Chocolate-Themed Plants: Foliage, Fragrance, and Flowers

For Striking Color in Pots

Coleus 'Coco Loco' – Tender perennial (2006, Proven Selections). Green leaves splotched with burgundy-brown. Grows 2–2½ ft. Vivid in green pots beside deep burgundy coleus. Sun or part shade. Zones 24, H1, H2; annual elsewhere.

Graptophyllum pictum 'Chocolate' – Tender perennial to 1½ ft. Glossy dark chocolate leaves with caramel cream center band; pink stems. Showy in glazed chocolate brown pot. Sun or part shade. Zones 23, 24; annual elsewhere.

For Chocolate Scent

Chocolate Cosmos (Cosmos atrosanguineus) – Perennial from tuberous roots, 2–2½ ft. Deep brownish-red flowers with strong chocolate/vanilla perfume in late summer/fall. Pairs well with silver foliage like dusty miller. Sun. Zones 4–9, 14–24.

Chocolate Flower (Berlandiera lyrata) – Perennial (annual in cold climates). Chocolate fragrance permeates air when daisy-like blooms open. Coarse foliage 1½–3 ft.; light yellow rays with maroon/green centers. Sun. Zones 10–13, 18–23.

For Overall Chocolatey Goodness

• Rudbeckia hirta 'Cherokee Sunset' – Short-lived perennial to 3 ft. Full sun. Zones 1–24.
• Loropetalum chinense 'Razzleberri' – Evergreen shrub 5–10 ft. Protect from hot afternoon sun. Zones 6–9, 14–24.
• Japanese Barberry (Berberis thunbergii 'Atropurpurea') – Deciduous shrub 4–6 ft. Full sun or partial shade. Zones A3, 2–24.
• Hibiscus acetosella 'Red Sentinel' – Tender perennial 3–4 ft. Full sun. Zones 23, 24 (annual elsewhere).
• Purple Fountain Grass (Pennisetum setaceum 'Rubrum') – Graceful mounding grass to 5 ft. Full sun or partial shade. Zones 8–24, H1, H2.