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What plants do you grow for fragrance in your garden?

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  • March 05, 2012 8:44 PM
    Message # 848842
    SALVIA CLEVELANDII, of course... Is there any scent more 'Californian'?... well, maybe Artemisia californica, but I'm partial to the salvias...
    Last modified: March 05, 2012 8:50 PM | Deleted user
  • March 06, 2012 10:39 AM
    Reply # 849346 on 848842
    Deleted user
    LEMON VERBENA (Aloysia triphylla) - put it near a path where it will brush against clothing for a green lemony smell that's not sweet.
  • March 06, 2012 11:09 AM
    Reply # 849386 on 848842
    Deleted user
    I grow several, but my favorite by far is the intoxicating Aloysia virgata, which I obtained as a cutting from the Huntington's Plant Sale Nursery where I volunteer weekly. The scent from this plant--which becomes very strong on hot days--will make you swoon with pleasure!
  • March 06, 2012 3:05 PM
    Reply # 849579 on 848842
    Deleted user

    Some of my favorites: daffodils, Salvia clevlandii, the fragrant camellias:  

    Orchids (the best rainbow of fragrances anywhere). . .and at certain times,  Beareded Iris.

    Certain mustards along a trail; or california bay's illusive light fragrance when in bloom along the San Gabriel mountains.  Then there's the varying fragrances of citrus.  My nose says Grapefruits have the perfect balance and orange flowers are sweet. 

    The native wild Cucumber flowers at seeming certain times of the day are a surprise. 

    Mix in various earth fragrances. 

    And mints anyone or scented geraniums?

    Confession down and out--well I do like that strange to my nose skunk cabbage.  But the nearby buttercups are sweet.   

    And a short final of night blooming Jasmine--"el huele del Noche" ]The fragrance of he night].  I get a head ache and love it!

    Wos, got my nose "a itchin" to go out and smell.

  • March 06, 2012 3:58 PM
    Reply # 849696 on 848842
    Sticky monkeyflower (Mimulus aurantiacus) foliage has one of the most pleasant scents, and there are many cultivars available (i.e., do well in garden settings).
    Last modified: March 06, 2012 4:02 PM | Anonymous member
  • March 06, 2012 8:00 PM
    Reply # 849887 on 848842
    Deleted user

    You just jogged my memory with the monkey flower.

    There is a native I run across that always grows in the foothills --about 2 feet or less high.  It has what I call lemon/citronella fragrance  --very refreshing to smell when on a long hike or jog.  Fragrance increases during our summer conditions and the leaves develope a slight sticky "residue".

    . . .And then there is the mild fragrance of he Mountain Lilacs up San Gabriel canyon.

  • March 07, 2012 9:21 AM
    Reply # 850452 on 848842

         Orange blossoms to go with the fragrance of Salvia clevelandi. All smell good, but blood oranges have the most attractive foliage, especially in difficult soils. Serving the tasty, bright red juice is a little less creepy if you call them "passion oranges."

         'Lemon Fancy' pelargonium has great fragrance without the "sudden death" problems of some other lemon scenteds. It even survived repeated trampling in my parking strip. (Resprouts from the crown.)

         Stephanotis floribunda.

  • March 08, 2012 7:57 AM
    Reply # 851680 on 848842
    Ahh the citrus. My Meyer's lemon seems to be in panic mode (it has these attacks now and again) and is covered with flowers that are wonderfully, potently fragrant. Other olfactory wonders.... (not citrus but an incredible simulation) Tagetes lemmonii and lemon-scented geranium. White sage, irises, and a fabulous low-growing, peppermint-scented geranium with huge fuzzy leaves that I am propagating from a cutting because I fell in love with it at the Zoo. I am partial to all scented geraniums, but the big velvety leaves on this one are also a tactile delight. Rosemary, mint, and I sneak snorts of a neighbor's Brugmansia (angel's trumpet). Also, though it hasn't bloomed in some time, my string of pearls (Senecio rowleyanus) once made amazing cinnamon-scented flowers...

    Why do some plants mimic the scents of other plants? Is it coincidence or a deliberate strategy to repel pests or attract pollinators?
  • March 08, 2012 8:02 AM
    Reply # 851684 on 848842
    Anonymous member (Administrator)
    I love the plant my great aunt grew in Santa Barbara - I just called it "smelly tree" when I was little.  Later, I realized it was Sweet Olive (Osmanthus fragrans). I think it smells like apricot jam.

    I also fondly remember warm spring evenings cruising down the 101 freeway in Santa Barbara with the smell of flowering Victorian Box (Pittosporum undulatum) wafting in the window.

    I don't really want to grow a Victorian Box in my yard (too messy), but would be happy if my neighbors got one.  I definitely need to get a smelly tree, though.
  • March 13, 2012 4:34 PM
    Reply # 857909 on 848842
    Boronia megastimga
    Michelia figo
    Osmanthus fragrans, especially the aurantiacus form, smells like apricot jello

    All are in bloom (and fragrance) right now! The wafting perfume of the boronia near my front door greeted me when I arrived home last night.

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