I intend to plant all these in my yard, as my salary and time afford.

Opinions are always appreciated.

*VINES*
Paniculata clematis-----Clematis ternifolia
Etruscan honeysuckle-----Lonicera etrusca
Common honeysuckle-----Lonicera periclymenum
Italian honeysuckle-----Lonicera caprifolium
Goldflame honeysuckle-----Lonicera x heckrottii
Japanese honeysuckle-----Lonicera japonica 'Purpurea'
Hall's honeysuckle-----Lonicera japonica 'Halliana'
Winter honeysuckle-----Lonicera fragrantissima
Poet's jasmine-----Jasminun officinale
Winter jasmine-----Jasminum polyanthum
Arabian jasmine-----Jasminium sambac
Pink summer jasmine-----Jasminium x stephanese
Moonflower-----Ipomoea alba
Sweet peas-----Lathyrus odoratus
Chinese wisteria-----Wisteria sinensis

*PERENNIALS*
Creeping phlox-----Phlox stolonifera 'Bruce's White'
Ginger lily -----Hedychium coronarium var. chrysoleum 'Yellow Spot'
Hyacinths -----Hyacinthus 'Blue Jacket'/Hyacinthus 'Anna Marie'/Hyacinthus 'Carnegie'
Lily of the valley-----Convallaria majalis
Swamp milkweed-----Asclepias incarnata
Sweet violet-----Viola odorata
Woodland phlox-----Phlox divaricata 'Blue Perfume'/Phlox divaricata 'White Perfume'

*SHRUBS*
Coast azalea-----Rhododendron atlanticum
Sweet azalea-----Rhododendron arborescens
Pinxterbloom azalea-----Rhododendron periclymenoides
Roseshell azalea-----Rhododendron prinophyllum
Swamp azalea-----Rhododendron viscosum
Banana shrub-----Michelia figo
Carolina allspice-----Calycanthus floridus
Gardenia-----Gardenia jasminoides
Lilacs-----Syringa 'Henri Robert''/Syringa 'Vauban'/Syringa 'Miss Kim'
Sweet box-----Sarcococca hookeriana/Sarcococca confusa
Viburnum-----Viburnum carlesii
White forsythia-----Abeliophyllum distichum
Winter hazel-----Corylopsis glabrescens
Wintersweet-----Chimonanthus praecox
Angel's trumpet-----Brugmansia 'Dr. Seuss'

*TREES*
Sweetbay magnolia-----Magnolia virginiana
Southern magnolia-----Magnolia grandiflora
Black locust-----Robinia pseudoacacia
Japnese apricots-----Prunus mume
Small-leaved Lime-----Tilia cordata
Yellowwood-----Cladrastis lutea

Clematis terniflora is sweet autumn clematis and sometimes is fragrant and sometimes is not so make sure you purchase your plant in bloom or you might get one that has none to little fragrance. It is also a prolific reseeder so you may regret its placement in your garden. It is often incorrectly called clematis paniculata which is an evergreen clematis from Australia.

Another fragrant clematis is viticella Betty Corning. She is one not to be missed for fragrance. Subtle but one that I always pick flowers of to bring into the house.

Miss Kim lilac is a wonderful performer in my garden provided she doesn't get forced into blooming early due to warm spells and then getting zapped by the frost.

There are plenty of hedychiums including Dr. Moy and coronarium that do well in my garden. The only problem I have had with them is that they bloom so late in the season that they don't get to bloom long before frost kills them back. They are planted in full sun here in the piedmont of NC.

(I've heard that some of the Nicotianas are quite strong, as are the Cereus-type cactus flowers)

Foliage:
Mints
Rosemary
Vanilla grass
Marigold foliage
Scented leaf pelargoniums
Basil
Thyme
Oregano

Another common annual that may be boring to some but which I find to be both beautiful AND exquisitely fragrant are the old-fashioned vining petunias. I grew dozens of these on my porch last year and you could smell the fragrance from 100 feet away on a warm, humid evening. The neighbors loved it and could not believe such a strong and beautiful scent could come from a petunia. These would also reseed in your area. I obtained my seeds from Seed Savers Exchange last year.

In addition to the two roses that greenwitch mentions (which are both excellent choices for fragrance), there are many other rose cultivars you should consider. Many of them could be grown without extra irrigation or without need for spraying once they are established. These include, but are not limited to, the following:

'Marie Pavié'
'Perle d'Or'
'Blush Noisette'
'Nastarana'
'Mary Washington'
'Archduke Charles'
'Ducher'
'Spice'
'Clementina Carbonieri'
'Marie d'Orléans'
'Devoniensis', etc.

