Ah, I want to play, too. Let's see:
Coffee (wintered indoors) --incredible tropical fragrance; kinda like citrus, but spicy
Orange and Lemon blossoms (wintered indoors),
Oriental Lilies (most of them)
Lilac,
Jasmine,
Chinese Wisteria,
Lavender,
Honeysuckle,
Iris Pallida variegata,
Lily of the Valley,
Apple blossom,
Cilantro, when it bolts (I always let one bloom--it gets delicate, lacy white blossoms with a really refreshing fragrance),
French peppermint,
this one vermillion-red rose I inherited that smells like fruit punch,
and another, a huge single-blooming climber that gets thousands and thousand of small (
Your most fragrant plants by ranking
heh heh, apparently my list is too long to post in one.....I was saying
a huge single-blooming climber that gets thousands and thousand of small (2"), fragrant pale-pink-to-white blooms this time of year,
Henna (lawsonia inermis, wintered indoors),
Rosemary,
Borage --if you like the smell of cucumbers
Editing--turns out I had a character that was "breaking" it.
This message was edited Jun 9, 2006 5:24 PM
Larisa,
Wow what a nice list!!
So you don't know the name of your roses? You could post pix of them either here, on the ID, or Rose forums and maybe someone can help you.
Ohhh, LarisB,, I want some of that French Peppermint, where did you get it? Love that Rosemary too. Elaine
BerryGirl, Great idea! I'll give that a try. The climber had three blossoms open this morning, so I figure it'll have a few hundred by Monday, and I can take some pics. It's a monster! I cut it all the way back last year, and it's already half again as big as my secont-largest rose, maybe 4 feet wide with canes over 10 feet long. I don't fertilize it!
The "fruit punch" rose blooms a little later, and not so vigorously, so it'll prob'ly be a couple weeks.
Elaine, I got the French Peppermint at my local nursery here in West Seattle. It's kind of a sub-shrub type, and not agressive like most mints, more reasons to like it in my book. If you can't find it in GA, let me know; when it's ready to divide next year, I'll send you one.
Larisa
Thank you Larisa, will keep in touch. It is almost toooo hot here right to do any transplanting or even being outside. My gardenia seems to love this hot weather. It is full of bloom and smells wonderful .. Need to get some more passion vines (the caterpillars love them)
Hi BerryGirl,
I was wrong about the red-orange rose; when I got home from work last night I checked it, and there were a few good blossoms already! I posted an ID request in the rose forum.
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/613670/
Elaine, planted this gardenia years ago. It gets morning and late afternoon sun. I originally put cow manure and top soil in the bed, but underneath is lots of red clay. It gets lots of water, but good drainage. I have several cuttings I started in pots-will be glad to send you one. Hugs, Elaine (in Lizella)
Wow, how pretty.. I think I have something similar I just salvaged. I certainly hope so.. what a great bloomer!!
:)
Susan
Hi Elaine,, will put it in the mail tomorrow. Just send me some more rain or any good smelling flower seed you might have. We finally got a shower today after about a month with not a drop. Send me d-mail with your address, hugs, Elaine (in Lizella)
Elaine (in Lizella) how do you root cuttings from your gardenia? I have a huge gardenia that I've had for over 7 yrs. and I would love to get some root cuttings started so I could plant some more in my yard.
Lin
Lin,,,,,uh hate to say, but some I just stuck in a pot with some very loose soil and mulch and left them in shade and very little water. The plant I have is sort of sprawling (I am not a very formal gardener-in fact I need to give this one a hair cut). It seems to root down everywhere a branch touches the ground. I think this is the best way... my azaleas do well this way also . Be glad to mail you some cuttings when I get out the clippers. Elaine
Thank you E south,, it rained yesterday and this afternoon it has been raining a misty steady rain.
My gardenia is very upright and tall. My Mother has one that is more sprawling like you say yours is. I might try a cutting from her shrub and see what happens. Or I could try air layering a piece of hers. If all else fails I might take you up on one of your cuttings. Let me try these experiments first though. ;) I'll keep you posted on how this turns out.
Lin
Out of all my fragrant plants I would say my Star Jasmine is #1. #2 would be my gardenia. #3 would be my Bill Warriner rose. #4 would be my Mrs. Sam Houston rose.
Lin
Jasmine
Wisteria
Honeysuckle
Gardenia
Calamondin blossoms (just discovered how sweet these were)
"Wild" magnolias (have a slight lemon scent to them)
tea rose
Sweet Olive
My sunbac jasmine blooms, but the bloooms wilt and do not open .Anyone out there knows why this is happening .I love sunbac Jasmine and now I have all these blloms but no flowers.
Carnation
Jasmine
Gardenia
Scentimental Rose
lavender
Carnation is by far my favorite! I love picking one and stroking my cheek with the ruffly petals! They are so spicy smelling!
Hi, all. I just discovered this forum. I hadn't really thought that much about fragrant plants because the sweet peas and jasmine I grew up with in New Zealand are too tender for this climate, but I now have lots of new ideas. I've had to completely learn how to garden again.
Did someone mention Dianthus, the fairly common but much underestimated pink? I don't know what kind mine is, but every April/May for about 6 weeks it smells just heavenly, a not-to-sweet, spicey kind of smell. I pick just a few and they perfume the whole room. I just sit there and inhale.
Hi kiwigal, welcome to DG. I agree, some pinks are fantastic. I have Cheddar pinks which have that spicy-sweet smell and also taste like clove.
