Fifty Fragrant Plants For Florida Landscapes
If you are like me, during this strange, unsettling time of the pandemic, you’re noticing more of the little things in life that effortlessly bring you a moment of peace and joy and appreciating the larger role these things can play for your overall happiness and well-being. I’ve been stopping more to smell the roses so to speak, or actually I’ve been stopping to smell the gardenias (my favorite!), literally.
The intensely fragrant Gardenia shrub, flowering in South Florida. Photo by Bonnie Wells
One of the little things in life that can entice my senses and unexpectedly uplift me to my happy place is the fragrance of certain plants. It has always been amazing to me flowers, bark, leaves and fruit of some plant cultivars contain compounds that become fragrant with the heat of the sun, when crushed or some only emit their aroma at nighttime. Once inhaled, it’s understood that these scent molecules travel from your olfactory nerves in your nose directly to your brain and quickly reach the emotional center. From there, the scent can relax you or perhaps take you back to a special place in time in your memory. It’s like music for your nose.
Angel’s Trumpet has been assessed as a ‘moderate risk’ for planting by UF/IFAS Assessment of Non-Native Plants in Natural Areas, meaning care should be taken to limit it’s spread if incorporated into Florida landscapes. Photo by Bonnie Wells
As the commercial horticulture agent for UF/IFAS Extension Brevard County, I was recently contacted by a local golf course superintendent who is working on updating the landscape at his course’s clubhouse and was specifically looking for recommendations for plants to incorporate that would create a pleasant fragrance in the landscape for visitors. Roses, gardenias, jasmine, lavender and lemongrass, even honeysuckle, are some of the plants that instantly came to my mind when challenged to recommend fragrant plants to incorporate into the landscape.
Confederate Jasmine is a nice addition to Florida landscapes with its climbing habit. A similar species night-blooming jessamine, Cestrum nocturnum, has been assessed by UF/IFAS as a ‘High Risk of Invasion’ and should not be planted. When considering jasmine or jessamine plants consult your local county extension agent for recommendations. Photo by UF/IFAS
Knowing that honeysuckle and some jasmines are invasive, and wondering if lavender, a historically Mediterranean species can even grow well here in hot, sticky Florida, I had to dig deeper into to the literature to find the safe and appropriate fragrant plants for recommending for a Florida landscape. I performed a literature review of Florida-Friendly Landscaping plants, Florida Exotic Plant Council’s Invasive Species List, and the UF/IFAS Assessment of Non-Native Plants in Natural Areas database to bring you the table below (Table 1) that summarizes my findings for 50 fragrant plants suitable for Florida landscapes. Do you know of other fragrant plants safe for planting in Florida that I might have missed? Please give me a comment and let me know, if so! Happy sniffing!
Table 1. Fragrant Plants for Florida Landscapes |
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Common Name |
Scientific Name |
Florida Friendly1 |
Remarks |
ANNUALS |
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| Sweet Alyssum |
Lobularia maritima
|
Yes |
Purple/white/pink, winter flowers; tolerates light frost |
PERENNIALS |
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| Spiral Ginger |
Costus spp. |
Yes | White, fragrant, summer through fall flowers |
| Butterfly Ginger |
Hedychium coronarium
|
No | Pleasant fragrance; summer flowering; fall flowering |
| Pinecone Ginger |
Zingiber zerumbet |
Yes | Red, fragrant, fall flowers; tolerates occasionally wet soil |
| Crinum Lily | Crinum spp. | Yes | Many cultivars; fragrant, spidery, year-round flowers vary; poisonous; susceptible to pests and diseases |
| Lavender | Lavandula angustifolia | No | ‘Phenomenal’ cultivar is disease-resistant, tolerates heat and humidity; attracts butterflies |
| Cherry Sage | Salvia greggii | Yes | Attracts butterflies and hummingbirds, cascading habit |
| Fragrant Waterily |
Nymphaea odorata
|
No | Aquatic species |
GRASSES |
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| Lemongrass | Cymbopogon citratus | Yes | Scented leaves remain green most of the year, turning dark red in fall and winter; dies to the ground in winter in North Florida |