Actually, almost any tea, china or noisette rose would work in your zone. You have the perfect climate for them.

As for the plants in your original list, I have to say that while I love many of them, my absolute favorite is Tilia cordata. This is one of my favorite fragrances in the world. Someday I would like to plant a whole grove of them. In the meantime, I consider myself lucky that they are a common street tree in the metropolitan Chicago area and I am able to bask in the delicious, clean, pure, sweet fragrance every June. I also recently discovered that linden flowers produce some of the most delicious flavored and perfumed honey I ever tried.

Lonicera fragrantissima runs a close second to Tilia cordata...

The flowers are small, but I ripped out my forsythia and put these in once I smelled the perfume coming off just one of these from almost 10 feet away.

Eleagnus Pugens...Silverberry. A trifle weedy, but the fragrance was supposedly so strong that in some cultures men kept their wives indoors when this shrub was in bloom as the fragrance was supposedly too overpowering for the women (the story I recall had something to do with protecting the women's virtue).

~Chills

If you can find inexpensive Plumeria, go for it..they'd definatly have to be dug up in fall since they're extremely cold sensitive..fragrance is heavenly. There's a nursery in HI..he sells/sold Plumes for 1.98 each..which is how I ended up buying several, planted in our zone 5 garden, and sniffed up their perfumy flowers all summer.
By your list, looks like your garden will be the talk of the neighborhood. Toni

Not all Plumeria are fragrant either, some of the best are Celedine, San Germaine, Aztec Gold (peach fragrance), Charlotte Ebert, Penang Peach, Pink Pansy, Vera Cruz Rose, Kauka Wilder, Gulf Stream and Slaughter Pink (in my experience, there are others).

I totally agree with Ispahan about Tilia cordata - in Europe it is known as tilleul or linden flower tea - exquisite fragrance! (nice cuppa too) but then there's nothing like the scent of gardenia on a hot summers night under a full moon....

yours,

misha

I have a couple of viburnum carlesii and love the smell. While I can detect a slight medicinal scent when they first open, it disappears almost immediately. My husband thinks they always smell slightly "off" and he prefers mohawk which I think may be a burkwood cross.

I had heard about tea olive (osmanthus fragrans) and planned to buy one until I discovered I really dislike that smell--just me, my husband and our friends thought it was wonderful!

Calycanthus florida is famous for having a variable scent from plant to plant. I do think that a lack of fragrance is a serious flaw in a flower and my best advice if money is tight would be sniff before you buy.

Stephanotis (Madagasgar Jasmine) is one of the most violently scented plants I know. In Canada we need to grow indoors in the winter, but put outdoors on a porch for the summer the Jasmine fragrance is heavenly and powerful. It's a strong vine with waxy leaves and the fragrance comes from the white starlike flowers that come out in clusters. If you like fragrance it's worth growing, even if you need to winter it indoors. The flowers from these were tradtionally used in Victorian wedding bouquets.

Valerian is a perennial with white clustered flowers atop long stems, almost like a queen anne's lace. The scent is divine, rather like vanilla.

An annual with a gorgeous scent is allysum. I grow it just for the honey fragrance.

I agree with others that the old fashioned varieties of nicotiana and petunias (especially the white ones) have a gorgeous fragrance, especially at night. Worth growing for the fragrance alone.

Another annual with a powerful scent is Mattiola or Night Scented Stock. The flower is practically nonexistent, but the powerful fragrance is fantastic. I knew someone who always grew a pot of these on his windowsill so the scent would drift in in the evenings.

Last year I put in a number of new plants, among them were 2 jujube's. Later in the season I was walking around and cought scent of something wonderful. It took me quite a while to locate it (as jujube flowers are rather inconspicuous) but it was nice as I recall.

Philadelphius (Mock Orange) also a contender

Clematis Triternata Rubramarginata (who can resist a plant with a name like that??) Small star-like flowers that reportedly have a hawthorne-like fragrance (I don't know what hawthorne smells like, but CTR does smell nice)

~Chills

You're right to caution against Japanese honeysuckle and Chinese wisteria and the clematis as well in zone 7, but none of the jasmines Pierce mentioned are likely to be winter hardy in N. Carolina, and a number of the woody plants on the list are actually east coast natives, not invasives.

