Are There Real Brown Flowers? 19 Beautiful Choices For Your Garden

Are there real brown flowers? Actually yes! When most people think of flowers, they think of colorful blooms in shades of pink, blue, yellow, and red. But, did you know there are also flowers in delicious shades of brown? In fact, brown flowers are becoming increasingly popular, and some gardeners are even planting “chocolate gardens.”

Not convinced? I went looking and found some spectacular plants with blooms in various shades of brown. Take a look at these attractive options that will add some interest to your garden.

Using Brown Flowers in the Landscape

Brown is associated with the color of the Earth. Using brown in your landscape design can create a feeling of comfort, warmth, and security. Using various shades of brown in your landscape design can give your outdoor space a rich, natural look.

Browns are not found on a traditional color wheel. It is a composite color (a color made by combining two or more other colors). It is often shown as a deep shade of orange on modern color wheels.

A wide range of brown shades combined with whites and creams creates a soothing monochromatic palette.
You can combine it with blues to make the colors pop. Red and yellow flowers also look great with brown.

However you use it, brown will add a touch of elegance to your landscape design.

19 Brown Flowers For Your Garden

Here are some brown flowers that will add interest and beauty to your garden.

Chocolate Cosmos (Cosmos atrosanguineus)

Height 30 inches
Spread 18 inches
Annual
Light needs full sun
Type of soil-fertile, well-drained soil

As its name suggests, this plant has small, chocolate-scented flowers. The blooms are a rich, velvety brown with a red center, and they appear in late summer. Butterflies love them. This is an annual plant, so it will only last one growing season.
Chocolate cosmos is easy to grow. All these flowers need is a sunny position and well-drained soil to thrive.

Bearded Irises

Height 12–40 inches
Spread 12-24 inches
Zone 3-9
Plant Type Perennial
Light needs-Full sun
Type of soil- well-drained

Bearded Iris grows in various colors, but brown is one of the most unique and beautiful. The flowers bloom on long stalks that rise above sword-shaped blue-green leaves. These flowers have ruffled petals and look like they are made of silk.

Bearded iris get their name from the hairy, furry section called the beard, which is found at the base of the falls. These are the petals that curve downwards. Bearded iris comes in a wide range of colors, and there are a surprising number of brown Bearded Iris, including

DayLily (Sweet Hot Chocolate)

Height 10-48 inches
Spread 24-36 inches
Zone 3-9
Plant Type Perennial
Light needs- Sun to partial shade
Type of soil- moist/well-drained

“Sweet Hot Chocolate” Daylily is a perennial plant that forms dense clumps of grassy green foliage. It has upright stems of trumpet flowers that are large and rusty brown in color. The flowers have a velvety texture with red edging and yellow throats.

Daylily is one of those plants that is almost maintenance free. It can cope with all manner of challenges from drought to poor soil. This versatile plant can be used as a border pant, mass planted, or in containers. It is an adaptable plant that is low maintenance and resistant to deer and rabbits.

Columbine (Chocolate Soldier)

Height 1-2 feet
Spread 1-2 feet
Zone 3-8
Plant Type- Perennial
Light needs-full or partial sun
Type of soil-moist/well-drained

Chocolate Soldier Columbine is a hardy perennial with bonnet-shaped, two-tone flowers and long graceful spurs. The flowers appear in spring and display a beautiful cocoa brown and lime green combination. Chocolate Soldier Columbine is a compact aquilegia, making it ideal for growing in a mixed border or rockery.

If you’re looking for a chocolate-themed flower to add to your garden, this Columbine is a perfect choice! This tough little plant is ideal for gardeners of all levels of experience.

Brown Sugar Tulip

Height 22 inches
Spread 6 inches
Zone 3-8
Bulb
Light needs- sun or partial shade
Type of soil- well-drained soil

The Brown Sugar Tulip is a beautiful flower that blooms in the spring. It has two to six broad, blue-green leaves. The flowers are cup-shaped, with reddish-brown petals that gradually turn to golden apricot edges. It is a tall tulip with a pleasant scent. The flowers last for a long time and make a lovely cut flower.

