The Mystery of the Black Rose - The Dark Side of Flowers & Roses
Despite being a rampant Chelsea supporter, black is my colour, rather than blue. Look in my wardrobe and you’ll soon get lost. Not because it’s as big as the Flowers HQ fridge but because, apart from the odd red or white Adam Ant t-shirt (!), I just don’t do patterns or colours. There’s something striking and ‘impactful’ about black that I adore, and it can make an impression that others seldom forget.
So naturally, I had the urge to investigate the availability of the elusive black rose – or indeed any black flowers – on the market.
For a black bouquet I could easily promote to my many dyed-in-the-wool (or should that be ‘died’ in the wool?) alternative chums, especially those who are currently looking for black wedding bouquets and arrangements. Upon reaching the answer, I was devastated. Well, OK, I was a bit disappointed… There’s no such thing as a true black rose. Grr..!
You may have seen Adarsh’s rather well researched blog post on blue flowers, and how science may soon have the answer to supplying the ultimate blue rose. I thought maybe a black one would be on the way – considering the demand - but no such luck.
This is because the vast majority of flowers have bright colours (including blue) to attract insects – even the ones that attract flies are meat-red and smell of rotten flesh. Nice!
Sadly, the nearest any flower will get to being black is when cell death occurs. So, if you want a black bouquet, it could be argued that it’s best to leave your Grand Prix roses to dry out to a crisp, though that could make a bit of a mess, really, by the time you reach the wedding reception.
But all is not lost. According to www.planet-science.com, there are over 2,750 varieties of dark plants, with some having flowers that come ‘deceptively close to black’. Some ‘black’ roses to look out for when selecting dark flowers for bouquets include ‘Black Baccara’ and ‘Black Beauty’.
With its deepest red colour and a black velvet feel to the petals, the ‘Black Baccara’ rose is said to be the darkest red rose available with a mystical and powerful effect on anyone who receives them, while the ‘Black Beauty’ rose - introduced in 1973 from France - is a hybrid tea rose with a slightly smaller flower than the ‘Black Baccara’, but packs as much punch.
An image consultant once told me (!!!) that to show off a love of black to the max, you should ‘accessorise’ with primary colours. My favourite bi-coloured black roses include the wonderful ‘Abrakadabra’ rose - a yellow and dark brown affair with particularly striking wasp-like stripes, depicting devilishness and radiance. Another is the ‘Stracciatella’ rose with velvety black petals with ‘punky’ pink specks. But the story of black - or rather ‘nearly black’ - flowers doesn’t end with roses.
‘Black Beauty’ cosmos is one of the the blackest ‘black’ flowers that can be found. As well as looking particularly sumptuous, apparently this cosmos atrosanguineus smells like chocolate praline. Yum!
‘Black Forest’ Calla Lily – also known as the ‘Schwartzwalder’ Calla Lily - has been developed quite recently through years of Dutch breeding and engineering, producing an energetic, upright plant with silky blooms of the darkest burgundy/black. With lilies being a particular wedding bouquet favourite, I can envisage this becoming one of the leading callas on the market for the future.
Irises are almost legendary for their deep dark colours in hues of violet and blue. The ‘Chrysographes’ Iris with its blade-like leaves is no exception. Sometimes marketed by flower and seed distributors as ‘The Black Knight’ Iris, this flower is almost true black with the darkest plum-purple petals. 
Also look out for the bearded ‘Superstition’ Iris, an equally dark flower with a slightly purple hue.
Tulips have always been our favourite flower here at Flowers HQ and are one of our most regularly requested arrangements. Adarsh’s blog post confirmed that there is no such flower as a true blue tulip, however the ‘Queen of the Night’ tulip is the closest that hybridists have come to creating a truely black tulip. This particular variety is fast becoming one of the most popular tulips to grow. Although not actually black but a very dark purple, in the dim light of dawn and twilight, this tulip looks jet-black.
Although monikered with a slightly dubious name, the ‘Black Boy’ cornflower is another well-established, tall variety, making a grand fine cut flower with double flowers of a rich deepest dark maroon colour.
The scabious scabiosa atropurpurea ‘Black Knight’ - sometimes called the Pincushion Flower or Bachelor’s Buttons - is something else, with its stunning dark purple flower on a long central stem, with several auxiliary flowers.
When choosing a bouquet, the appropriate foliage is almost as important as the flower stems themselves. A particularly popular choice are our ‘Black Tie’ aspidistra leaves, but we can also source ‘Black Giant’ capsicum to compliment your arrangement. Finally, no discerning blog post on the subject of black flowers would be complete without a mention of one of the most beautiful black flowers on the market - the ‘Black Barlow’ aquilegia.
A real head-turner, this particular variety comes with fully double spurless near-black flowers that resemble Dahlias. From the picture on the right, I think this particular bloom looks like the perfect blue-black goth hairdo!
Don’t forget - if you’re looking for the perfect flower arrangement (in any colour, not just black!), just contact our customer service team and they will be more than happy to help you source the best flowers this side (or the dark side!) of the web.
Also, if you’re looking to send a one of our existing range of bouquets, check out our superb Black Magic bouquet, framed by ‘Black Tie’ aspidistra leaves, deep pink cala lilies, dark red ‘Grand Prix’ roses and deepest purple lisianthus.
Related posts: You may also find this article about the science behind blue roses interesting.
Stop Press! (added 10 July 2008)Inspired by this blog post, we have added another ‘dark’ flower arrangement - Back to Black featuring red ‘Grand Prix’ roses, blue hyacinths, lisianthus and thistles in a black ceramic cube.
Named after the Amy Winehouse classic? You decide!
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Filed under: Customers, Floristry, Flowers, General, Operations, Valentine's Day, Weddings on July 4th, 2008
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