Brug Scents

So it smells like a brug, huh?

One of these days, we are all going to have to be able to describe brug scents. We need a sniff chart like the color wheel ;~) And we'll need Doc to explain his "euro-brug scent".

My Suaves all seem to have a minty smell. I haven't figured out a "musky" smell yet. Butterfly almost smells peppery, it's so spicy, has anyone noticed that even it's foilage is heavily scented also? Dr. Seuss is oriental spicy too.

Gypsy Queen smells like tutti-frutti by day, and DS by night!

Ambrosia smelled like perfume, but the best scent I've found so far is on Cypress Gardens, that is a great scent, a beautiful perfume!

Will y'all try your best to describe the different scents?

You did a great job describing scents, don't think I can compare any smell with brug blooms, except "Heavenly".
I have never had any smell like mint, Butterfly is a beautiful smell, not peppery to me, maybe it's my "smeller".

Butterfly to me smells like baby powder.

They all smell kinda like citronella to me.....lolololol.

Hi Vi, do the doubles have double smell? You are so good with all of your brugs. Brugie helped me out tonight and now I need your help, again, lol. How do you get all the flowers and mine are just growing tall? Only one flower on Dr. Seuss this summer. No other buds showing on any of my plants. I don't have any doubles and that white one here is so clean white. Will you save me a cutting and let me know the how you have such great results? Thanks for any help and advice. George

I find the Doubles smell like a wild Hyacinth,
and Arborea smells like grape Kool-aid,
and the Euros,they smell like Chocolate.

Ha ha George, like just about every newbie here, I think Brugie has just about taught me everything I know, lol! Lord knows I'm far from an expert.

This has been a strange summer for me too, I haven't had a great bunch of luck myself, but I will take pics and notes of the blooms I get and cherish them! The big ones I overwintered in pots have been the only big bloomers I've grown; Gypsy Queen, Dr. S, S. Pink, Kyle's Pink, Golden Lady & Isabella. I still have many many cuttings I overwintered that haven't grown much, (maybe they were tip cuttings and won't grow tall--I don't really know) and many that are big but have also only flowered once! All I can say is--SUMMER AIN'T OVER YET!
Last year I had my biggest flushes in October and November.

Thank goodness for the Spring swap--I got several nice sized brugs like Butterfly and Species (the white beauty shown) see, you should listen to me when I nag you to come! Species does seem to be the best double white for the south at least, the scent is nice but not strong, and seems to like the heat. I'll be glad to start some for you, if you come and get em!

As long as yours are getting some sun and lots of food and water, they should do well. Have you checked the ph of your soil? I've been trying just about everything on mine too ;)

Geesh Doc, I'm coming to smell your yard!

I always described them smelling like a combination of baby powder and vanilla...but HEAVENLY describes it best of all.

Thank you, "Heavenly" is my word for description of smell. Nothing else compares!

You have not smelled a brug until you smell Monster. Her scent engulfs the whole yard and it strong and wonderful.

Vi....this is an interesting thread! As of now, the only brug I've smelled is L'Amour. I'm so looking forward to all the other brugs to bloom so I can sniff!

DonnaB, I have your Monster planted out back and it's huge. I'm so ready for it to bloom!

Donna, I don't think I have ever seen a picture of Monster. Is this a hybrid of yours? I like the scents that engulf the yard especially the ones that don't have the heavy scents.

I've never smelled a brug in bloom.Does anyone have a scratch and sniff picture they could post???

I'll support you on the Butterfly vi! I didn't notice it with my first brugs-peach suaves, but then I got some brugs that were butterfly crosses from tiG -I described it as peppery-after moving them from my car I remember thinking they smelled spicy-my hands, the air......As for the flowers themselves, I haven't smelled a straight up Butterfly yet.

Hey, I agree with "Heavenly", don't get me wrong!
Indescribably delicious works too ;>}

Donna, I'm so ready to smell Monster too! It has just Y'd but looks nice and healthy. I'm not getting many blooms on Valley Misty Pink yet (1 at a time!) but enjoy the 'fresh' scent it has.

Jenks, thanks for your vote, lol, I know this is Butterfly but "baby powder" is a far cry from how I'd explain it -- no offense folks, maybe our smellers do differ!

The ones I'm really waiting on is GRC's "Lemon Scent Brug" (never Id'ed but he swears it smells like lemons), and Citronella, which is also taking forever! And so many more...

I'd sure like to hear everyone's views here, especially folks like Calla and Tracy who have so many different ones :)

Butterfly is one I am looking forward to smelling,mine does not even have bud yet.

