow) offers elegant, narrow leaves with a silvery underside. These structural plants bring contrast, texture, and year-round interest to any white garden, great or small.