Foxglove (Milk Chocolate)

Height 2-5 feet
Spread 1-2 feet
Zone 4-10
Plant Type Biennial
Light needs full sun to part shade
Type of soil- well-draining, loamy soil

Milk Chocolate Foxglove is a tall biennial with lovely spikes of orange-brown blooms. The leaves are a gorgeous dark green, which forms the perfect backdrop for the dramatic blooms.

The Milk Chocolate Foxglove is a biennial plant, meaning it takes two years to complete its life cycle. In its first year of growth, the plant produces a rosette of leaves near the ground. The following year, it sends up a flowering stalk and produces seeds.

Dahlia Karma Choc

Height 1-6 feet
Spread 1-3 feet
Zone 8-10
Plant Type
Light needs full sun
Type of soil-Loamy, well-drained

Looking for a dramatic addition to your garden? Karma Choc Dahlia is a stunning choice, with its rich, rich brownish-red blooms and deep black center. The deep green foliage is equally beautiful.

This variety is also an excellent cut flower, so you can enjoy its beauty indoors. Karma Choc Dahlia blooms from early summer until late fall, so you can enjoy its beauty for many months.

Japanese Arisaema

Height 1-2 feet
Spread 1-2 feet
Zone 4-9
Plant Type Bulb
Light needs- Partial Sun
Type of soil- Moist/well-drained

THe unusual Japanese Arisaema brings a touch of the exotic to your garden with its brown and white striped spathe (the leaf-like structure) that surrounds the white clublike flowering parts.

These unique flowers rise above bright green leaves, sometimes sprinkled with silver. These are best grown in moist woodland settings or shade gardens.

Finding this post helpful? Take a look at our other lists of flowers.

Hibiscus (Creme de Cacao)

Height 6-9 feet
Spread 3-5 feet
Zone tropical
Plant Type Perennial Shrub in its native environment, but annual for most locations.
Light needs- Full Sun to Partial Shade
Type of soil

If you’re looking for a striking addition to your garden, you can’t go wrong with the Creme de Cacao Hibiscus. This beautiful flower features rich brown petals accented by contrasting red-eye and white rays. The dark green foliage provides the perfect backdrop for the showy flowers.

The Creme de Cacao Hibiscus is a great way to attract pollinators like butterflies, birds, and bees to your garden. Creme de Cacao Hibiscus is perfect for containers. However, if you live in a tropical climate, you can plant it as a shrub.

Find out more about these beautiful flowers by reading our ultimate guide to growing Hibiscus.

Echibeckia (Summerina Brown)

Height 20-23 inches
Spread 16-18 inches
Zone 5-9
Plant Type Perennial
Light needs- full sun
Type of soil-Normal, Sandy, or Clay

Summerina Brown is a cross between Echinacea and Rudbeckia. This hybrid offers the best of both worlds, with the appearance of Rudbeckia and the hardiness of Echinacea. The result is a plant that produces beautiful, long-lasting flowers over a long bloom period from early summer through fall. The flowers are extra-large, with dark brown petals edged in orange. They surround a large dark brown cone, giving the plant a unique look. If you’re looking for something different for your garden, Summerina Brown is definitely worth considering.

Sneezeweed (Indianersommer)

Height 36-60 inches
Spread 12-24 inches
Zone 3-8
Plant Type- Perennial
Light needs-Full sun
Type of soil- well-drained

Indian summer sneezeweed is an excellent addition to any garden. It’s a perennial that grows to over 1 meter tall and has daisy-like flower heads with drooping rays. The center of the flower heads is reddish-brown, but it fades to light orange over time. It’s an excellent cut flower and can be used for mass plantings, cottage-style gardens, and prairie gardens. Indian summer sneezeweed is a beautiful flower that will add color and life to any garden.

Painted Tongue (Chocolate Royale)

Height 12-14 inches
Spread 14-16 inches
Plant Type- annual
Light needs- whole and part sun
Type of soil-moist/well-drained

The Chocolate Royale Painted Tongue is a stunning flower that features rich, maroon-chocolate-colored blooms with darker veins. These gorgeous trumpet-shaped blooms have a velvety look.

Chocolate Royale Painted Tongue makes for a fantastic cut flower that will add a touch of luxury to any arrangement. This flower has a compact well-branched plant habit that makes it an ideal choice for smaller gardens or as part of a mixed border.