GROUNDCOVERS |
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| Asiatic Jasmine | Trachelospermum asiaticum | Yes | Small, dark green glossy leaves, prominent light green veins; tolerates foot traffic; spreads aggressively; susceptible to pests, diseases and cold damage in low 20’s |
SMALL SHRUBS |
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| Rose | Rosa spp. | Yes | Flowers vary; susceptible to pests and diseases, ‘Belinda’s Dream’ is highly fragrant |
| Rosemary | Rosmarinus spp. | Yes | Evergreen herb with aromatic needle-like leaves; flowers vary |
| Lady of the Night | Brunfelsia americana | Yes | Evergreen; fragrant, white flowers |
| Passion Vine |
Passiflora incarnata
|
Yes | Evergreen; pink/purple, summer through fall flowers; larval food plant of zebra longwing, gulf fritillary, and variegated fritillary butterflies; tolerates occasionally wet soil |
| Rangoon Creeper | Quisqualis indica | Yes | 1″ flowers turn from white to pink or pink to deep red, blooms in spring through fall; good for fences, pergolas, and small buildings; susceptible to pests; Assessed as a ‘moderate risk’ non-native |
| Fetterbush | Agarista populifolia | Yes | Evergreen, creamy white, fragrant spring flowers |
| Star Jasmine | Trachelospermum jasminoides | Yes | White, fragrant, showy, spring flowers; susceptible to diseases |
| American Wisteria | Wisteria frutescens | Yes | Lavender, fragrant, spring through summer flowers; poisonous parts |
SMALL OR LARGE SHRUBS2 |
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| Natal Plum | Carissa macrocarpa | Yes | Also known as Carissa grandiflora; edible fruit; white, fragrant year-round flowers |
| Downy Jasmine | Jasminum multiflorum | Yes | White, fragrant, year-round flowers; dies back in freeze, may come back; susceptible to pests; sprawling form |
LARGE SHRUBS |
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| Sweet Almond Bush | Aloysia virgata | Yes | Evergreen; white, fragrant, summer through fall flowers, attracts butterflies |
| Yesterday-Today-and-Tomorrow
|
Brunfelsia grandiflora | Yes | White/purple, spring through fall flowers |
| Angel’s Trumpet |
Brugmansia arborea
|
Yes | Flowers hang from stems and branches and drape the plant with color; good specimen tree; susceptible to pests and diseases; Assessed as ‘Moderate Risk’ by UF/IFAS Assessment of Non-Native Plants3 |
| Butterfly Bush |
Buddleia lindleyana
|
Yes | Deciduous, non-fragrant, purple/violet flowers; excellent for butterflies; aggressive suckering and spreads through runners |
| Orange Jessamine | Murraya paniculata | Yes | Yellow/orange, spring through summer flowers’ attracts wildlife |
| Sweet Pepperbush | Clethra alnifolia | Yes | White, fragrant, summer flowers; attracts bees and other wildlife; grows well in wet areas |
| Gardenia | Gardenia jasminoides | Yes | Also known as Gardenia augusta; white, fragrant spring through summer flowers; use only grafted varieties due to nematode susceptibility; susceptible to scales; use iron fertilizer to keep green |
| Oregon Hollygrape | Mahonia bealei | Yes | Also known as Berberis bealei; yellow, fragrant, winter through spring Flowers; glossy grey/green leaves, holly-like appearance; purplish-blue berries provide food for wildlife |
| Tea Olive | Osmanthus fragrans | Yes | Extremely fragrant, white blossoms, great for hedges |
| Chinese Fringe Bush | Loropetalum chinense | Yes | White/pink, spring flowers; size varies; susceptible to pests and diseases; in high pH soils may have minor element deficiencies, mildly fragrant |
| Panama Rose | Rondeletia leucophylla | No | Low-maintenance, pink fragrant flowers year-round |
| Shining Jasmine | Jasminum nitidum | Yes | Evergreen to semi-evergreen vine or shrub; white, fragrant, spring through summer flowers |
| Primrose Jasmine | Jasminum mesnyi | Yes | Rambling, evergreen; will climb like vine if given support; fragrant, yellow flowers; dies back in freeze, may come back |
| Red Powderpuff | Calliandra haematocephala | Yes | Possible cold damage from freezing temperatures; large fragrant flower Blooms during warm months; susceptible to pests |
LARGE SHRUB or SMALL TREES |
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| Sweet Acacia | Acacia farnesiana | Yes | Yellow, year-round flowers, great for birds |
