February 2013 News from the Nursery

Things are starting to move in the garden now even though the weather has been either really cold or really wet. One of the things that is very pleasant when the garden is too wet to work on is being able to enjoy fragrances. Many of our plants are fragrant and add a little extra to their other attractions of leaf shape colour, flowers and form. Holbellia coriacea is a plant that is highly scented and has good evergreen foliage. Grow in sun for maximum flowering. The Jasmines are very fragrant especially in the evening when they attract moths. The fragrant Jasmines are the Jasmine officinale varieties and also the pink flowering Jasmine x stepanese. For the conservatory or milder gardens Jasminium polyanthum. Many of the Clematis montanas have a lovely scent including Mayleen and Elizabeth. The deciduous honeysuckles (Loniceras) are fragrant, varieties like Lonicera x americana and Lonicera periclymenum Graham Thomas. There are always exceptions to rules and one being Lonicera x brownii Dropmore Scarlet – very lovely bright orangey red flowers, but sadly no scent. Perhaps one to plant further away from the house but with its vivid flowers easily seen. A good fragrant Lonicera that is evergreen is Lonicera similis delavayii – long narrow tubular flowers, white to yellow, and it is a late season flowering summer into autumn.