I don't really see it as the advantage of a moon garden vs a regular garden... I think the label of "Moon Garden" can be a little misleading. Taking a closer look at those plants that appear to "glow" at dusk or in the moonlight within the garden, helps us to appreciate the beauty of any garden at night. I have a variety of colors in my garden but use lots of white and silver plants--and I don't necessarily call it a "Moon Garden", but I guess it is at night. Keep in mind that I speak as a home gardener -- the professionals here look at this in a completely different way. Try planting more white plants in your present garden and you will be amazed at how beautiful they look at twilight as they seem to pop out just as the other plants seem to fade away... I don't have enough room to set one area aside as a "Moon Garden" but I always have the idea of it in mind when I plant more and more white things each season-- like the grouping of white Dutch Iris and white larkpur seeds planted near an Iceberg rose I can hardly wait to see. I am always very pleased with how it all comes together!

Hi Bouquet.

Thanks for satisfying my curiosity :)

Well, the idea of 'glowing in twilight' is new and very exciting to me.

Can you please name some of the 'white' plants you are referring to? Maybe it would give me some nice ideas about my own garden. I assume you are referring to the foliage and not the blooms.

Thanks.

Amer

P.S. Here goes my list of white plants :

Artemesia glacialis (Glacier Wormwood)
Artemesia mutellina
Calceolaria lanigra
Cerastium candissimum
Cerastium tomentosum var. columnae 'Silver carpet'
Cytisus battandieri (Broom)
Edrianthus pumilio
Elaegnus commutata (also E. argentea)
Gazania 'Talent' mixed
Halimium atriplicifolium
Helianthus argophyllus 'Gold & Silver'
Leontopodium alpinum
Leucadendron argentium
Onopordium acantheum
Podalyra sericea
Potentilla speciosa
Pulsatilla halleri
Puya coerulea
Salvia apiana 'White Sage'
Santolina chamaecyparissus (Lavender Cotton)
Senecio cheonophyllus
Senecio cineraria 'Silverdust'
Venidium zulu
Verbascum bombyciferum 'Arctic Summer'
Verbascum phlomoides
Verbascum thapsis
Xeranthemum annum

Phew!

Isn't it a long list :)

Amer

I actually mean plants with white flowers -- sorry about that! I'm not sure what grows in your zone... my area suffers from very, very hot summers which makes gardening extra challenging for me. I would start by taking note each season of the flowers that do well in your region and incorporating those into your garden. Your list looks like you have a good start. Just plant what you like and keep rearranging until you are pleased with how it looks. If you are a novice at this like me, it will take a lot of trial and error. Good luck!

white calla lilies...zanteschia?
these stand out nicely even with minimal moonlight.
of course we're talking the flowers.
enjoy your gardens in all lights and all seasons.

I've thought about planting a moon garden for next season, but have only a small list of plants/flowers. Mainly what inspires me is thinking about walking past my flower beds on summer nights to get to the front door. It is magical to see the flowers (the whites one and silver stand out), smell the floral summer night air, and take in the mysterious deep shadows and shapes.

My ideas for plants include:
Dusty Miller
sage
flowering nicotina (white flower and incredible smell)
white stripped hostas
white cosmos
moon flower
lilies-of-the-valley (?)
summer bulbs in whites
anything with a white flower I can find...
I'm thinking more about shadows and shapes...

Just found to my surprise that no one's moon garden is mine--a very romantic garden starring the moon, itself, with pale flowers, reflective water, wafting scents all providing a worthy setting for Lady Luna. The South here, with its sultry fragrant evenings, has a long history of lounging on the porch (safely behind screens) and admiring the garden by moonlight.

Think of a spot that is appealing to you at evening time. How is the footing there--can you walk safely without a stumble? Where can you sit and relax, where do you look, from whence do the breezes waft and what scents would you like them to carry? What do you hear?

In the shadows, what forms might look lovely? Should you add hardscape such as trellises, pergolas, arches? What plants might show up with some subtle lighting from moonlight, or even carefully placed manmade sources? Would a beatifully shaped small tree or shrub with special lighting please you? Are there lovely shadows to ponder? Would you enjoy the sound of running water?

These are some of the elements I'm thinking about.

Rebecca

One of the many reasons I grow a moon garden is after putting
in a long day at work, I can come home and still enjoy my garden even though it's
dark outside. The shimmer from my white flowers
look their best at night and taking in all the fragrance
that a lot of my plants produce is heavenly.
I could sit out there all night!.....cheryl

What a lovely idea, I have often noticed how some flowers seem to stand out in the moonlight,(I suppose this could be to take advantage of any insect life, moths etc), but I wouldn't have though to take advantage of this! I have the perfect place to try a Moon Garden this year, and even have a few white flowering plant in place already. Thanks for the idea.
Jackie UK

Two very common flowers I have noticed really pop at night are the Naughty Marietta marigold and the white Mirabilis jalapa. I didn't plant the marigold as a moon garden flower but it proved to be very brilliant in the moonlight.
The mirabilis jalapa also has a yellow flower that shines in the moonlight. These are evening scented also and I just love to line my driveway with them and walk down it at night and enjoy the perfume.

