Gardens are wonderful. We all–or almost all of us–can agree on that. But what if you’re busy working hard all day long and by the time you get home, the sun is long gone? Can you still get any enjoyment out of some plants on your balcony? My answer is a resounding: YES! Yes, you can.
Photo by Lucia
What is a moon garden, you may be asking. Well, it’s exactly as it sounds. A garden that is best enjoyed in moonlight. It is somewhere quiet to sit and relax at the end of the day while enjoying the white flowers that may seem plain during the day, but practically sparkle at night. Oftentimes these flowers produce a heavenly scent at dusk, so you could call it an aromatherapy garden as well.
In addition to white and other light colored flowers, look for silvery foliage plants like silver artemisia, lamb’s ear, and lavender. Variegated leaves also will help add interest around your balcony. Try a variety of Dead Nettle called ‘White Nancy.’ It’s a great “spiller” plant with milky white and green leaves.
I would choose dark or otherwise unassuming containers for a moon garden. You want the flowers to stand out, and for the garden to be peaceful, not bright or “loud.” And while scented flowers add a lot towards that goal, don’t overdo it. Too much perfume will detract from the relaxing atmosphere you’re trying to create.
You should also thing about adding something pleasing to listen to, like wind chimes
Oh, and don’t forget a place to sit and enjoy your moon garden!
Moon Garden on a Budget?
If you need to be frugal when it comes to your garden, consider growing your plants from seed. For less than $20 you could have several balconies’ worth of plants best enjoyed at night.
- Angel’s Trumpet – (sometimes also called Devil’s Trumpet) 2-3 foot tall plants produce beautiful trumpet-shaped flowers that produce a citrusy scent best enjoyed in the evening.
- Moonflower – An attractive vine with heart shaped leaves and scented flowers that unfurl in the evening, revealing large white blossoms. Great for growing on your balcony railing.
- Money Plant – A medium sized “filler” plant that gets its name from the silvery coin-like seedpods it produces.
- Indian Peace Pipe – Another white flowered plant that produced a wonderful scent at night. Also known as Nicotiana, this plant produces tall stems that are dripping with tubular flowers.
- Artemisia Fringed Sage – Has beautiful, deeply cut foliage that is silver-gray and has a pleasant herb scent when brushed against.
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I was searching through Google doing research for a blog article, when I found this blog, and while not what I was exactly looking for I found it very informative and interesting and is an idea I will try myself. Thanks Kathryn xx
What a wonderful post! I absolutely love the ideas here.. I’m not limited to a balcony, put I do have a small back deck and this approach would be a nice change. Thank you.
K–I’d love to see pics if you create a moon garden on your patio!
Hi fern – many moons ago I use to have a cactus moon garden on my kitchen windowsill – i use to have these tall pencil like cactus plants that would flower once a year -at night – usually in december on the full moon – it even flowered during our christmas apartment block party around 10pm till 2am – smelt wonderful – and the dark shapes created by the cactus were great