11 Best Black Plants To Brighten Up Your Home Decor

A long time ago, Plantly wrote about some of the best black succulent plants to grow indoors. These plants look magical and add enchantment to any living space.

So, today we decided to add some plants that come over black but are more dark purple to a deep burgundy color or a combination.

These plants remain beautiful and are worthy of standing in your home. But before we get to the list, let’s first find out why these plants display black.

Why Do Plants Look Black?

When you look at the beauties on the list, the dark green veins to black color are caused by a pigment called anthocyanin.

The green leaves have chlorophyll, facilitating photosynthesis and absorbing all the other colors in the light spectrum except for the green.

While anthocyanin only absorbs green to yellow, it will make the foliage come over darker. Still, it does not mean your black plants do not have chlorophyll as they do.

But the anthocyanin pigmentation is very intense, masking the color.

Best Black Plants To Have Indoors or in Your Garden

So without further ado, we introduce you to some of the most beautiful black plants you can grow in your garden and home.

Black ZZ Raven Starts Light Green and Turns Black

The Zamioculcas zamiifolia is a patented plant created by Van Winden-Erica B.V. Unfortunately, you cannot propagate it when you buy it. The only authorized grower of the ZZ Raven is Costa Farms in the United States.

Like the Zamioculcas zamiifolia plant with green leaves, the Raven is an easygoing houseplant. It is perfect for the beginner gardener. The ZZ plant can tolerate different light conditions. The important thing is to leave the top inch of the soil to dry before watering.

You can place it in your indoor space as it is a slow-growing plant, and it will produce offsets in light green at first, turning black as it matures. Another added benefit of having this black plant in the home is that it is an air-purifying plant.

Hence, the Raven will remove all the toxins from ethylbenzene, benzene, toluene, and xylene in the home. You will then have clean oxygen to breathe. So add this gorgeous plant to your bedroom to sleep peacefully at night.

Aeonium Black Rose Succulent Comes Over Dark Purple

For a striking succulent plant in black color, the Aeonium arboreum Zwartkopf is a must-have. It is a perfect plant for a new plant parent.

The foliage forms rosette clumps in a dark purple that appears like black leaves.

The Aeonium Black Rose can grow up to 3 feet tall with long stems leading out of the black rosettes. The rosettes reach a diameter of 8 inches.

During the summer, if you are lucky, you see yellow star-shaped flowers appearing in clusters found in the center of the plant.

Provide the Aeonium Black Rose with direct sunlight and deep watering once a week. Also, allow the excess water to drain out, and you can water less during winter.

Another important note is to allow the soil to dry out between waterings.

Echeveria Black Prince

Echeveria Black Prince @flickr

Here we have another black succulent plant, the Echeveria Black Prince, a crown jewel in a plant collection. Still, these indoor plants need to be treated like royalty with patience. It is a slow grower and thrives in direct sunlight but also does well in indirect light.

When kept happy, it gives you a bright green center filled with ruby red flowers and dark Florette leaves. It is important not to overwater your Prince, as it can lead to root rot. During winter, you can notice stems that reach out and know they will produce a flower.

Black Hedgehog Succulent

To add some Goth attitude to your garden collection, nothing says it best than the Black Hedgehog. The Sinocrassula yunnanensis, known as the Chinese Jade, is a hard-to-kill black succulent.

The plant is native to Yunnan Province, and it is a monocarpic succulent. The rosettes die after it blooms and will be replaced by others close to it growing. Compared to other plants, it needs little attention.

It thrives in bright light but can also flourish in indirect sunlight. Yet, Chinese Jade prefers dry conditions, with waxy leaves storing water. So, avoiding overwatering your plant, especially in high humidity, is the best way to prevent diseases.

Another highlight is that it flowers in late fall, and you can collect the seeds for propagation.

Colocasia Esculenta Black Magic Needs Bright Light

The Black Magic or Elephant Ear is one spectacular cultivar that can be grown indoors. Yet, it belongs to the Aracea family, and the growing requirements differ from the Alocasia Black Velvet.

The Elephant Ear can reach up to 5 feet tall outdoors but remains smaller indoors. Provide your Elephant Ear with a large container and keep it fertilized as it is a heavy feeder.