I dislike preaching online, but I think those of us who love native species and worry about invasive plants need to be careful not to throw the USDA list at people without context; we're not going to win converts by simply saying no. Also, being clear on what "invasive" actually means is important. Not every invasive plant is invasive everywhere, so folks need to check their state lists to keep up with what's happening in their area.

OK, sermon's over, let me practice what I preach and lay out some of my favorite native picks:

Absolutely go for both magnolia species, they're to die for fragrance and have long flowering seasons, just be sure you have room for their eventual size, or seek out the more compact cultivars

Definitely find some deciduous azaleas; they're a perfect fit for your climate, and check out some of the hybrids as well at places like Rare Find and Fairweather Gardens.

Consider a native wisteria species instead of w. sinensis, and you wont' have to wait 10 or more years for flowers. Unfortunately, native honeysuckles, though gorgeous, are not fragrant; l. heckrottii, a hybrid of native species, is always listed as fragrant but I've never gotten much scent from it.

Lonicera fragrantissima is one of the best winter flowering fragrant shrubs in the world, but it is likely to prove invasive; however, its hybrid, l. x purpusii, may be sterile and is just as fragrant; check the NC cooperative extension for more info.

If the jasmines do survive the winter, they'll start taking over quickly, so either grow them in pots and bring 'em inside for the winter, or hack them back ruthlessly after they flower.

You've got a number of excellent public gardens and nurseries in the Raleigh-Durham area, so if you get the chance and visit, you can smell things in person.

Finally, if you're ever in Brooklyn, can you hook me up with some real NC BBQ? ;>)

Jim

What I should have done was just mention that there is such a thing. Most people that I've spoken to are unaware of the invasive plant list.

However, I do love the idea of an entire garden filled with fragrant blooms.

Cheers,
Michele

Ylang-ylang (Cananga odorata) is a large, tropical flowering tree. It has yellow flowers which are strongly fragrant at night. The fragrance is powerful and wafts long distances.

The scent is very complex and difficult to describe as it is a mixture of sorts. It has a complex tangy-pungent-floral fragrance with a mix of citrus peel scent and 'tamarind-like' overtones if you get what I mean... :)

Initially, it comes to you as 'strong' and 'heavy' but as your nose adapts to the scent, it becomes sweetly floral with citrus peel and tamarind-like overtones. (I wish I could just email the fragrances so everyone reading can understand what I mean.)

My absolute favorite however, the most violently, extremely, and addictively fragrant plant is the michelia alba (a. k. a., white champaca, magnolia alba).

Like ylang-ylang, it is a tree bearing flowers with complex fragrance but it is more on the 'addictively' sweet and fruity side. The scent is very tropical and fruity with hints of banana, apple, and even juicy fruit gum all combined (if you get what I mean). :)

Gardenias are also extremely and violently fragrant with a heavy, 'seductive', somewhat 'musky' floral scent.

Jasminum sambac is more on the sweetly floral side and has none of the heavy, somewhat 'musky' scent of gardenias. Jasminum sambac scent is a light and sweet, 'everyone-will-love' floral scent. Incidentally, it is the national flower of the Philippines and of a few other Asian countries.

Night blooming jasmine (cestrum nocturnum) has a strong clinical/sterile/clean scent that wafts strongly at night (talk about adjectives!). :)

At close range, it can be overpowering and headache inducing, but farther away, the fragrance just mellows down into a sweet, perfumey scent which anybody will love. It doesn't have one of the more 'to-die-for' addictive fragrances like that of the 'michelia alba' or 'jasminum sambac' at close range, but when the scent blends with the rest of your fragrant plants, the overall effect can be exotic and surreal (more adjectives!). :)

I wish there was a FAQ in this forum which not only lists the most popular fragrant plants but describes their fragrances as well based on inputs from members who know them. :)

Also, I didn't see anyone mention passiflora 'Incense.' That one gets so violent in fall that it just grabs you.

Was surprised that my little acer ginalla was awfully fragrant this year...in a privet-like way. Am mentioning it only because I didn't know until several years ago when someone on this forum mentioned it that there is a maple that's fragrant. And it turns such a nice orange in fall. Also, I find my chionanthus (virginicus) carries nicely, but in that weird, indirect way that some plants have. You know--where you can smell something powerful but can't tell exactly where it's coming from.

And finally, I didn't see anyone mention lilies. Mine are blooming now and it's definitely violent.

