Fragrant Plants in the Winter Garden

As a child I was drawn to the sweet scent of my mother's lilac bush. Each day I would pick flowers and bring the fragrant bouquets into the house so that every room had the unmistakable fragrance of lilacs. I had forgotten the joy of sweet scents until many years later when I was visiting a local nursery and caught the scent of something intoxicating. I meandered through the nursery following the scent, suddenly there it was - standing only knee high - a winter daphne (Daphne odora). This plant was destined to become one of my all-time favorites, and quickly found a home in my garden.

After that experience, I started to intentionally design fragrance into every corner of my garden. I carefully place fragrant plants near entrances, along pathways, close to windows, and around patios. Careful placement and careful plant selection will guarantee fragrance in just about every season. The focus of this article is fragrant plants for the winter garden!

The wonderful scents in my winter garden begin with Sarcococca, an evergreen shrub. The small inconspicious white flowers contribute to the allure of this plant. I often walk past my sarcococca, only to catch the scent after I passed. Then of course, I immediately turn around for more. Sarcococca thrives in partial shade to deep shade. They also grow well in dry shade - found under cedar, Doug fir, and hemlock trees. Good companion plants for shade-loving sarcococca are tassel fern, tall bleeding heart, and anemone blanda bulbs.

Chinese witch hazel (Hamamelis mollis) is another sweet-scented shrub for the winter garden. It is a slow growing deciduous shrub that will eventually grow 10 to 12 feet tall. The flowers are unusual and typically yellow in color. They will persist in the worst winter weather including frost and snow, surviving both intact. Chinese witch hazel will begin to bloom in early to mid-February and continue till March. Chinese witch hazel flowers best in full sun, but grows well in light or dappled shade.

Another winter surprise is the evergreen clematis (Clematis armandii). The large white flowers will begin to appear in January or February. The scent is abundant and heady. The buds on my evergreen clematis are swollen and look ready to burst open any day. Evergreen clematis grows in full sun, but I have found it does just fine in light shade. It has large glossy evergreen leaves that are thick and leathery - one of the few clematis with evergreen leaves. One of the easiest clematis to grow, it is a great choice for a vertical screen on a trellis or arbor.

Combine these great features and the evergreen clematis is a 'must have' plant for any garden.

Consider 'Pink Dawn' viburnum (Viburnum bodnantense) for the winter garden. It is a vigorous and hardy deciduous shrub that grows 6-8 feet tall and wide. The deep pink buds open to light pink flowers that add a rich fragrance in the garden. The flowers of 'Pink Dawn' may look delicate but they are impervious to both frost and cold winter temperatures. It grows best in full sun.

Attaining the status as one of my top ten all-time favorite plants is the winter daphne 'Aureo-marginata' It is a handsome evergreen shrub that grows only 4-5 feet tall and has variegated leaves. It grows in sun, but prefers light or dappled shade. It also favors a consistently moist soil. The heady and strong fragrance is just about unbeatable, and on a warm day the sweet scent drifts great distances from the plant. The winter daphne in my garden has flower buds that look ready to break open on the next warm day. It will begin to bloom in January or February and continue until March or April.

Daphne as a group has a 'bad reputation' of sorts - as difficult to grow. Some say daphne are fussy about soil and prone to sudden death without any logical explanation. The secret to successfully growing daphne is not to disturb the roots while planting. It is a common practice to break apart root balls when planting shrubs, but this is fatal to daphnes. Carefully remove the plant from its container and just as carefully place it into the planting holes so you do not disturb the roots. Daphne also requires good drainage. So if you have clay soil avoid daphne. However, winter daphne is perhaps the easiest daphne to grow, so don't let their 'bad reputation' scare you away from planting one.

A careful landscape design will guarantee the sweet scent of fragrant plants as you enter the house, relax on the patio, or meander through the garden. Winter blooming plants not only adds color and fragrance, but they remind us of all the beautiful flowers that are yet to come in spring and summer!

Author Mary Jo Buza is a landscape designer and owner of Gardens by Design. She has 25 years experience maintaining, designing, and teaching gardening in the South Sound region. For more information on a custom landscape design or consultation call 360-923-1733.