The sweet scents of winter are a wonder (From Worcester News)

The sweet scents of winter are a wonder

11:22am Monday 13th November 2006 in Gardening

FOR me, the scent of a garden is almost as important as the structure and colours of it and there is never a shortage of aromatic plants in the summer months - but what about winter?

It's such a wonderful feeling to have a walk round the garden on a crisp, sharp winter morning and enjoy the fragrance of a number of plants which provide perfume during the winter months.

A number of evergreens, including the cypress variety Cupressus Wilma, release a delicious lemon scent when you brush past their leaves, but there are plenty more to choose from.

Daphnes, for instance, cannot be beaten for winter scent, and in particular the deciduous D. mezereum, which has pink-purple clusters of aromatic flowers in winter and early spring and grows to around 1.2m (4ft), and D. odora, an evergreen shrub with purple and white flowers in mid winter, which grows to around 1.5m (5ft).

Try D. Aureomarginata for a reliable, flower-packed result, with its green leaves faintly edged with yellow-cream and pink flowers.

Be warned, though, that if your garden is in a frost pocket, like mine, you may be restricted to the deciduous forms unless you can find a sheltered spot.

Christmas box (Sarcococca) is another powerful evergreen winter-flowering shrub which should take a place in the scented winter garden. It produces tiny white, extremely fragrant flowers in winter and thrives in well-drained soil in deep shade. S. confusa produces white flowers followed by black fruit, while S. humilis grows to 60cm (2ft) and has white blooms tinged with pink.

Another fragrant must-have is Chinese witch hazel (Hamamilis molis) a deciduous shrub flowering in mid-to-late winter with scented yellow, spidery flowers, growing to 4m (12ft) high. For an orange hue go for H. x intermedia Jelena, which has copper-coloured flowers.

Most winter flowering shrubs use scent rather than visual appeal to attract the few pollinators that are around in winter because it works over a much larger area.

As you don't generally spend as much time wandering around the garden during the cooler months, it may be wise to plant your scented winter plants near the house. Scented plants suitable for containers include golden feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium Aureum'), a low-growing gold leaved perennial with ferny, aromatic leaves, which can be planted out in the summer.

Alternatively, try growing a winter shrub such as winter jasmine up the side of the house or framing a doorway, which will supply you with vivid yellow flowers from late autumn until early spring. If you grow it in full sun the flowers will appear earlier.

The shrub Winter Sweet (Chimonanthus praecox) has almost translucent yellow bell-shaped flowers that, as its name suggests, carry a superb scent. It can be grown in the open in a frost-free spot, although it has more effect if trained against a wall, as the extra warmth improves flowering by ripening the wood during the summer.

You can even get honeysuckle that flowers in the winter - non-climbing types bearing fragrant cream flowers in mid-winter. Try Lonicera x purpusii Winter Beauty', which has a delicious fragrance and flowers which are good for cutting.