I'm going to have to make a note for myself that the Middle of July is just a wonderful time in the garden!

~Chills

Also, did anybody mention clethra? That's getting powerful (if not quite violent--good word, btw) about now.

some of the eucalyptus species (blue gum, lemon eucalyptus, peppermint eucalyptus, etc)

some melaleucas(I was strolling through Jesse Durko's nursery when I got a waft of a eucalyptus-like smell, but could not find a eucalytpus tree...Jesse pointed out the melaleuca tree right behind me!)

some junipers (we were in Austin a few months ago and the fragrance of what the locals call "cedars" was very nice).

By "butterfly bush" are you referring to butterfly ginger (mariposa)?

The plumerias you refer to (the ones most commonly found in Hawaii) are fragrant however the ones most frequently seen in South Florida (plumeria pudica), though beautiful with their contrasting white flowers and dark green interesting leaves, are not fragrant (and some other varieties--maybe the reds if I remember correctly--are also not fragrant; I asked a vendor while in Honolulu and he told me that some are not).

Thanks to everyone who took the time to reply!

I got my garden off to a decent start, but was a victim of arson, and have since moved. I am getting ready to start over again with a new garden, and this list is still largely the basis of what I'm going for.

I am now located about 45 minutes further southeast, in eastern Franklin County NC, which is in 7b on the 1990 USDA hardiness map, unlike where I was previously (which was 7a).

Some of the things on that list just aren't hardy here (i.e. most of the jasmines, ylang ylang, plumerias, etc.) They're tropicals plain and simple, and I'm not interested in keeping things in containers and having to haul them in every winter, or having to give them Snuggies and heat blankets and all that voo-doo. My attitude about gardening, with the exception of pruning, is "set it and forget it". I don't plant any annuals except in the window-boxes; my garden is only perennials and other perennial things like shrubs and trees and vines which will grow back every year. I'm not into spending the money and time to re-do my garden every year just so I can have an acre of flashy annuals for a month or two.

The whole basis of my garden is FRAGRANCE! I don't like things that you have to walk up to and stick your nose in to smell...what I really enjoy are the plants that grab you by the nostrils and knock the socks off of you and leave you dazed and confused from 20 yards without even needing a breeze.

Hence the foundation of my garden is a 915-foot fence of solid honeysuckle (of several different varieties, all violently fragrant). It surrounds my property on 3 sides and is just a fantastic knock-out. Makes walking past the perfume counter at Macy's (or Bath & Body Works in the mall) seem like child's play.

Which brings me to the "invasive species" thing...that's not an issue for me. I have no problem with everything in sight being draped in honeysuckle and wisteria. If all the kudzu covering the entire eastern half of North Carolina could be magically replaced with honeysuckle, I'd be THRILLED (and, you could smell us from Zimbabwe). My property is surrounded by acres of flat open hay-fields, which honeysuckle and wisteria simply can't cross...and besides the fact I keep everything well-pruned. I spend an hour in the garden every afternoon, so nothing can grow faster than I can hack it back. And after all, it's my property, so it's no one else's business what I do and don't plant on it.

My garden does contain a few non-fragrant things, such as fruit trees, old-fashioned Southern cane (like the canebrakes the South was covered in before colonization), loblolly pine trees (required by law in eastern NC, it would seem), crape myrtles (which are GOD'S GIFT TO MAN, I just can't get over how bright and profuse the blooms are, and for SO LONG!), hibiscus, azaleas, camellias, burning bush, forsythia, non-fragrant roses, berry bushes, vegetables and herbs, tulips and other bulbs, etc.

Two things I've discovered I adore very much are lilacs, and lily-of-the-valley. Both have a very delightful fragrance that wafts around and just makes me wish I could bottle air in big jars that I could open up in my house in the winter.

One thing I cannot stand is ornamental grass. Everywhere I see it, I have an overwhelming urge to napalm it. So far as I'm concerned, "if it isn't violently fragrant, or drenched in incredibly bright and colorful flowers, it doesn't belong anywhere other than a burn heap." So thanks to the folks that mentioned those, but you're "preaching to plaster". I'm not looking for "balanced" or "understated" or "tastefully reserved"...I'm looking for "wowie-zowie knock-your-socks-off explosions of blinding heaps of color and a violent assault of fragrance that will leave you stunned and ready to light up a Lucky just after driving past". There's nothing more cheerful than coming home to that!

