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brody_gw

Lonicera periclymenum 'Scentsation'

brody
13 years ago

Does anyone have any experience growing this, and if so, how is the fragrance in the garden?

The reason I ask is because I was at Fred Meyer last night and passed 5 or 6 containers of these on the way in, each 3' tall and loaded with blooms which had absolutely no scent at all, either on the air or when I buried my nose in the flowers. This was after 9, when the scent should have been powerful.

Maybe it had something to do with the cold weather or them being forced in a greenhouse? It looked like a good plant, otherwise.

Comments (8)

  • Embothrium
    13 years ago

    It's supposed to smell even more than the typical plant. I have not noticed a daily falling off in fragrance of other forms of the species, but have not checked either.

    I grow 'Graham Thomas' and 'Serotina', I know them to be two good ones. The first offers extended flowering, the second purplish foliage and partly red flowers. It has sometimes been sold as Lonicera x heckrottii 'Gold Flame' by mistake.

  • gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
    13 years ago

    IME, a lot of supposedly strong scented plants do not necessarily display that fragrance when confined to a nursery container or in a nursery setting. It seems that establishment in a landscape is needed for them to develop that characteristic well. For whatever reason, few vining honeysuckles offer the same fragrance in a nursery setting as they do growing in the ground.

    All the cultivars of L. periclymenum I've encountered DO develop great fragrance. In addition to extremely attractive and very profuse flowering (and lack of issues regarding powdery mildew and aphids), that's my primary reason for growing these selections over and above any other vining honeysuckles.

  • Embothrium
    13 years ago

    I've seen this one mildewing badly at local outlets.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Lonicera periclymenum 'Monul'

  • brody
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Hmmm, I wonder why that is, gardengal? Interesting. I'd still be curious to hear from anyone who has grown it.

    I do have 'Graham Thomas' and agree that its fragrance is fantastic.

  • gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
    13 years ago

    I think flower scent is very subjective, both to its intensity and even quality of fragrance. I was chatting with a nursery co-worker yesterday and he has never particularly noticed the scent of vining honeysuckle. OTOH, I can recall stepping out of the house where I grew up on a summer's evening and finding the scent of blooming honeysuckle growing nearby nearly intoxicating in its intensity. Same with my more recent garden, where I grew several different kinds.

    The lack of scent of a specific plant in a nursery setting is sometimes remarkable by its absence. In the enclosed area where we have shade plants, an entire table full of blooming sarcococca produced barely any scent. Same with daphnes, which in a garden setting often waft their fragrance a considerable distance. I don't have any good reason why this should be so......it just frequently is. Whether it is the issue of establishment, the inground environmental factors, the volume of flowers, heat of the day, whatever......I have found that most plants need to be established in the landscape before they fully exercise their fragrance attributes.

  • beverlyjh
    13 years ago

    I came searching for an answer to the same question. I ran across vines labeled Lonicera periclymenum 'Scentsation' at a local nursery. There were 6 pots of this vine set outdoors. They were very healthy specimens. Every vine had many flowers in varying stages of bud and bloom. I smelt each vine and not a single one had a sweet fragrance even though its tag clearly said it would. The only smell was of vegetative decay that the old flowers gave off. It was 4 p.m., about 70 degrees F., and sunny. I wonder if these vines were mislabeled or if 'scentsation' just doesn't live up to its name?

  • trustmissy_chartermi_net
    12 years ago

    I have one and the scent is wonderful.

  • schizac
    12 years ago

    My backyard neighbor has a large plant that is likely 'Graham Thomas' and the fragrance is truly intoxicating. It is situated above my garden, and the fragrance spills into and pools in my back yard. As I type, the fragrance is wafting in though my office window...sublime. Oh and the hummers love it too.

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