The mythical allure of black flowers has fascinated our attention for centuries. Black tulips and black roses appear to originate from a make believe fairytale world. A pure black flower is the Holy Grail of plant breeders worldwide. Their unnatural color inspires a powerful feeling of mystical expectation. If you were to receive a black rose bouquet, it could mean a variety of things. Possibly you had become a widower recently and you received the flowers as a token of bereavement, or perhaps it was a tell tale sign that you had offended someone and the dark bouquet was sent as a sign of revenge of retaliation.

In the time of the Edwardians at the cutting edge of fashion in the 19th century used to collect them, going to exceptional extent to track down these exotic species of flowers. Will this mysterious flower once more, at the dawn of a new century and a new millennium, become a source of artistic and philosophical inspiration? The black rose bouquet is also the beloved flower of Art Nouveau designers at the previous turn of the century.

The reality of the black rose is that it does not really, naturally exist. The so-called black tulip is actually very dark purple and the black rose is, in fact, very dark red. These flowers are quite popularly used in "Gothic type" environments or as a black rose bouquet in a wedding where the color palette is of a darker form. There are other less common cut flowers which occasionally occur in "black" forms - they all ooze decadence, mystery, fascination.

With their very unusual velvety soft petals, looking at a black rose bouquet will make you think of the comfy soft cushions of a luxurious and exquisitely decorated winter room. The scent of this mysterious black rose makes you float away to your favorite imaginary exotic place that is filled with the lovely aroma of these gorgeous black beauties. You can imagine, laying on a bed of black rose petals being fed by a gorgeous harem of worshippers fanning you with a big feather plume.

Creating a black rose bouquet is not simple, nor is it impossible either. To keep up with the dark, mystical feeling of the black, one of the greatest groupings is black roses mixed with ivy berries. They are available at the florists throughout the winter. The red-black color of the rose, with the blue-green black of the very creates a perfect harmony. Ask your florist of the darkest roses they have. See if they have "Black Magic", "Barkarole", "Black Beauty" or "Baccara" black roses. A completely black bouquet is very dark but impressive. It does, however, set off an air of somberness. Adding in glowers or greens with a red or brown tint can enrich the black color and give the bouquet a little more pizzazz and depth. You can also add some hypernicum or chili pods to give the bouquet a firey red tone. If it is around the holidays try putting a little sparkle into your bouquet by adding silver spray painted leaves. It will really jazz up your dark black rose arrangement.