| Marlberry | Ardisia escallonioides | Yes | Fragrant, white, year-round flowers; attractive foliage; round, purple fruits provide food for wildlife, mostly in fall and winter; good for screens and hedges |
| Stoppers | Eugenia spp. | Yes | Flowers vary; needs little attention once established; natives are E. axillaris, E. foetida, E. rhombea, and E. confusa; E. axiliaris, E. confusa, E. foetida have high wind resistance |
| Wild Olive | Osmanthus americanus | Yes | White, fragrant, spring flowers; provides food for wildlife |
| Fiddlewood | Citharezylum fruiticosum | Yes | Tolerant of dry sandy soil |
| Awabuki Viburnum | Viburnum odoratissimum | Yes | Also known as Viburnum awabuki; fragrant, small white, spring flowers; red/black fruit provides food for wildlife; takes well to pruning; used for hedges; susceptible to pests and diseases |
SMALL TREES |
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| Frangipani | Plumeria alba, Plumeria rubra | Yes | Intensely fragrant, spiral-shaped, blooms which appear at branch tips June through November |
| Chinese Perfume Tree | Aglaia odorata | No | Fragrant yellow ball-shaped flowers |
| Wild Cinnamon | Canella winterana | Yes | Purple to red summer flowers, bark has a cinnamon like smell |
| Fringetree | Chionanthus virginicus | Yes | Adds dark green color in summer and bright white flowers in spring |
| Chinese fringetree | Chionanthus retusus | Yes | Somewhat available, may have to go out of the region to find |
LARGE TREES |
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| Southern Magnolia |
Magnolia grandiflora
|
Yes | Great shade tree, large creamy white flowers |
| Sweet Bay Magnolia | Magnolia virginiana | Yes | Excellent vertical definition in a shrub border or as a free-standing specimen; lemon-scented flowers |
| Saucer Magnolia | Magnolia soulangiana | Yes | Impressive display of large, pinkish flowers in spring |
| Banana Shrub | Magnolia figo | Yes | Also known as Michelia figo; light-yellow, spring through early summer flowers; fragrance similar to ripening cantaloupes or bananas; generally used as specimen plant; susceptible to scale and mushroom root rot |
| Ylang Ylang Tree | Cananga odorata | No | Best in Zone 10, blooms after 3-4 years |
| 1Florida-Friendly Plants are considered by UF/IFAS horticulture specialists to be well-adapted to growing in Florida landscapes. The plants on this list are not the only plants that can be used in Florida. Contact your county’s UF/IFAS Extension office to determine if a plant not on the list is suitable for your region.
2Plants can be managed to be either one depending on space or desired habit. 3Non-native plant assessment by UF/IFAS indicates this plant is moderate risk, meaning it can be planted but must be managed to prevent escape.
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Hello,
I just want to clarify…
Under “Florida Friendly” cloumn, are you saying the plants do well in the Florida environment OR the plants are dangerous because of the ability to spread and damage the environment like Kudzu in Georgia?
I live in Boca Raton, in Palm Beach County, which I believe is Zone 10.
Hi Chris, Yes, these are “Florida-Friendly” plants, meaning they are low impact, environmentally friendly, use less water and reduce pollutant loading to Florida waters. Learn more here: https://ffl.ifas.ufl.edu/
Thanks!
Bonnie
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Please, please, please add the FL native climbing aster! (Symphyotrichum carolinianum)
The incredible explosion of fragrant purple flowers arrives in November & December, at a point when many other FL wildflowers are fading. To me, the flowers smell like sweet, warm sugar cookies! It’s always loaded with pollinators too…
Perfect for wetter soils – along the edges of ponds, swales, etc.
Thanks,
Frank Galdo – Program Coordinator, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, UF/IFAS Extension Pasco County
Pics & info:
https://flawildflowers.org/flower-friday-symphyotrichum-carolinianum/
http://hawthornhillwildflowers.blogspot.com/2009/11/climbing-aster-symphyotrichum.html
https://twitter.com/PascoExt/status/1243217796705763329
Awesome Frank, will do! Thanks so much for the suggestion. 🙂
These plants are very hard to find for purchase. Do you know anywhere in the Jax area?
Thank you
Hi Mia, the Duval County Extension office should be able to help you with that question. Dr. Kerr is the commercial horticulture agent there, his email is CKERR@COJ.NET. Thanks for reading!