I agree with many of the choices, but I grow two indigenous plants that I couldn't live without in the summer on Nantucket. The first is sweet-fern (Comptonia peregrina) which is a lovely sun loving fern like plant that has a delightful scent. I never not walk by it without running my hands through it to release its aroma. I also love on an August night the amazing scent given off by the blooms on the shrub summer sweet (Clethra alnifolia). I grow large masses of both for their scent. Patti
In no particular order, my favorites are
Aweet almond verbena
Gardenia
Michelia Alba
Night blooming jasmine
White butterfly ginger
citrus blossoms
Wow - now I want to plant them all.
My personal favorites are gardenia (mine is currently in it's 3rd wave of flowers), orange jasmine (2nd wave), any citrus, sweetpeas (remind me of my youth), all roses, orchids and hoyas.
Ginger
I got a new one to add, suprised me as i'd never noticed it before as a strong scent but, Jackson vine. I have it all over 3 sides of the house and i couldn't find what that sweet smell was, even thougt pass a long had a scent for a while, just had to look up, lol. Almost overpowering at times, maybe just this year, we'll see.
Jeff
mmmm, my tall pink phlox smells so good right now. And the hummingbirds love it. will plant more. Elaine
What a wonderful thread, thank you all so much for posting all these plant names! I'm a newbie "real" gardener and I have only planted herbs and vegetables (DH thinks organic is soooo expensive).
I am a scent fanatic, but had no idea what to plant; I've not had much luck with flowers in the past. I'm a Florida transplant and the clay here frustrates me at times.
Anything I can start from seed now in my area and get some good smells in the next four months? I have trellised areas on my deck too, so containers are a possibility?
I hate having to work, I'd so rather read these forums all day and work in the yard...LOL!
Have a great day!
-Sunny
I would have to put Trumpet Lilies at the top of my list and Orienpet lilies 2nd. Both of them are so fragrant they overshadow all else -- including star jasmine!
They can both be grown from seed and will bloom in 2 or 2 1/2 years. Or if you just want the basic 4 colors you can buy the trumpet bulbs.
Suzy
Sunny - I totally relate! Having to work is a real bummer!!! ;-D... I do wish I could quit my day job.....LOL
Aaaahhh.... gardenias... they are worse than cats. They say you don't own a cat, the cat owns you - and gardenias are much the same.
This wonderful post was supposed to be about fragrant plants, and it quickly slipped away into the shifting sands of raising gardenias!!!!!!!!!!! I myself am owned by three small gardenia bushes that bloom every now and then. You can't be to fussy about them, because they'll take advantage of you LOL! Moderate indifference seems to do the trick when nothing else does!
With this off my chest, here's my list:
1. Wisteria - definitely. Dreamy scent, subtle and sweet. I don't have one at the moment, but just a wiff brings back tons of fond memories!
2. Freesia - plan to have it next year. Soooo sweet!
3. Gardenias (what else???). It's true, they make me desperate sometimes, but it's worth it! ;-)
4. Jasmine, my never failing friend! Wonderful spring evenings!!
5. My fragrant petunias.... still going strong!
6. Rosemary - wild scent!
There's one I can't stand - nerium oleander, or whatever - the tree with the stinky flowers... While I was pregnant I stayed at an hotel that had an alley of them leading to the beach, all baking in the sun and releasing that aroma... Yuck! My head swayed!
As for the rest, I love them all....
has anyone tried the sweet black eyed susan, Rudbeckia subtomentosa? supposedly the leaves have a nice scent, going to try it anyway but might give it a more important spot if the scent is strong.
MY favorites; Brugmansia, Brugmansia, Brugmansia,... ( you catch my drift!)
My most fragrant by how far away I can smell them:
hyacinths
lilacs
roses- dianthus- lavender 3 way tie
mints - oregano 2 way tie
peppermint-scented pelargonium
But when the mint escapes into the lawn and then gets stepped on or mowed, it becomes #1.
In the process of trying to raise some fragrant indoor plants, right now only have the pel.
I plant for fragrance and butterflies. My garden delights:
Telosma Cordata (vine, tiny yellow bell-like flowers) Fragrance = a mix of violets & roses.
Cananga Odorata (Ylang Ylang tree) source of Chanel #5 perfume.
Hedychium Coronarium (white butterfly ginger)
Osmanthus Fragrans
Plumerias (frangapani)
Violets, Odorata & Parma- old fashioned violets, exquisite fragrance
Freesia's
Brunfelsia's (all exquisite night fragrances: Gigantia, Lactea, Nitida, Americana, Isola, etc)
Cestrum Nocturnum (night fragrance, extremely strong) (night jasmine)
Cestrum Nocturnum (day fragrance of milk chocolate) (day jasmine)
Passifloras: Inspiration, Gabrielianna, Quadrangularis, Alatocerulea, and others
Artabotrys Hexapetalus (Ylang Ylang vine)
Artabotrys Siamensis (Ylang Ylang vine)
Agalaia Odorata
Brugmansia's
Tabernaemontana Holtsii etc. Exquisite fragrance.
Gardenia's (particularly Belmont)
Gardenia Tubifera (Kula) (golden Gardenia) musky fragrance
Gardenia Vietnamensis
Jasmine Sambacs: Grand Duke, Maid of Orleans, Arabian Knights, Mysore Mulli
Nyctanthes Arbor-tristis (Tree of Sorrow)
Portlandia Grandiflora
Corn Plant: the one in every office up north! So strong at night its headachy....Blooms 1/year
Great list! :)
Susan
I just found this thread and it is wonderful!!! thanks for these list so I can add to the fragrance in my house and yard...
My favorite is:
White Ginger, Garland Lily, Butterfly Ginger Hedychium coronarium
smells like gardenias and grows as easily as cannas except for the staking