It is fast-growing and loves standing in full sun to help keep those very dark purple colors vibrant on the heart-shaped leaves.

Another notable thing is that when new leaves sprout, they are light green but turn to dark leaves as they mature.

Black Coral Bells For The Garden

The Black Coral Bells belong to the Heuchera genus and form a dense growth habit. It has shiny black leaves scalloped with ruffled edges. In addition, each of the leaves has a rosy purple underside that looks ruffled.

As the plant matures, the older leaves look as if it has a silver overlay, but this plant remains black even when it stands in direct sun. So, the foliage will not bleach to brown during warm seasons standing in full sun.

In mid-summer, white flowers with pink calyxes stand against the dark foliage, which needs much vernalization. Thus, the seeds do need a cold germination period to bloom.

Coral Bells are not too difficult to grow and blend in well with your other evergreen plants in the landscape. It forms a low-mounding habit; you can grow them as edging along a path or in a container.

Hellebores’ Dark and Handsome’

The Helleborus Dark and Hansome is dressed in silky black to black-purple leaves with lime green centers popping out against the dark blossoms. You can see a showcase of double-flowered displays in rich colors with the proper care.

The flowering plant is an evergreen perennial with flowers displayed in spring. The plant reaches up to 24 inches tall and needs a space of 24 inches apart when planted. You can grow the rose in bright indirect light to full sun.

Provide this beautiful plant with normal to acidic sandy soil that needs medium watering. Keep the soil moist and ensure it dries out between watering.

‘Black Magic’ Mangave Grows Well as Indoor Plants

For a plant with a difference to add to your indoor plant collection, choose the Black Magic Mangave. It is a hybrid plant that displays black, purple pointed, toothed leaves inside a flat rosette.

Provide the best color for those medium-sized black leaves with full sun. The best part is these black houseplants are drought-tolerant and need good drainage. It also needs to be kept away from reflected heat.

Another important thing is to protect your Black Magic Mangave from frost and ensure to allow the soil dries out between waterings. Finally, provide your plant with bright indirect light and full sun outdoors for indoor plants.

The mature height is 10 inches with a width of 2 feet, and it grows with an arching habit.

‘Night Embers’ Sedum

The Night Embers Sedum grows vase-like with purple-black foliage throughout the year. From late summer to fall, you see mauve-pink flowers atop the plant that glow like embers. The stonecrop plant is not high maintenance adding summer to autumn color in the garden.

You can leave the dried flower heads on the plant to add winter interest and food for birds in the garden. In addition, the Sedum has thick leaves that store water and is drought-tolerant. The evergreen’s height is 24 inches and needs a 24-inch spacing when planted.

Another fantastic thing about the succulent is that it can grow in low light conditions but prefers full sun. Provide your Night Embers with sandy soil and little water to thrive.

Begonia Black Fancy

One thing with the Begonia Black Fancy is that it will not break your heart. Instead, the plant rewards you with pink flowers in spring and does best standing in bright sunlight.

Yet, it thrives in a warm, humid environment when kept indoors. The plant has black leaves that remain compact yet bushy, and when you deadhead the flower, it blooms again.

‘Zwartkop’ Succulent

For some contrast to diversity, nothing compares to the vibrant color of the Aeonium arboreum Zwartkp. It requires bright light to help maintain the dark green colors. It is best grown as an outdoor plant that does not enjoy indirect light.

Still, if you live in hot climates, you can keep your Zwarkop in the indirect sun outside as too much sun when it is too hot or the air dry will make your plant dormant. So, it helps to check your growing zones to ensure you provide your plant with partial shade in the afternoon.

You can grow your plant in well-draining sandy soil, which will need more water than many plants in the succulent group. It is also a flowering plant that blooms in later winter or early spring.

The flowers are yellow and last for weeks, but the rosette will die after it flowers but is replaced by new pups. So, the best is to propagate the plant as it can perish if new offsets are not formed.

Final Thought

If you want to add contrast to your garden or indoor collection, these black houseplants are the way to go. Some are flowering plants but mainly collected for the gorgeous black foliage. So, if you have seen a favorite on the list, check our Plantly shop out to add it to your indoor plant collection at home.