Weekly Garden Tip

January 29, 2006

By Gene Joyner, Extension Agent
Palm Beach County Cooperative Extension Service

Many people do not have room for a lot of flowers in the landscape and often where they do put flowers they prefer to have ones which have a nice fragrance. Fortunately we have dozens of fragrant bedding plants and perennial shrubs and your area nursery or garden center should be a quick stop if you’re looking for some to add to your landscape.

Some fragrant plants get bigger than others so if you have a problem with space, you can choose ones that stay small or can be maintained small for a long period of time. Many of the fragrant flowers are well suited for hanging baskets or container plants on a porch or screen room so you don’t even have to plant them out in the ground if you don’t want to.

Some types of fragrant flowers are nice enough to be used for cut bouquets. A good example would be the rose. Roses come in dozens of colors and can be grown either in the ground or as container plants and provide flowers the year round.

Seasonal flowers like gardenias are spring and early summer, but they too are quite attractive plants and do well as container specimens. Many types of jasmine have fragrant flowers and although most are bushes there are some which are vines and can climb up a fence or trellis. Even plants such as orchids have a lot of fragrant varieties and when they’re in bloom you can put them inside the home and let them perfume up the interior.

If you’re looking for fragrant plants, the best way to do it is to go to a nursery or garden center and follow your nose. Once you’ve selected something if it’s a plant that you’re not totally familiar with, ask for the best care instructions from the sales person so when you get it home it will last for a long time.

You can also call the Palm Beach County Extension Service for advice about fragrant and non-fragrant flowers for our area. Dial 233-1750 in the north and central county area or 276-1260 in the south county area.