You are all making me yearn for summer! I second the white nicotiana for fragrance. The tall (not hybrid) is the most fragrant. It reminds me of whiffs of nutmeg. I also like to edge an impatens bed with white impatens for the night beauty and makes it easier to navigate the brick path.

Too bad you don't live in northern Minnesota...I have 2 white flowered perennials to give away. One is Achillea'Everlasting' it's flower is like a double baby's breath on a long stem, it blooms early August and the other is a white Obediant Plant which drives me crazy. My friends and neighbors won't take anymore of this stuff since it likes to travel into the other perennials spots. I will probably end of throwing it to the dump site...And my most favorite flower is also the flowering Nicotiana...I even like the hybrids for their looks.

Amer, I just want to thank you for asking this question. I probably would have just lurked and never asked. We're in the process of buying a new house and this information has really inspired me for my landscaping. Thanks everyone!

Devin

I love the idea of the reflecting pool! How do you keep still waters from becoming stagnant, though?

My personal use of moon gardening has changed since the west nile virus arrived. We LOVE to sit outside in the garden after dark. It's soo cool and comfortable, and I used to try to grow night-scented flowers. But now we rarely go outside or stay outside after dusk. As soon as we see the first firefly, that's the signal to go inside. I guess we need a screened-in area, too. Sigh.

But until that happens, we're planning to install a bat house. And use some large, white flowers in strategic points, which we can see from the windows. A white rose is scheduled to be one of the stars of this show. I have lots of hostas near my front door (shady area.) The white stripes on their leaves stand out at night, and the spikes of white and light purple flowers show up really well. White flowers and variegated leaves (with white or very light yellow spots) "glow" in shade as well as in moonlight.

I'd like to get more of those softly glowing solar lights, too. They really showcase little areas of structural interest, and something about them is just so cozy to me.

Why a moon garden? For those serene quiet nights in the hot tub on the back porch, drinking espresso and decompressing from the stress of work, lit by twinklelights (so the tree swallow's eggs won't roast, and so as not to step smack-dab on the copperheads), after work has taken the daylight of one's life. For the fragrance. For the art of monochrome shadows punctuated by the secret flowers with their exotic spiked blossoms.

I think Moon Gardens got their name in Victorian England, though I'm sure people have been going "Wow" at the way white, and many purple plants seem to glow at dusk, and under moonlight.
In addition, these flowers often are more visible at night because they are polinated by nocturnal insects, and so are more likely to be scented at night.
In Tampa, it is too hot to enjoy the garden, come deep summer. We wave to it in passing, as we dive for the iced tea. I garden at and after dusk, on those hot summer days, so a moon garden became more and more atractive to me. I like both the glowing white plants, and the boldly dark ones, because the white are less conspicuous during the day, while the dark drop out at night. This gives me two gardens for the effort of one...a third even, if you consider how different the purples look at dusk, when they glow.
I have a dining room with three walls being floor to ceiling windows, and I planted my moon garden to be seen from the central of those windows. I used very tall plants farthest from the windows, to give depth, and have tryed to create a sceen. Even on moonless nights, the lights from the dining room cause the white to stand out.
My newest treasure is a Datura Metal, witha black/purple outer flower, and a pearl white inner...that is, when it gets big enough to bloom. Even as a baby though, it has lovely dark leaves. Snow on the mountain looks great by moonlight, too, with the white top leaves seeming to almost float.

For me, it's about contrast, and the way light gives me a new garden, throughout the day.

wow. this is all exactly what i want!! i've never seen a firefly in my life tho , i doubt we get them in california. :(
i would love to invite bats as wel, but i don't think we have those here either!
anyways i'm off to look up pics to some of those plants mentioned and add them to my want list!! =)

No fireflies?? Oh no! My daughter has the most fun catching them, putting them in a jar to look at and then releasing them.

Kelly~

Just as people plant hummingbird gardens, butterfly gardens and bird gardens. Moon gardens are beneficial in attracting moths, bats and other creatures that go bump in the night. Of course some research must be done concerning how to attract these creatures. White blooming plants is not the criteria required to attract these insects and animals.

I've planted Lumina pumpkins this time for an end-of-autumn farewell. :) Thought it would be nice to have just ONE more white lovely to look at before time for winter.