A thousand scents in the garden: discover the plants with the most irresistible fragrances for your green corner
If in every garden it is indisputable that the eye wants to be delighted, we do not so readily realize how pleasant it can also be to have plants that know how to make the garden heavenly with their heady scents. In nature, there are many varieties that produce very fragrant flowers (sometimes even scented leaves), and often you do not have to go looking for specialized, rare species.
And so, trees, shrubs and hedges can become not only decorative elements which give shape to your green corner, but also delight us in spring and summer evenings with the various scents they give off and are carried by the breeze.
Honeysuckle (Lonicera caprifolium)
If you happen to walk in the countryside you see honeysuckles in bloom in spring or early summer: the wild ones have creamy-white flowers, and have an intoxicating scent. They are very robust and fast growing climbers, but in reality, they are easy to manage. For this reason, even species hybridized to obtain flowers of various shapes and colors are an excellent choice for covering fencing: maintenance is less tiring than that of classic hedges.
Viburnum (Viburnum Dentatum)
Viburnum is a beautiful, evergreen-leaved shrub whose flowers last a very long time on the plant. They are white or pink and pleasantly scented, and attract butterflies and bees! Under favorable conditions it can reach 4 meters in height in a couple of years and is often used as a beautiful alternative to the more common hedging plants.
Magnolia Grandiflora (Southern Magnolia)
If you are looking for a fragrant tree, the magnolia might be for you. The most common and fragrant is M. grandiflora, which produces large green, glossy and waxed leaves and splendid giant flowers with fleshy petals. The tree reaches considerable size and above all, it is an evergreen: on the one hand it means that its spectacular foliage decorates the garden with timeless elegance all year round; on the other hand you will always have a certain amount of leaves on the ground to clean up, which is why which is often preferred to grow on lawns where the dropped leaves can be less "annoying" to see.
Gardenia (gardenia jasminoides)
With its milky white flowers that are somewhat reminiscent of roses, the gardenia is a decidedly elegant plant. Growing this plant requires a bit of patience and a lot of attention: put them in places where they will get a lot of natural light, but not in direct sunlight during the hottest hours, and make sure that the soil remains very slightly humid. Be careful not to overdo it with watering, or the roots will rot. They have a slow growth and form a compact bush. In winter, they should be protected or sheltered in very cold countries
Philadelphus or "mock orange" (Philadelphus)
An overlooked, but extremely robust and long-lasting plant, the philadelphus is actually quite widespread - so much so that it has several common names such as "flower of Paradise", "zufoli plant" or "syringa". As always, the name actually identifies a group of plants with different characteristics depending on the species, but basically they are all shrubs that reach 2 or 4 meters in height depending on the species. It also grows in filtered sunlight but flowering is abundant if the plant is touched for several hours a day by sunlight. In spring, it is covered with double white flowers that give off a very sweet scent.
What are your favorite scented plants?
