56 NewZealandWoman’sWeekly
SCENT
Heaven
WHEN CHOOSING PLANTS, FOLLOW YOUR NOSE
I
t may be time to smell the
roses (well, almost) but,
let’s be clear, some of us
occasionally want to smell
something, well, different.
I love the traditional fragrant
plants as much as the next
person, but there are times
when I want to be surprised
or even shocked by a really
unusual scent in the garden that
has nothing to do with the dog,
the compost bin or that bucket
of stagnant water nobody
remembered to upturn.
I suppose it’s typical that most
of us expect really beautiful
blooms – magnolias, prunus,
rhododendrons, mandevilla –
to have the nicest scents, but
it’s not necessarily so.
It never would have occurred
to me to climb over the back
fence to smell my lemonwood
pittosporum. It is known for its
lemon-scented leaves, but that’s
not enough to get me leaping
the fence – however, the small,pale owers are worth the
(not inconsiderable) effort.
Unassuming they may be,
but they produce an almost
overpowering honey-like
fragrance when they bloom in
spring. I read on the Te Papa
website that the owers, leaves
and resin of lemonwood were
used as a perfume by Maori.
I also found out there’s
another fabulously fragrant
native called Alseuosmia
banksii, but it’s sadly very
dif cult to grow in cultivation.
On the other hand, Cordyline
indivisa is not dif cult to grow in
the right place, but who would
have thought it might have a
gorgeous fragrance? Not me.
My ignorance can be excused by
the fact that it likes a cool, moist
and shady habitat, and dislikes
warm climate situations so much
that it’s likely to die before
reaching owering size. Not
the plant for me, then. Bother.
The slow-growing Osmanthusfragrans might do the trick. It ts
within the Partner’s preferred
height, promising a maximum
of 3m, and it produces a small,
fragrant white ower.
If you fancy something with
an unusual scent, try Cytisus
battandieri. Its ower is shaped
like a pineapple and it smells
a little like sweet pineapple as
well. It’ll grow quickly in poor,
dry soil. And there are other
fruit-scented plants. Prunus
‘Shirotae’ has big white owers
and a delicate almond fragrance,
the katsura tree smells of burned
toffee, and the climber ‘Golden
Chalice’ smells of coconut and
vanilla – my idea of perfection.
We had one growing over our
courtyard wall and I was forever
burying my nose in it, which I
possibly wouldn’t have done
with quite such abandon had
I known that it’s poisonous.
Mirabilis jalapa may be safer
and I love its common name.
It’s known as the “four o’clockIt’s hard to believe a tree
as taken for granted as the
lemonwood pittosporum could
have such a beautiful scent.Cytisus battandieri has a
pineapple-shaped ower
that also smells a bit like
a pineapple.
LeeAnnBramwell
GARDENEDITORklyGARDEN
Our garden smells its
best in winter, if you can
ignore the random dog
poo run over by the
lawnmower. There’s
themagnolias, the viburnums
and the glorious smell of ripe
citrus fruit. But sometimes I
yearnforsomethingdifferent...On the scent!