Hydnora Africana

Like the monsters in “Stranger Things,” “Tremors,” or the plant character from “Little Shop of Horrors” the Hydnora Africana flower is terrifying in a very cinematic, visual way. It looks like a hungry monster ready to ravish anyone who dares to wander near it.

This monster-mouth flower is part of a plant that, otherwise, lives entirely under the ground. It greedily feeds on the roots of neighboring plants. When it does bloom, it emits a foul-smelling odor to attract nearby dung beetles and flies for pollination. When a pollinator lands on its bright, red flesh it snaps shut, trapping the unsuspecting insect.

Stinking Corpse Lily

This flower can be found in the tropical forests of Sumatra — even though, it looks like something from an alien planet. It grows no roots, stems, or leaves, like other flowers, and lives in a similar way to parasitic fungi. It takes up residence in several types of vines and feeds off their nutrients. The stinking corpse lily is the largest flower in the world, as its blooms can reach up to three-and-a-half feet in diameter.

The flower gets its name from its pungent smell. When this flower blooms, it emits a strong smell, like rotting fish, to attract its favorite pollinators, beetles, and flies.

Titan Arum

This flower gets its name from the Greek word for giant. It’s also from Sumatra and is another strong stinker. The titan arum emits a giant-sized bad smell from its giant-sized flower structure. This gargantuan plant’s group of flowers has been known to grow up to 20 feet tall and 16 feet across. Its pungent aroma mimics the odors of Limburger cheese, sweaty socks, Chloraseptic, feces, and rotting fish with a dash of sweetness on top.

Chrysanthemums

If you truly want to wish your visitors a happy Halloween, then deck your house out with chrysanthemums, the floral symbol for cheerfulness. These pom-pom like blooms burst in abundance on a single plant and are available in almost every color of the rainbow. We recommend yellow, gold, orange, burgundy, and purple for October decorations.

Black Roses

These macabre stems look as if they grew right out of Frankenstein’s garden, but they’re actually dyed seasonally by expert florists. Perfect for the Halloween season or a Halloween wedding, these mournful roses create an eerie atmosphere in all-black bouquets. For a less chilling vibe, we recommend mixing black roses with orange and yellow blooms for a brighter Halloween celebration. Embellish them with plastic spiders, pumpkin ribbons, or cotton cobwebs for fun.

Snapdragon Seed Pods

Like tiny skulls on a stick, these seed pods develop quite naturally. They start their lives as vibrant, rainbow-colored snapdragons. After they’ve shed their seeds, this is what’s left. These skeletal seed pods look as if they were purchased in a Halloween supply store, but you can cultivate them right in your own garden. They look perfectly petrifying in test tube vases or mixed in with black roses.