If vegetation with huge, daring, lovely leaves are your factor, you’ve come to the correct place! We like backyard vegetation with giant leaves for the architectural presence they bring about to our outside areas. Outsized foliage naturally attracts the attention. It will probably soften hardscapes and create a lush, tropical ambiance in virtually any local weather.
Outside vegetation with giant leaves serve a sensible perform along with their decorative worth. They present floor shade, which helps retain soil moisture. In addition they create a naturally grand backdrop that makes flowers and smaller vegetation stand out.
In design, you should utilize outside vegetation with huge leaves as focal factors or anchor combined borders. Whereas lots of our favourite vegetation with giant foliage are tropical, there are fairly a number of that can thrive in cooler climates. By mixing these into the backyard, you add visible drama and create aesthetic steadiness.
Mixing vegetation with huge leaves into the backyard is an effective way to make a daring assertion. You’ll be able to create a lush and considerable feeling and create steadiness with finer textures. Listed below are a few of our favourite outside vegetation with huge leaves to create a daring assertion in your backyard.
Apricot Frost Canna Lily
Apricot Frost Canna Lily Bulbs
Yellow Futurity Canna Lily
Yellow Futurity Canna Lily Bulbs
The President Canna Lily
The President Canna Lily Bulbs
Massive Leaf Ligularia
Bigleaf ligularia is a daring perennial grown primarily for its huge foliage. Its outsized, rounded to heart-shaped leaves can span 12 to 16 inches throughout. The dense clumps they kind add lush texture to shaded or partially shaded areas of the backyard. They like wealthy, moist soil and dappled or morning daylight.
This outside plant has huge leaves which can be usually deep inexperienced. Generally they’re tinged with purple on the undersides. They’ve a barely leathery floor that makes them pop amongst finer-textured vegetation. In mid to late summer season, they ship up tall flower stems topped with clusters of yellow blooms. They’re not solely lovely, they’re additionally a great meals supply for pollinators.
Taro
This species of Colocasia is an icon on this planet of big-leaved outside vegetation. It’s an unimaginable addition to any tropical or sub-tropical backyard. Right here in zone 9, it dies again within the winter, however comes again larger and extra spectacular each spring. The big, shield-shaped foliage is usually referred to as elephant ears due to its sturdy resemblance.
Not solely is that this plant attractive, however it’s additionally an vital meals crop in its native vary. It comes from jap Asia, the place many eat the basis ready in the same method to a potato. It loves moist soil and reaches six toes or taller underneath supreme situations.
Big Taro
This one has the same title to the final, and it has the same look as effectively. Nevertheless, big taro is a sort of Alocasia, reasonably than Colocasia. They’re shut relations, however not the identical genus. Whereas Colocasia‘s huge leaves level towards the bottom, Alocasia‘s level upward to the sky.
These unimaginable vegetation are too giant to develop indoors, and you may solely develop them outdoor in zones Sep 11. For the fortunate few, this plant grows as much as 15 toes tall with leaves as giant as six toes lengthy! It loves heat, humid environments and wealthy, moist soil.
Sacred Lotus
The enduring sacred lotus is a beautiful, outside, aquatic plant. It’s celebrated all over the world for its magnificence and cultural symbolism. This native to Asia has putting, huge, spherical leaves that float or stand above water on tall stems. The blossoms are spectacular, too. Giant, aromatic, and putting, that is as a lot a flower plant as a foliage plant.
Lotus root is a staple in lots of Asian cuisines. The seeds are additionally edible. This plant grows in water, and it tends to be invasive, so it gained’t work in each backyard. For those who’re in a position to develop it, although, it’s a magical one!
Fiddle Leaf Fig
The fiddle leaf fig is without doubt one of the hottest decorative houseplants, however it’s additionally an outside plant with huge leaves. In zones 10-12, you possibly can develop this tree within the floor and luxuriate in its huge leaves in your backyard. The leaves are giant and leathery with a shiny end and distinguished veining.
For those who’re rising one exterior, lighting is the most important difficulty for a fiddle leaf fig. They want quite a lot of brilliant, however oblique or dappled gentle. Direct solar will scorch their huge, beautiful leaves. An absence of sunshine might go away you with yellow leaves that drop prematurely.
