Cananga [no-]odorata var. fruticosa

Hi gang,

I bought a long-awaited specimen of Cananga odorata var. fruticosa, or Cananga fruticosa, from TopTropicals.

There is virtually no scent whatsoever to these blooms! What gives? Is it a matter of plant maturity?

Thanks,

SB

I wouldn't think so, but I'm not an expert on these, some plants won't bloom until they're more mature, but I think if they're fragrant they're fragrant no matter what. Did you check in the evening? Many fragrant plants are more fragrant in the evenings than during the day. Is this the dwarf version? If it is, I think I might have read somewhere that it wasn't as fragrant as the regular one. But I might be remembering wrong.

You might also ask someone else to try sniffing it for you--there is one particular type of fragrance that some people just cannot smell at all but others can, and although I'm not positive, I think that ylang-ylang fragrance may fall in that category. Could be remembering wrong though, my fragrance training was several years ago!

I actually have what I think is the same plant that I got from Top Trop last year or the year before, but mine's never bloomed (I spend the whole summer trying to get it to not fry up and die in our low humidity, guess it just hasn't had the energy to bloom on top of all that!)

Thanks, ecrane. It is the dwarf version. Mine has grown well from the little stick that it was 4 months ago. It has 3-4 blooms right now. I'll ask someone else to sniff, and I'll try night, morning, evenings, just to be sure.

I'll have to try and remember where I might have seen about the dwarf not smelling as nice, if I do find it I'll post a link for you.

HI,
I had the dwarf ylang-ylang I also got from Top Tropicals I had it for about 3 years. It grew great ,bloomed every year but alas only had a very faint smell. I was hoping for the heavy scent that I had read about so I was a little disappointed. I lost it last year in the unusual freezing weather we had for 2 weeks. I had it in the unheated greenhouse and it still died.
Maybe the trees need to be more mature. I was thinking about trying another one, or what would you suggest I should try with a great scent?
Linda

the drawf has no scent!,well some,but nothing like the reg form.
why not get the reg form?,and just trim it to fit your space?
gary

Hi Guys! Gary and I were just talking about Canangas, Robert! I have both varieties, and you're right, there is little to no scent under most circumstances from the flowers of the dwarf. If I remember correctly, the only time I ever caught a scent from my dwarf is when it was hot and humid at night. Otherwise, the flowers smell musky just like the leaves. I got my Cananga odorata var. fruticosa from Natural Selections. I have the regular one from Top Tropicals, but it hasn't bloomed for me yet so I can't report on the fragrance of that one. I did have a Desmos chinesis, and those flowers had some fragrance, but it died on me one year.

Here is my regular one, which is still rebounding after record cold temps last winter:

Here is my dwarf from last year. It always starts blooming in the fall so getting heat and humidity at night here in the fall is tough. Some years, it has gotten a place in my temporary greenhouse. This picture was taken at the end of October last year. If it happens to be a warm fall, we may have a heat wave or two. I'll let you know if I get anything from the flowers.

Here is a picture of the Desmos chinesis flower. It smelled nice if I remember correctly and bloomed in the greenhouse during winter.

Linda, I highly recommend Michelia x alba for fragrance. It is my favorite flowering tree. That is saying a lot since I also grow plumerias and brugmansias. The fragrance of the flowers is amazing. If I could only have one tree in my yard, that would be it.

I will check it out. I am in zone 9a, do you think it will survive outside here? In a pot? Maybe with winter protection. Like under the patio cover.
Thanks
Linda

Yes, with winter protection like a patio cover, I think it would survive in your zone. It could stay in a pot for several years. Mine is in a 25-gallon container now after nearly five years.

Thanks, Clare.

From the Top Tropicals website:

Robert, yes, you're right -- nonsense. Check out this thread: http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/571357/ "Mikluha" is the owner of Top Tropicals, talking about the dwarf Canangas.

Oh!!well!! I just bought one not knowing that it is not fragrant. M.alba is very fragrant in my book. I do notice that some plants that TT say are fragrant--are NOT to my nose. I will add this plant to that list.

One thing to remember is that TT is in warm, humid Florida--some of these fragrant plants are native to the tropics and tend to be most fragrant on warm humid evenings, which those of us in CA and AZ probably don't have too many of. Even the humidity in the midwest probably doesn't compare to Florida. I wouldn't be surprised if there's a bit of exaggeration going on to help sell plants, but there are climate factors to consider as well.

What a crack up...

Now I want to buy the Michelia x alba but maybe I should wait until spring. We had such as hard winter (for here anyway) . I really want a tree that will make my patio fragrant and inviting.
Thanks for the info.
Linda

ecrane3,
your point is very valid and well taken. The flowers I grew up with India that I know are very fragrant are not as fragrant in AZ due to lack of humidity. I also go to HI very frequently on my trips and have smelled lots of the plants already in humid climate. I notice some disparity when I read about some plants on their site keeping in mind that I do order from their site. But I am discrete about which plants to order.

I always treat anything I buy that's native to a tropical climate as an experiment--some things end up being happy and performing nicely for me here in CA and some don't!

Robert, yes, they don't put that on the web site! LOL! People might not buy one if they knew the flowers only emit if you are in Florida on a warm and humid evening.

Linda, I found mine at a Chinese nursery, and most Chinese nurseries carry them, I think. They are called Pak-lan. I have found that the best time to buy them is when they are on sale during the Chinese New Year. I got mine for around $25 when it was about three feet tall. I have seen them at Green Thumb/Green Arrow Nurseries for around $125. Those were tall ones at around 6 feet from the soil line. It is not a bad idea to wait until spring. Adjusting to a new environment when it starts to get cold outside can be tricky.