Black flowers and black plants lend an air of mystery to your garden. Combined with other colors, they can create dramatic backdrops or add surprising accents. Use black flowers in a gothic garden design, let them complement flowers to grow in fall or try dark flowers like pansies with other plants that bloom in winter.

'Diablo' ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius), pictured here, is a multi-stemmed shrub that flowers in late spring or early summer and drops its dark purple leaves in winter. It offers year-round interest, thanks to its handsome, peeling bark. Hardy in Zones 3 to 7, it's an ideal gothic plant.

The deep purple color of 'Stay Classy' sand cherry is just one of the beguiling features of this new variety of Prunus x cistena. 'Stay Classy' has a wonderfully compact habit, is extremely hardy and is a real garden workhorse that will also add visual impact to your landscape. White purple flowers bloom in spring but this deciduous shrub is really all about the foliage which holds its color all season long.

A new spin on the weigela 'Wine & Roses' variety, this perennial flowering shrub is a study in delightful contrasts. Dark, rich foliage becomes even more noteworthy with the appearance of snowy white flowers. Noted for its vigorous growth, this weigela can distinguish itself as a specimen plant in containers or garden beds. But experts say it is often at its best when planted in groupings or en masse in the garden. Deer resistant, weigela grows best in sunny to partly shady locations.