While it’s wonderful to see the colors of springtime, it’s even better when there is fragrance. From crabapples to lily of the valley and all that grows between, there are scented plants that can make the springtime garden even more enjoyable.
Here is a baker’s dozen plants that are easy to add to your garden’s springtime inventory:
1. Geraniums, or more accurately, Pelargoniums, all have scented leaves. But there is a class that has been bred to have fragrance reminiscent of apple, mint, rose, and even nutmeg. Most are grown for their leaves, their flowers, though pretty, are on the small and skimpy side. According to Faye Brawner in Geraniums: The Complete Encyclopedia, the degree of scent varies among the scented leaf plants. The fragrance comes from small scent glands secreted on the leaf. When the leaf is brushed or rubbed it emits the scent, which varies in strength depending on the time of day and the air temperature. Fragrance will be more evident when it is warm. Brawner recommends buying scented leaf Pelargoniums only after giving them the “sniff test,” as the degree of aroma varies even among the same named varieties.
2. Bay is used in cooking, and is great in hearty, long-cooking dishes. Laurus nobilis, the bay’s botanical name, is an extremely slow grower, that can be grown outdoors in a pot in a semi-shaded location. The plant is native to the Mediterranean, and resents humidity. In its natural habitat, it can grow up to 60 feet tall, but for gardens, it can be pruned, which is a great way to harvest leaves that can be dried and stored for cooking for up to a year. In ancient Greece, bay leaves were woven into wreaths to crown the victors of various contests.
3. Peonies are not all fragrant, and those that are fragrant don’t all have a good scent. The aroma can range from rose-like to bitter and medicinal. Although some people complain about their flowers’ short lifespan, peonies require little care beyond sunshine, space and clean-up down to soil level in the fall for the herbaceous varieties. Some of the most fragrant I’ve experienced include ‘White Cap’, ‘Chestine Gowdy’, ‘Big Ben’, and ‘Duchess de Nemours’.
4. Fringe tree is an apt name for Chionanthus virginicus, a native shrub or small tree with fragrant flowers that dangle like delicate white icicles from the shrub’s branches. This easy to grow native can be pruned, but only within a couple of weeks after it is finished blooming, as its flowers form on stems grown that same year for the next spring. Fringe tree is hardy to Zone 4, and will bloom in part shade.
5. Witch hazel isn’t a showy plant. In fact, one of its best features—its fresh, spicy scent—comes when you least expect it. Hamamelis vernalis, is native to the south-central portions of the U.S., and one of the best reasons for gardeners to get outdoors in February. That’s when it starts to flower, and can continue through April if the weather remains cold. Its blossoms are inconspicuous at first, lining up like closed up little claws along the stems. The gold flowers elongate as they mature, all the while holding onto their wonderful scent. As a bonus, the leaves turn golden yellow in fall.
