Night scented garden.

[Nicos]

I 've been thinking for a while now, that we redo our patio ( aka slab of concrete on top of cowshed slurry )... Hopefully in the next couple of years!!!!!!

I have plans in my mind and one is to have some night scented plants for when we sit out in the summer evenings.
probably interspersed with day scented ones so there will be constantly a lovely scent throughout the day.

it's a south facing area ( can get up to 40C!) with the granite stoned house to the North ( releases heat at night) so it'll be sheltered from the cold winds but not the strong warm south westerlies ( open fields to the back.

so I'm mentally preparing a list of plants to grow there surrounding the patio ( 5 X 6m) on 3 sides.

starting with night scented.....
all I can think of is evening primrose...

anyone got any spectacularly fragrant flowers they can recommend or can suggest for night scents please?

[scarey55]

Lovely idea Nicos. I planted some night scented stock last year and, my goodness! it's only a small, spindly plant but what a lovely fragrance. I have some seeds if you want me to send any.
Also Nicotiana smells wonderful in the evening. I look forward to hearing more ideas because I have a bed just outside my front door.

[mrswadders]

have you got somewhere you can put a trellis up? if so jasmine and honeysuckle smell lovely in the evening

[Nicos]

Yes- so long as it wasn't particularly high- they could be trained sideways presumably??
Nice idea-could they grow together????

I have a rosemary bush right outside the back door- thing is, it's grown so big that it's blocking the doorway and blocking the light coming through the new glass door !
It's always nice to brush against it but it's going to have to be moved as it's totally in the way.
The idea worked at the time- but has sadly outgrown it's position.
I'll find a new home for it

[Bigmallly]

My ex neighbour had a "mock orange" plant and the scent was beautiful.

[Aberdeenplotter]

Honeysuckle (lonicera) and as the lovely Scarey says, night scented stock is amazing

[bramble]

Lavender, and as someone else said, nicotiana ( the white one is the really scented one)
Sweet Pea if you have the space, and a scented rose, of which there are many varieties.

[mrswadders]

Yes- so long as it wasn't particularly high- they could be trained sideways presumably??
Nice idea-could they grow together????

I have a rosemary bush right outside the back door- thing is, it's grown so big that it's blocking the doorway and blocking the light coming through the new glass door !
It's always nice to brush against it but it's going to have to be moved as it's totally in the way.
The idea worked at the time- but has sadly outgrown it's position.
I'll find a new home for it

Hi, yes the jasmine will grow horizontally, we have one on the side of the shed, it can get a bit rampant buts its quite happy to have a haircut! I would imagine you could grow the honeysuckle with it too

[mrswadders]

My ex neighbour had a "mock orange" plant and the scent was beautiful.

yes forgot that one, I have one and it is lovely, We went to Furzey gardens(hampshire0 a few years back they had loads of them - gorgeous scent

[JanieB]

I have similar plans for the patio outside my new kitchen, currently covered in builders rubbish there is a stone patio underneath somewhere. I had already planted honeysuckle which is climbing up a lilac tree. There is also a beautiful rose that smells wonderful when in flower although it sadly only does that for 3 weeks.

As soon as I can unearth the garden I will be off to the GC for plants so any more ideas would benefit me as well as Nicos. When I was growing up there was a philadelphus (mock orange) outside my bedroom window and I loved sitting with the window open a smelling it.

[veggiechicken]

Hi, yes the jasmine will grow horizontally, we have one on the side of the shed, it can get a bit rampant buts its quite happy to have a haircut! I would imagine you could grow the honeysuckle with it too

I have honeysuckle, jasmine and clematis in a tangled heap a few feet high. They were climbing up an obelisk but it collapsed under the weight! They're all tough old boots and bounce back after severe haircuts.
Don't forget lavender - bootiful night and day

[Thelma Sanders]

This
Nicotiana affinis var. grandiflora Seeds

is the best nicotiana for fragrance, very heavy in the evening It closes up in hot sunshine though - so at its very best planted somewhere with a little shade at mid day.

[rary]

I would go with Honysuckle, Night Scented Stock, Nicotiana, Jasmin and Oriental Lillies, also some of the trailing petunias are quite fragrent, and you could always look up that book The Perfumed Garden

[WPG]

I'd add sweet rocket as well, the scent is quite similar to night scented stock.

[Nicos]

Gosh..some lovely ideas..! I can imagine the scent of some of those just thinking about them!
Lovely!

I was mentioning this to my mom today and that we'd also be developing a small seated area in the field behind an old apple cart and the scented flowers would work really well there too.
Asking about shade, she's offered to buy us 2 or 3 silver birch trees for our joint Xmas pressie!
How perfect is that!