If you’ve been gardening for the past few years or even just the past few months, chances are, you’ve already started to get a feel for what plants work and what plants are better to skip. No home garden routine or plants will be a one-size-fits-all situation. What thrives in your garden will be dependent on temperatures, humidity levels, dryness, and, of course, what types of animals find their way into your vegetable patches.
But once you get the hang of it, you realize that having a home garden isn’t really the difficult undertaking it seems to be before you start one. And now that you’re just a little more familiar with your garden, it might be time to up the ante on what you’re planting by paying attention to more than just how things look. One idea? Choose a few plants based on how they smell and get a full multisensory experience from your space. To find out which plants help your yard smell amazing, I tapped a few master gardeners to share their picks.
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Peonies
First, it’s important to note that it’s usually the plant’s flowers that help them smell great, explains master gardener Erin Kinley, who’s also the state master gardener coordinator at Penn State Extension. That means you should consider bloom time when you plan — especially for peonies, whose big flowers (ranging from white to pink to red) have a sweet floral scent.
“I love the smell of peonies, but they are only in bloom for a couple of weeks, and then are scentless the other 49 weeks out of the year,” Kinley says. In other words, if you want a fragrant garden for the whole growing season, it’s best to diversify your plantings — but peonies are a great pick for giant, showy blooms that you’ll be able to smell for a couple weeks in late spring.
BUY: Pink Peonies, $27
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Sweet Basil
To solve the problem Kinley described about flowering plants that rarely bloom, she loves planting herbs for strong scents all year round. “For scent in my landscape and containers, sweet basil in the summer is my absolute favorite,” she says. “I love to put it in pots all over my patio.” Not only is planting basil great for the smell, but it’s also edible, so this plant can serve multiple purposes.
Different varieties of basil will have slightly different scents, from sweet to more peppery, so this is a plant that’s worth experimenting with.
BUY: Sweet Basil, $19
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Lavender
The small purple flowers of lavender make for a popular aromatherapy scent that seems super fancy, but it’s totally doable to grow this fragrant shrub in your own yard.
“For year-round scent, it’s hard to beat lavender,” Kinley says. “In most U.S. hardiness zones, the branches will stay alive (but dormant) throughout the winter, which also adds interest to bleak December landscapes.”
Enjoy the scent where the plants are, or snip off some stems to dry and display indoors.
BUY: Lavender Plants, $20
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Lilac
“I may not remember exactly what the planted beds around my house growing up looked like, but I sure can remember what they smelled like,” says Jon VanZile, master gardener and author of The Flower Garden Deck. “Now gardening for myself, I like to keep this powerful memory in mind and include a few of my favorite flowers that will bring guaranteed scent to the gardens.”
One such flower is the lilac. “Lilac has a delicate but unmistakable scent that signals the impending arrival of summer,” VanZile says. “These plants grow as shrubs or small bushes, and they only bloom from old wood, so you should trim your lilac in the spring or early summer immediately after the bloom is finished.”
As you prune, he suggests cutting out dead wood, suckers, and older canes to encourage new growth. “In general, lilacs prefer a neutral, well-draining soil, and they only need to be fertilized lightly in the early spring,” he adds.
BUY: Lilac shrub, $19
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Jasmine
Although VanZile notes that when up close, jasmine plants that are flowering can smell overpowering. They can help your overall garden smell more fragrant.
“These hardy plants are known for their intense citrusy and sweet fragrance and their masses of small white flowers,” he says. “When it comes to planting, there are many types of jasmine, including shrub and vine types, so pick one that is suited to your growing conditions. In general, jasmine [plants] like full sun, a well-draining soil with plenty of organic material, and a slightly acidic pH.”
BUY: Jasmine plant, $24
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