Fragrance for the Garden

Below is a list of classic & under-acknowledged fragrant plants for your landscape. They vary in mature size, color, fragrance intensity and desired environment. Click "Read More" to find our list

While these are plants that Colesville Nursery typically keeps in stock, please always call: 804.798.5472 or check our current inventory PDF file on our website to see if they are in stock. Inventory can change rapidly due to the seasons.

Please note that everything listed is just a general genus, the specific species available will vary with current inventory.

• Native Deciduous Azaleas - Our Natives (listed with an N in the inventory) are quite fragrant when planted in groups of 3 or more
• Bulbs - Many bulbs are fragrant: Muscari, Hyacinth, Narcissus & Tulips, the effects of which are noticed best in mass plantings
• Calamintha - resembling Mint in both foliage & fragrance, this perennial can provide a fresh herb scent with just one planting
• Calycanthus floridus - Merlot flowers on bright green foliage, this Native provides a beautiful scent with just one plant
• Cephalanthus - What an underused/under-acknowledged Native! This fragrant beauty will bring you joy with it's fuzzy white blooms
• Clethera - From vanilla to licorice, this Native will provide sweet fragrance in large or small plantings
• Daphne - resembles the fragrance of a gardenia, but will provide it in the cold seasons
• Dianthus - practically evergreen groundcover typ foliage, with small colorful blooms, when planted in mass these will provide scent from Spring till Fall
• Echinacea - Very sturdy, long blooming perennial, when used in large plantings they will provide a light perfume for the landscape
• Edgeworthia - very interesting fuzzy blooms & bark, provide a winter scented flower for your garden
• Eleagnus - strongly reccomended for creating large borders or in planters, these aggressive shrubs will provide evergreen foliage & great fragrance with just one plant
• Gardenia - probably the most common of the fragrant shrubs, while it is a Southern Classic in VA it can have mixed success results, requires protection from cold weather & is not known to be pest or disease resistant
• Gelsemium - Not to be confused with true Jasmine, this fragrant vine emits a similar aroma and is also a wonderful evergreen vine
• Geraniums - looking for a light scent in a pot? Perennial Geraniums are known to provide a light scent however they are low-lying, we reccomend a planter put on a ledge or table top to experience them
• Hamamelis - any witch hazel will provide a plethera of fragrant blooms from fall through winter
• Herbs - Herbs of any kind will provide a sweet to spicy fragrance, best experienced in large plantings in the summer
• Illicium 'Florida Sunshine' - provides a licorice scented leaf! Bright in color, best suited for shade, this interesting addition to you garden is bound to entice any visitor
• Iris - be careful! While there are some very fragrant varieties, there are many that are scentless
• Itea - also known as sweetspire, this VA Native provides long bright white fragrant blooms, sure to please
• Jasminum nudiflorum - also known as 'Winter Jasmine,' this white blooming vine offers a classic aroma during the colder seasons
• Kalmia latifolia - is an exotic looking VA Native, found often high in our mountains, this evergreen is both deer resistant & fragrant
• Ligustrum - fast growing evergreen shrubs with large white blooms provide fragrance for you & berries for your birds
• Liriodendron (Tulip Poplar) - totally under-acknowledged for their very interesting yellow & orange fragrant blooms, this VA native is also the most common tree found in VA forests
• Lonicera - another classic fragrant vine, perfect for small spaces, trellises, lamposts and mailboxes
• Magnolia - species vary in fragrance intensity but the flowers never disappoint
• Malus - beautiful structure bark and fragrance, these VA Natives are also a favorite for birds! Because they are prolific in fruiting these are not reccomended for those with strict HOA rules for fruiting plants
• Monarda - crushed leaves of ALL species exude a spicy fragrant essential oil
• Nepeta - any and all varieties posess wonderfully fragrant foliage from spring till fall
• Paeonia - Peonies are another classic fragrance queen, the more open the flower cup the better reception of fragrance & pollinator access
• Passiflora - Passion Flowers are quite a gamble for fragrance when it comes to specific varieties, do your research! Some have fragrant blooms, some have fragrant foliage while others can emit an unpleasant odor
• Perovskia - Sage is a classic and hardy perennial herb with very fragrant packed foliage, great for smudge sticks!
• Philadelphus - a great Native with wonderful fragrance
• Pieris - a wonderful evergreen understory place, which also produces a wonderful fragrance, not known for being very hady in VA
• Prunus (all varieties) - known for their brief & early bloom times, these showy trees emit a light almond scent
• Roses - Almost all garden varieties of roses (excluding landscape roses like Knockout or Drift Roses) are known for their long lasting fragrance, offering a myriad of different smells these fragrance champions are a must for any fragrance lover
• Salvia - while the flowers do not offer much, their foliage is very herbaceous
• Sarcaccoca - also known as "Sweetbox" this slow growing ever green provides a wonderfully light scent throughout the landscape, best experienced in plantings of 3 or more
• Syringa - Lilacs will always be a great hardy classic for the VA area, not originally Native but considered as a great naturalized plant that is non-agressive & offers quite a lot to our native critters
• Trachelospermum Jasminoides - True Jasmine has been used for thousands of years for perfumes, a wonderfully hardy vine here in VA this is a must have for any fragrance lover looking for a classic aroma