Chocolate Flowering Tobacco

Height 3-4 feet
Spread 1-2 feet
Plant Type annual
Light needs full sun to part shade
Type of soil – moist well-drained

Nicotiana Chocolate Smoke was bred by the gardeners at the Chocolate Flower Farm. Lightly scented trumpets range in color from mauve to deep chocolate brown. As you can see from the picture, they look like chocolate stars. This plant produces blooms in abundant clusters all summer to frost. You can purchase seeds at the Chocolate Flower Farm.

Black Velvet Nasturtium

Height 10-12 inches tall
Spread 8-14
Plant Type annual
Light needs- full sun to partial shade
Type of soil- poor to average, slightly acidic, well-drained soil.

Black Velvet Nasturtium flowers are a beautiful, rich dark mahogany color. The plants are compact and mound-forming, making them great for container gardening. They also have a continuous bloom throughout the summer.

The Black Velvet Nasturtium flowers are stunning to look at, but they are also edible and make great garnishes. They have a peppery taste and work well in salads.

You can see a picture of Black Velvet Nasturtiums here.

Hollyhock (Rosa Nigra)

Height 6-8 feet
Spread 2 feet
Zone 5-10
Plant Type Biennial
Light needs- full sun
Type of soil- moist, well-drained soil

The Rosa Nigra Hollyhock is a stunning biennial flower that produces tall spikes of deep maroon brown blooms. It makes a dramatic background plant and looks fabulous when grown in groups. It is often planted in cutting and cottage gardens along fences and walls.

If you’re looking for a dramatic plant for your garden, the Rosa Nigra Hollyhock is excellent. Its stunning flowers will add interest and texture to your garden. The Rosa Nigra Hollyhock attracts hummingbirds and butterflies and is a showstopper in any garden.

Sunflower (Chocolate Cherry)

Height 6-7 feet
Spread 24-30 inches
Plant Type annual
Light needs full sun
Type of soil

Chocolate Cherry sunflowers are one of the most beautiful and delicious sunflowers you will ever see. The dark chocolate center disks are surrounded by velvety petals. The petals range in color from rich chocolate to a black cherry red.

These stunning flowers are great for cutting or as a standalone showpiece in the garden. However you choose to enjoy them, Chocolate Cherry Sunflowers will add a touch of elegance to your flower garden.

False Indigo (Chocolate Chip)

Height 1-3 feet
Spread 1-3 feet
Zone 4-8
Plant Type Perennial
Light needs full sun
Type of soil average to poor soil

Chocolate Chip False Indigo is an outstanding addition to any garden. It bears long spikes of pea-shaped chocolate-colored flowers as an upright, densely branched perennial from spring to early summer. When the flowers fade away, the deep blue-green foliage forms a bushy spreading mound that creates the perfect backdrop for the other flowers in the garden. Chocolate Chip False Indigo is an easy plant to grow and care for. It will add beauty and interest to any landscape. Order yours today!

Viola (Velour Frosted Chocolate)

Height 3-4 inches
Spread 6-8 inches
Annual
Light needs- full sun to partial shade
Type of soil – moist/well-drained

The Velour Frosted Chocolate Viola is a hybrid flower developed in England. It is a cross between a Pansy and a Viola, and it has small-sized blooms on compact, bushy plants. The flowers contain chocolate brown petals combined with a yellow face and gorgeous “frosted highlights.” This distinctive color combination makes the Velour Frosted Chocolate Viola a unique and beautiful addition to any garden.

Brown African Daisies

Height 12-18 in.
Spread 18-24 in
Zone 10–11
Plant Type tender perennial
Light needs- full sun
Type of soil- moist/well-drained

Brown African Daisies are beautiful flowers that resemble common daisies, with petals radiating around a center disk. They have smooth, flat petals like a typical daisy, and their blue-green foliage is toothed and hairy. The petals seem to have an ombre effect, with darker brown on the tips fading to a cream color in the middle.

These are hard flowers to find, but I had to include them because they are so pretty. If you can find them, Brown African Daisies make good-cut flowers and are attractive to butterflies. They are drought tolerant and can even survive in poor soil conditions.

Final Thoughts

We hope you enjoyed this post and that you will share it with your friends. Brown may not be the first color you think of when it comes to flowers, but there are some breathtaking blooms in beautiful shades of brown. So if you’re looking for something a little different, why not give one of these brown flowers a try?