Franny Monster brug is just what I call it because she gets so huges and put 200+ blooms at one time. She is just a white suaveolens hybrid that I have had for 10 years. She is my very first one. She gets 12 to 15' tall and wide,Y's rapidly and multiply on each branch, heavy seedpod setter, throw a piece on the ground and it roots, is very hardy withstanding the heat and cold down to a very hard frost. I just used the name so people know what they are getting as others could be very different. I always say it is an unnamed hybrid when I share it. Gloria had gotten one from me to start working with before she passed because it is so hardy and a very fast grower. This year is the smallest she has been probably due to a very dry spring.

Vi she has a stronger scent than Valley Misty pink but they have similar scent.

less than 1/4 of the whole plant. How many blooms can you count

Vi - from one scent freak to another, I'll do my best, but it's hard to pin them down! Plus, things smell different to different people. I want one that smells like chocolate!!

Some of them have a perfume + brug smell - Antique Lace, Kristi's White, to name a couple

Some of them are baby powder + brug - most of the versicolors & some sauves

Some are spicy + brug smell - Dr. Suess & Charles Grimaldi

Some are fresh laundry + brug smell - some sauves

Some are lemon dish soap + brug smell - kind of like a magnolia

Those are the main catagories that I seem to put them in, but a lot of them fit in more than one!

Charles Grimaldi smells spicy & lemon dish soap to me, I can imagine a kitchen where someone baked a spicy dessert, then washed the dishes with lemon soap.

Versicolor Alba is perfumy & always reminds me of a perfume or lotion that my grandmother wore.

Raffaella Not smells like roses to me when the flowers first open. (Several of us got this one in trade labeled Raffaella, but it isn't. It's a pink sauve, or insignis, but it's the only one that smells like that.)

Island Girl smells like perfume + brug smell + orange rind. I thought that it was just my imagination at first, but it's bloomed again, & it's definitely orange rind!

Ronna, you did good!

Island Girl is sounding very nice, do you have a pic? How well does she grow for you? Tell all, please :)

Thanks Vi. That was nice of you to say, but there are so many people here who help. I jump in when I can, but I'm still learning too. If we didn't have Monika, Susie, Tracey, Kell, Liz, Jeanne, Kyle, and the list goes on, we would be having to punt. They have all been so helpful to so many of us. I think we have a good list of experts to call on here when we need help.

Gee Brugie, are you calling me an expert? LOL. Thart is a first. There is hope for everyone then!! I think most of all our knowledge comes from Monika!! I know I may have figured out alot of it for myself, but it would have taken years!

Donna, I should send you some Big Yella pollen, your Monster brug and my Big Yella together in 1 brug woulld take over the world. Big Yella is amazing. It is huge even though I cut it to nothing routinely!

Ronna, I want a chocolate brug also. Is that milk or dark?

Kell if you want me to try, send some to me. I can air layer the branch I pollinate with it and you are welcome to all the seeds. I don't have luck with them. I cut Monster back to the ground every year too and throw most of it away.

Kell, you'll have to ask Rooty if it's milk or dark chocolate, he's the one who said it. I don't know if he really has one that smells like chocolate, or if he's just teasing us because he knows how much girls love chocolate!

Vi, I got Island Girl early this spring as a rooted cutting, less than a foot tall. Her first bloom flush was five flowers in June, and her second one had at least a dozen flowers. She grows well, blooms easily, and smells wonderful! Versicolor Peach and Versicolor Wildform were blooming at the same time, peach is a true peach color, wildform and Island Girl are both a more pinky peach. This picture is of Island Girl when the flowers were still opening, most of them haven't gotten their color yet.

I finally got the pictures downloaded from my digital, here's Island Girl with all of her colors!

I want a chocolate brug too Ronna! I prefer milk chocolate, it's much sweeter than the dark chocolate.
I love the scent of Island Girl.
Root, I agree, Creamsickle smells just like hyacinths when it blooms. Simone had a hyacinth smell too. The very first brug I had was Charles Grimaldi and DH thought it smelled like soap.

Lovely Ronna!
Is she really orange, not just peach? Did you get her from Country Gardens? Anyone know the parentage?

(I really thought I was done lusting, please keep me advised of her?)

Very pretty Ronna.

hmm. . . "Big Yella Monster"

Vi, we never get done lusting, we just set our sights a little bit higher! It's not really orange, it's a pinky peach, a little bit darker than v. peach, at least at my house. I got mine on ebay from tctopcat, she has cuttings available on ebay now, and Barb has a plant on ebay, too. Sorry, I don't have any idea of the parentage, maybe Susie or Barb do.