10 award-winning (AGM) fragrant patio plants
Patios and terraces deserve plants that do more than just look good – they should smell divine too. The best choices combine colour, elegance and fragrance, creating spaces we want to linger in, while demanding little in return
When choosing plants for patios, terraces or even that single prized container by the front door, it’s tempting to focus only on colour – the longer it lasts, the better. But the best selections bring more to the table: an elegance of form, a natural style, and above all, fragrance.
Whether it drifts from flowers as you pass by or is released from foliage when you brush against it, scent adds another sensory layer to your space. Almost all of the plants in this list are holders of the prestigious RHS Award of Garden Merit (AGM), so you can be confident they’ll thrive in ordinary conditions while delighting the senses for months on end.
A vigorous, evergreen climber with scent to consider is Trachelospermum jasminoides, with twining stems and glossy, oval leaves that often take on deep bronze-red tones in winter. In mid to late summer, it produces clusters of starry white flowers with a rich, sweet fragrance that’s especially enchanting on warm evenings. Perfect for providing evergreen cover and seasonal scent, it also thrives in a generous-sized pot, making it a versatile choice for patios, balconies, or garden walls. Height 9cm (3.5in). Hardiness rating H4.
From the clove-scented pinks of Shakespeare’s time to the richly scented modern hybrids, just about everyone in the country knows pinks and their fragrance. Modern developments have brought us large flowers, a long season, intense colours and superb scent and the British bred Scent First Series is paramount. In Dianthus ‘Devon Flavia’ (Scent First Series), one of the best of the series, the 3.5cm flowers are pale sugar pink with pale crimson flashes towards the centre and darken as they mature. The frilled petal tips add instant appeal. Height 37cm (14in). Hardiness rating H6.
Many daphnes are scented and some have powerful fragrances that waft around the garden. But in a small space we need a little more than that and Daphne × transatlantica ETERNAL FRAGRANCE (‘Blafra’) wins with its unusually long flowering season, blooming well into autumn. Its yellow-eyed, pink-tinted white flowers open not only at the shoot tips but at the leaf joints further back on each shoot. The result is a neat, colourful, slowly expanding dome with months of delightful scent. Height 75cm (29.5in). Hardniess rating H5.
Heliotrope may not currently be in vogue, which is surprising given its strong and dependable powdery vanilla fragrance. Perhaps its reputation suffers because some modern seed-raised varieties lack scent, but the fragrant ones are truly worth seeking out. Heliotropium arborescens ‘Chatsworth’, raised from cuttings, is not only much taller and more imposing than seed-raised types, but its pale purple flowers are unusually strongly scented. Height 1m (3.2ft). Hardiness rating H1c.
No discussion of scent is complete without sweet peas, and for fragrance, Lathyrus odoratus ‘High Scent’ stands out as the top choice. Lathyrus odoratus ‘Solway Snowflake’, along with the other award winners in the Solway Series, is particularly notable for reaching only half the height of typical sweet peas. Ideal in a tight space – scrambling over a low fence, tumbling down a bank or spilling out of a large container – ‘Solway Snowflake’ is pure white with a tiny red flash in the upper petals. Lovely, and well scented too. Height 1m (3.2ft). Hardiness rating H2.
With so many lavender varieties now available, choosing can be a challenge. Lavandula angustifolia ‘Miss Katherine’ remains a standout, combining lasting appeal with exceptional quality. It’s more elegant than many; its grey-green aromatic leaves make a compact evergreen mass and its production of spikes of super-fragrant pink flowers is prodigious. Clip after flowering to help retain its shape. Height 75m (29.5in). Hardiness rating H5.
Flowering tobacco, Nicotiana sylvestris, looks superb and smells wonderful. What’s not to like? Well, it can reach 2m in height in rich soil and a sunny site, and its big bold paddle-shaped leaves take up space. But all summer and into autumn its erect stems are topped with generous pendulous clusters of long pure white flowers whose evening fragrance is captivating. Raise from seed, or you can now usually buy plants in garden centres. In sheltered gardens it may even behave as a perennial. Height 2m (6.5ft). Hardiness rating H2.
The first petunias to arrive in Britain from South America in the early 19th century were very fragrant but, as the decades rolled by, developments brought larger flowers, more varied colours, less straggly growth – but the fragrance became less noticeable. By contrast, just pass by a hanging basket of Petunia PRISCILLA (‘Kerpril’) (Tumbelina Series) and you can’t miss the fragrance. This neat, semi-trailing, double-flowered variety with its purple-veined lavender flowers is ideal in a basket as a specimen or mingled with other flowers. Height 30cm (11in). Hardiness rating H2.
Pelargonium ‘Citriodorum’ is a bushy
Since David Austin’s first rose, Rosa ‘Constance Spry’ (1961), fragrance has been a crucial factor his introductions. One favourite, for its citrus scent, is Rosa LADY EMMA HAMILTON (‘Ausbrother’). Introduced more than 10 years ago, its relatively upright growth carries shining, disease-resistant foliage and is topped by rich, orange-tinted, apricot flowers that don’t open flat but remain what is described as chalice-shaped. With the more lemony shades on the outside of the petals, the harmony of colour tones is lovely. Height 1.2m (3.9ft). Hardiness rating H6.
