16 Amazing Ornamental Plants for Green Spaces

By Calin Oancea and Florin Gabriel

4/12/20249 min read

Ornamental plants play a role in enhancing the beauty and diversity of your outdoor and indoor spaces but choosing the right ones is a quite difficult task.

Whether you have a lush backyard, a vegetative apartment, or a vibrant community park, these plants, which we tested inspected and some fully grew add color, texture, and structure.

In this short and no-fluff article will explore 16 amazing ornamental plants and their unique characteristics that make them ideal for enriching any vegetative spaces.

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a colorful Begonias Plant with big leaves in shade
a colorful Begonias Plant with big leaves in shade

Begonias Plant

Begonias, with their wide variety of leaf shapes and colors, are ideal for adding visual interest in a shaded pod or hanging basket setting. They typically grow to about 30-40 cm (1-1.3 ft) and thrive in filtered light with well-drained soil. These South American plants which are also native to Asia and Africa, are valued for both their foliage and flowers.

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Bird of Paradise

The Bird of Paradise, reaching up to 1.2-1.8 m (4-6 ft), is renowned for its striking, crane-like flowers. Thriving in full sun and well-drained soil, it's an outstanding plant in any garden. The exotic garden plant requires moderate watering and is relatively easy to care for, making it a popular choice for adding a tropical touch to your outdoors.

an exotic orange Bird of Paradise plant
an exotic orange Bird of Paradise plant
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two large Hibiscus flowers on plant stems
two large Hibiscus flowers on plant stems

Hibiscus can grow to about 2-3 m (6-10 ft) and is cultivated for its large, colorful blooms that are edible in some cases. After maintaining plants like this we concluded that it flourishes in full sun and moist, well-drained soil. Regular pruning encourages more flowers, and its vibrant petals can be used in teas and salads, offering both beauty and utility.

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Hibiscus

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beautiful red-white Dahlia blooms on a bush
beautiful red-white Dahlia blooms on a bush

Dahlia

Dahlia bushes prefer full sun and well-drained soil, they have colorful summer blooms in a wide range of forms and are one of the favorite plants gardeners choose to grow. The flowers are perfect for borders, cutting gardens, or nice features in outdoor planting areas. When choosing the right plants you need to consider that Dahlia varieties range from 30 cm to over 1 m (1-4 ft).

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a small Impatiens bush with a white flower
a small Impatiens bush with a white flower

Impatiens

These multi-color outdoor foliage plants reach up to 15-30 cm (6-12 in) and are a popular choice for borders or as ornamentals in gardens. They flourish in partial to full shade with moist, well-drained soil. Impatiens provide a continuous burst of color throughout the summer, making the ornamental bushes a go-to for brightening up full-shade areas.

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a white flowering Astilbe plant
a white flowering Astilbe plant

Astilbe

Astilbe, reaching heights of 30-90 cm (1-3 ft), is a shade tolerant perennial known for its feathery, plume-like flowers in shades of pink, red, white, and lavender. The colorful ornamental thrives in moist, well-drained soil, Astilbe plants add a soft texture to shaded gardens. It's perfect for creating a low maintenance underplanting beneath canopy trees or in woodland settings.

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multiple red leaved Ti Plants in a tropical environment
multiple red leaved Ti Plants in a tropical environment

Ti Plant

Ti Plant is a colorful ornamental similar to Astilbe and Dahlia, that grows up to 1-3 m (3-10 ft). It Prefers partial shade and moist, well-drained soil and is a great choice for adding vibrant red color. This tropical plant is low maintenance and can be used for both outdoor landscapes and indoor spaces, offering flexibility in garden design for example in vertical gardens.

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a shade bush called bleeding Heart with Pink flowers
a shade bush called bleeding Heart with Pink flowers

Bleeding Heart

Bleeding Heart is a shade garden plant that reaches 60-90 cm (2-3 ft) and prefers moist, well-drained soil in partial to full shade. Its heart-shaped pink or white flowers make it a great outdoor shade plant for landscapes or planters, adding a touch of pink in darker gardens. This plant is a classic choice for cottage-style gardens.

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colorful shade Coleus leaves in a hanging basket
colorful shade Coleus leaves in a hanging basket

Coleus

These colorful shade garden plants offer a wide range of leaf colors and patterns. Coleus is perfect for adding a bold splash of color and can be easily combined with other shade-loving plants for a vibrant display. The leafy plant with its stunningly colorful foliage, can grow up to 30-60 cm (1-2 ft) and thrives in partial shade and well-drained soil.

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multiple vertical garden Swiss Chese Plant leaves
multiple vertical garden Swiss Chese Plant leaves

Swiss Cheese Plant

With its distinctive split leaves, Swiss Cheese plants create a dramatic tropical effect, making it a popular choice for adding a bold, green statement to any planter. They reach heights of 2-3 m (6-10 ft) indoors and are ideal for larger spaces. The green plant likes indirect light and well-drained soil.

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green Holly bushes with spiny leaves
green Holly bushes with spiny leaves

Holly

Holly bushes are great evergreen shrubs, growing up to 2-15 m (6-50 ft) and prefer full sun to partial shade and well-drained soil. We saw that their bright red berries feed birds in the winter and their dense foliage offers shelter. Holly is a popular Christmas decoration plant that adds festive touch to indoors or outdoor.

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multiple Plumeria flowers and Leaves
multiple Plumeria flowers and Leaves

Plumeria

This tropical flower called Plumeria reaches 2-8 m (6-25 ft) and is celebrated for its fragrant, leathery flowers used in making flower necklaces. It prefers full sun and well-drained soil. Plumerias are drought-tolerant and can be grown in containers or other planters, making them suitable for various garden settings.

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a high Bamboo plant with long green leaves
a high Bamboo plant with long green leaves

Bamboo

There are many types of Bamboo ornamental plants but most of them can reach over 10 m (30 ft) and the high garden plant is ideal for creating natural screens or tall hedges. It thrives in full sun to partial shade and prefers moist, well-drained soil. Bamboo is fast-growing and comes in both clumping and running varieties, with the former being more suitable for controlled growth.

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multiple long and green Spider Plant leaves growing together
multiple long and green Spider Plant leaves growing together

Spider Plant

Spider Plant, reaching lengths of 30-60 cm (12-24 in), is a popular choice for indoor spaces and is often planted as a vertical garden plant. For optimal growth, you should it in well-drained soil and indirect light similar to the Swiss Cheese Plant. The plant has easy propagation and adds a nice texture with its arching leaves and baby plantlets.

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a Myrtle Spurge evergreen shrub in a planter
a Myrtle Spurge evergreen shrub in a planter

Myrtle Spurge

Euphorbia Myrsinites is an evergreen perennial. It has sprawling stems growing to 20–40 cm long. This small evergreen bush is also called Myrtle spurge and is great for small spaces because it usually just grows up to 40 cm high.

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a Hosta plant with green leaves in partial shade
a Hosta plant with green leaves in partial shade

Hostas, varying in size from 30 cm to 1 m (1-3 ft), thrive in partial to full shade and moist, well-drained soil in pods, containers or on the ground. Known for their lush foliage, they're perfect for ground covers and work well in woodland gardens. Hostas are perennials that cool the soil and provide habitats for wildlife.

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Hosta

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Calin Oancea
Calin Oancea
Green Box
Green Box

Article By:

Calin has been in the garden industry for 5 years and knows a lot about gardening and plants. He owns this website and is responsible for most of the content.

Reviewed By:

Florin, a more technical guy, is responsible for designing, reviewing and updating the articles but also optimizing for SEO so that everything we publish is deam good.