Almond bush

Murraya, hedychium, freesia, honeysuckles, heliotropes, gardenia, certain roses, Zygopetalum

Absolute must have is tea olive (osmanthus), brunfelsia gigantea, brugmansia, sunsprite rose, night blooming jasmine....some will permeate to the neighbor's yard and others down the block...

Tom, this is exactly what I've been looking for, thank you!

You're welcome, Andrew. Do you have any ideas yet?

I do have a few ideas in mind. The butterfly ginger (Hedychium coronarium) is a must- I pass a house with some when I walk my dog and I love the honeysuckle smell. I wasn't sure if it was a nighttime only scent or also had a scent during the day, so thanks for the info about that.

I'm trying to avoid gardenias because I've never heard anybody who could keep them healthy looking, and I've killed several hundred dollars worth of them in my time. I'm looking for easy plants, which is why I'm reconsidering the sweet olive (Osmanthus), and one nursery told me they could be finicky as to their location.

I've also been trying to avoid plants that are not necessarily zone 9 hardy, since that requires potted plants, and potted plants don't do well in Houston summers unless you water almost daily (something I can never manage to do). So things like the jasminum sambac are probably out.

I already have some confederate jasmine, and have additional fenceline for some rangoon creeper. I love the color of this vine, though the ones I've seen had no smell during the day. I read somewhere that double rangoon creepers do have some daytime scent, but I do not know if that's true.

I am also planning on adding an angel's trumpet (Brugmansia), though I'm picky on the fragrance of these plants. My wife doesn't really dig the "baby powder" smell that most of them have. I know some have other scents, like citrus. Do you know if the Charles Grimaldi or Dr Seus are primary baby powder scents?

I'm also planning on having a night blooming jasmine nearby the back door to the house. Its not as tropical looking as I'd like but I've heard that this is the plant to go for if you want a strong fragrance. Can you tell me, is this a standard jasmine/gardenia type fragrance? On one online post someone mentioned it smelled like wet hay to them . . .

So what do you use in florida if you are wanting a daytime summer scent? I have a pool and will be in the backyard at that time a lot . . .

In my experience, day time scent in summer is pretty sparse. At least where I am in the Tampa Bay area, not much survives and thrives in an INTENSE Florida summer. You may have luck with some roses during the day, or Aimee Yashioka Gardenias which tend to flower throughout the summer as opposed to just one big spring flush. My summer smells are mostly night oriented: Night Blooming Jasmine, Brugs, Brunfelsia, the standards we already know about. There are some amazingly scented purple petunias that start to smell in the afternoons. Sometimes the big box stores will have that certain variety and you would only know by being there in late afternoons, or buy heirlooms seeds. I know the Osmanthus is triggered by shortened days so that will bloom Oct. thru Mar. usually and like the NBJ bush...is not the prettiest. I also would love to hear of those that experience a non baby powder scent from Brugs. I guess I would say certain roses, dianthus, gardenia Aimee, four-o-clocks, heliotrope, plumeria, sweet almond, would have to be my picks for summer day fragrance.

Just from other posts online I have heard that some brugmansias have scents of cherry (xena, bonnie jean), various levels of musk to go along with the baby powder smell (amber rose, maya, butterfly, etc), bubble gum (Sam), lemon (Miss Scarlett, Supernova,New Orleans lady), and other citrus scents (charles grimaldi, autumn, eternity, etc). I'm sure in many cases there is still a definite baby powder base note to many of these varieties- this is not first hand knowledge. In several places the New Orleans Lady was said to distinctly smell like lemon cookies, which sounds awesome to me.

Andrew, I have a NOID yellow angel trumpet, and it smells only of citrus, no baby powder. I do not grow Charles or Dr. Seuss, but I am pretty sure they do not have any baby powder scent, only strongly of citrus, but I could be wrong. These are the two favorite brugs for scent for most people. The pink brugs tend to have the baby powder scent. I also have a Sweetheart (off-white) brug that never really grew very well but the scent is that of a white floral perfume, although not strong.

I have read the scent description of New Orleans Lady and I have read from a fellow scent hound that grew both NOL and Charles Grimaldi that they preferred the scent of Charles Grimaldi. I have also heard a few times that Maya is one of the most strongly scented brugs. A brugmansia nursery owner I asked personally said Maya really knocked his socks off compared to his other brugs.

I can understand the scent description for night blooming jasmine. Sometimes that hay undertone is there, sometimes it is not. It does not smell like gardenia or jasmine at all. I would describe it as smelling like a pot of boiling honey, sticky and sweet. It also reminds me of grape gum or kool-aid. Some people are repulsed by it but I know many that love it. If trimmed well, it will grow very densely and makes a nice hedge. It can get scraggly if left to its own devices. It blends in well with the other tropical foliage in my yard.