Rice-Paper Plant
The rice paper plant is a dramatic outside perennial shrub native to Taiwan and southern China. It’s prized in gardens for its huge leaves and daring, tropical look. Its lobed leaves can develop as much as two to 3 toes throughout. They’re held on lengthy, upright stalks, creating an umbrella-like cover.
In heat climates, the rice paper plant grows into a big shrub or small tree. It’s usually 8 to fifteen toes tall and huge and spreads by underground runners. In colder climates, it could die again in winter however usually regrows shortly from the roots. Its huge leaves are inexperienced on prime and fuzzy white beneath, giving them a tender, silvery glow after they’re disturbed.
Castor Oil Plant
The castor oil plant is one other outside plant with huge leaves that appears nice within the backyard. The foliage might be deep inexperienced, burgundy, bronze, or purple. It has distinguished veining, which provides much more texture and curiosity. It’s a quick grower, gaining as much as ten toes of peak in a single season.
For heat climates, the castor oil plant is an effective way to create a quick influence within the backyard. It likes wealthy soil and loads of moisture, although it’s drought-tolerant as soon as established. Watch out concerning the seeds, as they’re extremely toxic. All the time defend your pores and skin when dealing with this big-leaved magnificence.
Bronzeleaf Rodgersia
Broadleaf rodgersia is a shade-loving outside perennial recognized for its huge, deeply veined leaves. It offers gardens a dramatic, tropical high quality, regardless that it’s cold-hardy to zone 5. It’s native to damp woodlands and stream edges in China. Its clumps of upright foliage can attain 2 to three toes throughout per leaf.
The massive leaves emerge bronze in spring and mature to deep inexperienced in summer season. Within the fall, the leaves usually develop coppery or reddish tones. In early summer season, rodgersia produces tall, flower plumes in shades of creamy white or pale pink. The blooms appeal to pollinators and create a tender distinction to the plant’s hefty leaves.
Butterbur
That is such a cool-looking outside plant with huge leaves, and it thrives in a variety of climates, making it one of many extra versatile on the listing. Nevertheless, it’s extremely invasive within the midwest, so watch out planting it outdoor in case you stay on this area. This outside perennial has huge leaves that may be as much as three toes throughout. They’ve a rounded coronary heart form and stand atop tall stems.
Butterbur likes moisture. It prefers moist habitats like pond edges and damp woodland areas. Underneath supreme situations, it spreads shortly, forming giant colonies. The foliage dies again in winter, and in spring, it flowers earlier than it returns. The flowers resemble bottlebrushes and are available in shades of pink, white, or lavender.
Canna Lily
Canna lilies are putting, tropical-looking outside vegetation with huge, lovely leaves and vibrant blooms. They develop simply in heat climates. In cooler climates, you possibly can develop these outdoor and retailer the rhizomes indoors for the winter. They develop shortly, reaching their full peak in a single season.
Their foliage is much like a banana plant. The lengthy, broad, paddle-shaped leaves might be strong inexperienced, bronze, or variegated with shades of gold and crimson. These beautiful flowering vegetation carry an on the spot tropical vibe to the backyard. Some varieties solely attain a couple of foot and a half tall, whereas others develop as much as eight toes in a single season.
Paperplant
Paperplant is a favourite in warm-climate gardens for its huge, hand-shaped leaves. The shiny, deeply lobed foliage is evergreen. This outside plant prefers not less than partial shade and grows to a rounded form that’s often between six and ten toes tall and huge.
In late fall, paperplant produces clusters of creamy white flowers. They’re adopted by small black berries and cherished by pollinators for his or her late-season bloom time. It prefers wealthy, moist soil, however is low-maintenance as soon as established. You’ll be able to develop this one indoors, however it can keep a lot smaller.
Big Rhubarb
Big rhubarb is without doubt one of the most dramatic foliage vegetation you possibly can develop. It’s generally referred to as the dinosaur plant due to its huge leaves. These outside vegetation don’t simply produce huge leaves; they’re positively colossal. The deeply lobed leaves can simply span 4 to 6 toes throughout.
When mature, a clump of big rhubarb can attain eight to 10 toes huge and eight toes tall. This makes it one of many largest-leaved vegetation in cultivation. Regardless of its title, big rhubarb isn’t associated to edible rhubarb. It prefers cool, moist, partially shaded areas and thrives in boggy soil.