Jackie Bantle
Saskatchewan Perennial Society
One thing about being in a garden is that it is always changing. Early in spring, plants bud out, early spring flowers emerge and the leaves follow next. During the summer different plants are flowering at various times, fruit is produced and finally the leaves start to turn colour. The garden is a delight for the eyes. But how does one make a garden a delight for the nose? By selecting plants for their different fragrances, a garden can be a bouquet of smells throughout the season.
One of the first fragrances that I look forward to in spring is the fresh scent of the balsam poplar tree buds (Populus balsamifera). The balsamifera in the latin name refers to the sweet smelling resin given off by the buds in spring and the leaves when they are crushed. Although balsam poplars are not recommended for urban plantings in small yards, perhaps you can start off your fragrant garden season with a walk through an urban forest or a poplar forest near your favorite lake.
One of the earliest garden plants to produce fragrance are lilacs. Lilac flowers are a sure sign that the growing season is here. Every lilac has a varying degree of intensity but my favorite is still the common purple flowering lilac found in so many traditional Prairie yards. Other shrubs to consider growing in your yard for their fragrance include the mockorange, golden spice currant and various roses. Mockorange (Philadelphus coronarius) is a shrub 1.5-2m tall with white flowers that bloom in mid-late June. The prolific, fragrant blooms make this a shrub to grow next to a deck or sitting area of the yard.
There are very few plants that can garner the scented attention of someone like a rose. Not every rose is fragrant; be sure to check with your local garden centre to select one that is hardy and fragrant for your region. Rosa rugosa is a very hardy rose with a simple flower but excellent scent. ‘Henry Hudson’ is a white rugosa rose blend that starts to bloom in early summer. ‘Thérèse Bugnet’ is a multi-petalled light pink rose with a spicy fragrance that varies from mild to very strong. Both of these named cultivars are recommended for their summer fragrance.
Another shrub worth mentioning for its spectacular early summer fragrance is the Golden currant (Ribes aureum), sometime called the Spice currant. This 1.5m tall shrub has attractive tri-lobed leaves and produces lovely tubular yellow flowers in early summer. The blossoms have an intense clove-like/vanilla fragrance. Pollinated flowers produce berries that range in colour from yellow to red to black.
A mid-sized tree perfect for urban yards and recommended for its outstanding, eye-catching, early-summer blossoms with a pleasant fragrance is the Ivory Silk Tree Lilac (Syringa reticulata). The panicles of tiny white flowers in late spring/early summer attract hummingbirds, bees and butterflies. A larger tree recommended for the urban yard is the linden tree. The small and somewhat inconspicuous mid-summer blossoms of the linden tree (Tilia cordata) provide an enchanting aroma that will have you searching for the source. The stately linden tree is not only an excellent, well-behaved specimen for an urban yard but the flowers provide a surprisingly intense fragrance for their small size.
Besides trees and shrubs, there are several perennials that should be included in the landscape if you are trying to provide a fragrant garden. Bearded iris and peonies are early bloomers. The intensity of the fragrance will depend on the cultivar. ‘Dr. Alexander Fleming’ and ‘Sarah Bernhardt’ are two peonies that are recommended for their pleasant fragrances. Both types have light pink inflorescences. The Stargazer oriental lily is one of the more fragrant lilies available to Prairie gardeners, however, their hardiness can be temperamental in the Prairie region. ‘Flame Pink’ phlox, dianthus (also sometimes referred to as ‘Pinks’), Bee Balm and thyme are all perennials that will grow in the Prairie garden and provide lovely fragrances when they are blooming.
Of course, growing herbs in the garden is a way to ensure that there will be all sorts of lovely scents available for garden visitors to enjoy. Various types of mint are perennial and provide a wide range of aromas. Other herbs, like basil, eucalyptus, oregano, marjoram, sage, lemon balm, lavendar and summer savory are all annual plants in the Prairie garden: they do not overwinter. For best success, start these herbs indoors at least 8 weeks prior to planting out in spring. Starting annual herbs from seed directly in the garden is not only difficult but many of these tiny herb seeds need special care to germinate.
If you like to include annual flowers in your garden, try growing sweet alyssum, garden phlox, nicotiana, sweet peas, ‘Evening Scentsation’ petunia (or other older petunia types, four-o-clocks and Moon flower for some additional fragrances. The moon flower opens in the evening, providing a lovely evening fragrance for relaxing in the garden.
A garden without fragrance is incomplete. Even if you only provide a small pot of mint near your back door or a pine tree in the back yard, you will appreciate the different aromas that evolve from your plants. Start small and soon, you will have a wide array of scents and wonder how you could garden without them in the past.
This column is provided courtesy of the Saskatchewan Perennial Society (SPS; saskperennial@hotmail.com). Check our website (www.saskperennial.ca) or Facebook page (www.facebook.com/saskperennial) for a list of upcoming gardening events.