Gardenias have always been a maintenance free plant for me. I don't think I could kill one if I tried. If you do not want to grow G. jasminoides there are others. Supposedly, Vietnamese Gardenia is easier to grow, is close to everblooming, and can survive zone 9 winters. I have not grown it so I cannot confirm this.

The best daytime scents for me in Florida are my Rangoon creeper, my rose garden, and my gardenia when it does bloom. There is an orange grove across the lake and it smells like heaven in the spring. Very strong. My Rangoon creeper is the single kind and it smells great during the day. I hate to break it to you but your criteria are pretty hard to fill. Extremely day fragrant, tropical plants that will survive zone 9 winters leaves you few choices.

Jasminum sambac survives well in the ground for me here. I live in zone 9 central Florida. There are other types of jasmine that will survive to zone 7 or 8 but you may dislike that they do not look too tropical. I believe there are other jasmine that will survive zone 9 such as Jasminum tortuosum which has more tropical foliage. I think you may just have to do some experimenting and see what will survive for you. Winter protection such as string lights and sheets or freeze cloth may be necessary for the kind of plants you want.

Other plants I would recommend would be:

Aloysia virgata (Almond bush): it grows large and the foliage does not look very tropical but it will survive zone 8 winters and many love its sweet almond scent that wafts very well. With time, this becomes a very large bush.

Murraya paniculata: it will survive zone 9 winters and has a very nice, strong scent. It blooms regularly. It is a rather inconspicuous looking plant but it fits all of your criteria. You could plant multiples for more scent and shape it into a nice hedge as it does this very well. Supposedly it carries a disease that can kill citrus plants and has been banned in Florida although I have seen some older specimens that were planted before that happened that are still around.

Aglaia odorata (Chinese perfume plant): may survive zone 9 winters with some leaf damage but should bounce back according to what I read. Has a far reaching lemony scent that is elusive when close to the bush. Very interesting plant that seems to be on everyone's want list.

Michelia figo (Banana shrub) : a type of subtropical magnolia with banana scented flowers that blooms in the spring. I've heard the scent described from soft to strong and wafting. It does not grow nearly as large as other magnolias so it may be a good choice for you. It grows well in the south and is hardy to zone 8.

Clerodendrum phillipinum (Cashmere Bouquet): Very strongly scented, if not invasive bush. This is hardy to zone 9 and will bounce back after a freeze. However, it spreads via underground runners and will probably try to take over your yard. Your winters may keep it in check. Blooms very frequently. Pull up runner plants when they are young. I hear rave reviews about the fragrance of this one to the point of wanting to grow it myself despite its aggressive qualities. I will probably try it in a pot.

Brunfelsia australis: (Yesterday, today, and tomorrow): Flowers that open purple and fade to white. It's reported to have a strong jasmine scent. I have not smelled this one. There is another Brunfelsia that looks exactly like this one that has no scent, so watch for that. Beautiful bush that blooms heavily. Hardy to zone 9.

This is about all I can come up with. If I can think of anything else I will let you know.

Tom,

Thanks again for the details on these fragrant plants- you are providing me information that I have not been able to find online despite some searching.

I'll have to reconsider the jasminum sambac- I was worried about its cold tolerance but it looks like it might be something worth trying.

What you say about the rangoon creeper having a fragrance during the day is very interesting to me. I grabbed a bit of a neighbors rangoon creeper vine one day and put it in a glass of water. It had absolutely no fragrance until nightfall.

I guess there are still some differences between florida and Houston weather. Here, the heat is usually too much for gardenias to be foolproof unless you have the perfect spot for them in your yard.

You're welcome Andrew. I'm happy to help. I love this hobby and sharing it with others. Like you, I've sifted through tons of information online. Florida and Houston have a very similar climate, hot and humid, 90+ degree temperatures in summer and lots of rain. The heat does get to my gardenia, sometimes the flowers and leaves are smaller and more curled but it's always looked very healthy. I have my gardenia against the house in the backyard so it gets a decent amount of shade during the hottest parts of the day. If I had it in a sunnier spot I'm sure it would suffer.

Its really interesting what you said about the Rangoon creeper. I guess I'm lucky to have one that is fragrant day and night. Maybe you will stumble on one like mine. I got mine at Home Depot.

I would plant the jasmine next to the house as that is where I had mine. It never got frost damage in that location although my creeper and angel trumpet both have since they were further from the house. The creeper leaves didn't die or curl, just got black edges, whereas the angel trumpet leaves curled up pretty bad but it held onto its flower buds and bloomed after the frost. Weird huh? Plus having the jasmine closer to the house makes it easier to smell.

I love the grand duke of Tuscany jasmine as it has a bushier habit and beautiful ruffled blooms that do not fall off the next morning like the Maid of Orleans cultivar. Maid of Orleans annoys me because it spreads like fire, sprawls across the ground, and despite ripping it all up, it came back with a vengeance. Fragrance is beautiful though. I also love Belle of India, same scent but better growth habit and bigger flowers. All of them will come back from the roots if zapped but they will bloom later in the season.