@ paulope: No, butterfly bush isn't anything like butterfly ginger. It's a large bushy shrub with these gorgeous fragrant multi-colored sprays of flowers that droop off it. Do a Google image search (images.google.com)

Someone mentioned that the Raleigh/Durham area has many public gardens where I could go to sniff some of the things on this list for myself before deciding. I have some space left and some things I'm not sure about, so I'd like to do that - which gardens would you recommend?

Again, thanks for all the input everyone has given!

I'm with you on the fragrance philosophy, pretty much everything I grow is fragrant!

You are, in fact, blessed with a number of public gardens and nurseries in the Research Triangle area, including the world-renowned J.C. Raulston Arboretum at NC State and Juniper Level in Raleigh, Coker and NC Botanic Garden at Chapel Hill, and Sarah P. Duke in Durham. Nurseries include Plant Delights, Camellia Forest and a few others I can't remember. Get thee to them!!

If you're looking only for hardy plants, nothing beats talking to the folks who grow locally and know what is and isn't hardy and fragrant.

Also, although you can get many listings of fragrant plants in books and on the web, everyone's nose, as is often said around here, is different, so sniffing before you buy is definitely a plus.

And in case you need more suggestions to add to your list, consider the hardier osmanthus and pittosporum species, witch hazel for winter fragrance, and one easily grown from seed annual, datura. Mine took over a tree pit in the front yard within two months and had over a dozen foot long fragrant white trumpets open at once!

Hope the garden's coming along fine,

Jim

sweet olives: They are getting better each year and the sweet scent is very intense

angel's trumpet: (Dr. Seuss or Charlie Grimaldi): sweet and spicy. also a pink beauty: more spicy than sweet

butterfly gingers: nice fragrance

Agalia (Chinese rice flower): gave a big flush last month and now only a few flowers

Jasmine sambac: shy bloomer this year

Gardenia: great performer in the spring. Now blooms the second time. Outside it is taken over by the angels' trumpet, but as soon as I bring some flowers inside, the scent fills the morning room.

I completely agree with your fragrance philosophy (I prefer plants that will "hit you in the face" with fragrance).

What about fragrant ground covers?

Also, does anyone know if lonicera fragrantissima does well in South Florida? Last year I planted, in a partial sun location, a jasminum polyanthum and it is so far kind of languishing there (growing slowly and no blooms so far...I think it may need a bit more cold than winter here can give it).

Daphne odora is my most violently fragrant plant outside of my greenhouse. It throws it's heavenly scent clear across the yard. Daphne transatlantica x 'Summer Ice' does not throw scent at all but blooms longer and is fragrant if you lean down to sniff it.

I have multiple Oriental hybrid lilies that are also fragrant six to ten feet away, 'Stargazer' is one variety but there are at least a hundred others out there and Orienpets and Trumpets are also very fragrant.

I have many fragrant Narcissus but none really throw scent like the Daphne does. I have Hyacinths, Muscari (Grape Hyacinths) and Lily of the Valley but the last two are so invasive for me that I've been ripping them up for years and can't get rid of them.

I've been searching out fragrant Hostas and Daylilies but you must get close to smell all that I've found so far. 'So Sweet' Hosta smells almost like Gardenias.

My 'Miss Kim' Lilac does throw scent a little ways but I would not call it violent. ;)

I love fragrant plants and try to plant as many as possible in my rather small yard. My greenhouse is even smaller but always smells good.

I love ornamental grasses too. ;) They aren't fragrant but they have lovely colors and textures.

Two of my neighbors have this small tree and I can smell it across the street when it is blooming. It is one of the most violently scented plants I've ever been near.

Much too big for my yard though. If and when I move to a bigger yard this will be one of my first plantings along with a witch hazel.

Winter honeysuckle probably needs more winter chilling than you get in S. Florida, but if you've already planted it you'll see in a few months . . . . instead of winter honeysuckel I'd try a sweet olive (osmanthus fragrans) if you don't already have one.

Same thing for j. polyanthum, if you don't get a couple of months with nighttime temps in the low 50s/high40s, you're just not going to get blooms.

This is why florists can get 'em all ready to go in time for Valentine's Day; they're grown in temperatures that trigger buds just in time.

There are many jasmines that work better in S. Florida, but make sure you don't plant one of the invasive species like azoricum or dichotomum that'll seed all over the place and take over your yard!

Hope this helps!

Jim