Gardens are a real sensory experience and one major sense that gardens play on is our sense of smell. Well-picked shrubs such as Lavender ‘Munstead’ and Philadelphus ‘Mantea d’Hermine’ really make an impact and can fill your garden with fragrance and colour throughout the year. Shrubs are a great choice as they last for many years and can provide colour and perfume. If you’re looking for fragrance, these are our best recommendations.
Syringa vulgaris ‘Sensation’
This unusual and modern variety is relatively trouble-free and it’s wonderful blooms make it stand out against the competition. It is a gloriously scented lilac with beautiful magenta and white flowers in late Spring. Its scented flowers are loved by butterflies, making it ideal for a wildlife or cottage garden, with low maintenance. It likes full sun and flowers from May to June.
Abelia mosanensis
The fragrant Abelia is a little-known choice which makes an outstanding compact garden plant. A rounded, deciduous shrub, its dark green leaves turn orange-red in Autumn. In late Spring and early Summer it produces pinkish white flowers. Abelia mosanensis is loved by bees and really easy to grow.
Cytisus battandieri
The silver leaved Pineapple Broom loves a sunny sheltered location and will grow large with age. Its long yellow flowers have a fresh pineapple scent and are produced from June to August. Plant in fertile soil in a sunny location. Ideal for cottage or low maintenance and will also do well in coastal gardens.
Rhododendron luteum
This deciduous Rhododendron, also known as Yellow Azalea, has sweetly fragrant golden yellow flowers in Spring and Summer. In Autumn it’s great value in the garden as it’s leaved turn orange, purple and red. It will grow well in neutral to acidic soil with other shrubs such as Camellias and Pieris. Grow in full sun to partial shade.
Philadelphus ‘Manteau d’Hermine’
Holding an RHS Award of Garden Merit, this deliciously scented shrub produces beautiful double white flowers in summer, making this compact form of Mock Orange a must-have plant. It is ideal for smaller gardens due to its compact form. If you’re looking to attract wildlife to the garden then ‘Manteau d’Hermine’ is a great choice as it is loved by bees and other insect. Its exquisite orange blossom scent makes this a perfect choice.
Lavender ‘Munstead’
Arguably the most popular of all the English lavenders, with strongly scented foliage and flowers. Lavender ‘Munstead’ is a compact variety with profusions of dark purple-blue flowers, attractive to bees. It acts as an excellent choice for path edges where its scent can really be appreciated, but also works well in cottage gardens and looks impressive in containers. It will be happy in full sun.
Viburnum carlesii ‘Aurora’
This beautiful pink blushed semi-evergreen Viburnum is a wonderfully fragrant choice for the back of the shrub border. An award winning shrub, it will produce flowers in April and May and works well in sun or semi shade. Ideal for cottage or woodland style gardens.