Planning a Fragrant Garden: Scent, Placement & Plant Selection

Fragrance evokes memory like no other sense. Brush a tomato plant—suddenly you're 7, gardening with dad. Catch sycamore spice—reliving college kisses under commons trees.

How to Select Fragrant Plants

Even unpleasant scents serve purposes: bad-smelling plants often inedible/poisonous; odors deter people, birds, insects. Add pleasurable dimension with appealingly fragrant plants—but not every "aromatic" plant delivers.

Rose scent is fickle: 'Mister Lincoln' legendary; others lightly scented; some no bouquet at all. Peonies not famous for fragrance, but a small stand fills a garden corner.

Careful—wrong choice disgusts. Koreanspice viburnum (Viburnum carlesii) smells spectacular; other viburnums make you wish you hadn't inhaled. Carolina allspice (Calycanthus floridus) from cuttings = nice spicy aroma; from seed = vinegar smell.

With fragrant flowers, appearances deceive. Hybridizing often sacrifices fragrance for looks. Most scent-laden species are humble: small white/cream flowers, scraggly habit—sweet Annie (Artemisia annua), sweet olive (Osmanthus fragrans), mignonette (Reseda odorata). But a few are spectacular: 'Star Gazer' Oriental lily draws people with beauty, then hits with heady fragrance—a true double whammy.

Positioning Fragrant Plants

Maximize fragrance with thoughtful placement:

• Near a sitting area. Scents detected better when sitting still. Pots on decks, porches, patios. Vines on porch pillars/trellises near favorite chair.
• Beside an entry. Welcome with fragrance: lilacs, fragrant roses, Oriental lilies, hyacinths, Daphne, jasmines, sweet autumn clematis.
• Around your nose. Window boxes, tall planters, raised beds, pots on tables/steps/stands.
• Outside a window. Strong scents wafting indoors—especially bedroom windows: Koreanspice viburnum, sweet olive, Oriental lilies, lilacs, Daphne, jasmines, gardenias.
• In a mass. One lily-of-the-valley barely noticeable; a dozen stops passersby.
• Underfoot. Low herbs (thyme, mint) among flagstones release aroma when stepped on.

How to Smell a Flower

If you've walked by a fragrant flower and smelled nothing, you probably weren't doing it right. Here's how:

• Bend down. Some flowers (stock, sweet violets, daffodils, daylilies) hold scents close. Get close, sniff.
• Choose right weather. Warm, sunny days best.
• Get a night life. Some flowers fragrant only at dusk: Nicotiana, night-blooming jessamine (Cestrum nocturnum), brugmansia, night-scented stock (Matthiola bicornis), evening primrose (Oenothera biennis).
• Touch base. Some need help releasing fragrance: scented geraniums, herbs (mint, rosemary, thyme, lemon verbena, lavender). Rub leaves gently or pluck stem to nose.

Fragrance in Pots

Pots put fragrance by your nose—inexpensive, changeable with seasons. Ideas:

• Plant fragrant spring bulbs in pots outdoors (Zones 7+): hyacinths, fragrant daffodils (paperwhites).
• Buy fragrant potted plants in late winter for indoor enjoyment (month or two): gardenias, jasmines, heliotrope, orchids. Move outdoors after frost.
• If missed planting spring bulbs, plant purchased forced bulbs outdoors. Try hyacinths—sink in soil in original pots, replace with other flowers when they fade.

Dos and Don'ts of Fragrant Plants in the House

Like perfume, a few guidelines for fragrant plants indoors:

• Do small vases in sitting areas: sweet peas on bedside, lavender beside recliner.
• Do tuck in closets/drawers: wrap stems in white tissue/cloth. Pine, cedar, juniper, lavender, roses, lemon balm, lemon verbena freshen clothes.
• Do have a blast in the bath: herbs/petals in tub. Lavender, mint, sweet violets, roses.
• Do seek fragrant houseplants: winter-blooming orchids, winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum). Spring forced bulbs: paperwhites, Easter lilies (Lilium longiflorum), hyacinths.
• Don't use highly fragrant flowers at dining table—smell/taste interconnected; 'Casa Blanca' lilies make spaghetti sickly sweet.

Fragrance in Pots (Repeated Section)

Pots get fragrance where you want it—by your nose. Inexpensive, seasonal. Ideas:

• Plant fragrant spring bulbs in pots outdoors (Zones 7+): hyacinths, fragrant daffodils (paperwhites).
• Buy fragrant potted plants in late winter for indoor enjoyment: gardenias, jasmines, heliotrope, orchids. Move outdoors after frost.
• If missed spring bulbs, plant purchased forced bulbs outdoors. Try hyacinths—sink in soil in original pots, replace when faded.

Add Fragrant Flowers to Your Garden