Huron Hometown News

Recently while thinking about the hope of evenings with friends on the patio, I decided to research what types of plants would be great to have around the patio, simply to enjoy their fragrance.  We know that white plants show up best at night, and are best planted near lights to again help brighten the evening, but the problem was finding the right type of plant to put near those lights and to have near our seating areas.

The following annuals are available locally as seeds or on the Internet in catalog form as plants.  First, consider moonflowers, Ipomoea Alba, which come in bush form as well as vines, and both are planted from seeds.  The vine grows to 15 feet tall, with large 6” morning glory-like blooms in the purest white.  Occasionally these can be found as seedlings, so check around locally.
Tuberoses or Polianthes tuberosa are bulbs with a truly fragrant scent.  Plant in containers or in the nearby garden about 3” deep, and dig up the bulbs in the fall for storage before the first heavy frost.  The flowers remind me of double white gladiolus.
Nicotiana or Nicotiana alata’ is a tall annual which grows to 5’ tall, and tubular flowers that smell like a cross between jasmine and freesia.
Datura is a tender perennial, which means it is hardy in Zone 6.  The trumpets are the purest of white, and the blooms reach 8” across.  The plant is very thirsty, requiring 1 gallon of water a day in a 16” pot.  It starts blooming in mid June, and can be taken inside for the winter in a cool room to hold until next spring.  My experience with the plant is great, and the growth in one year had the plant having 42 trumpet flowers at one time.  It’s a great show piece, good on a patio, and a great attention getter.  The plant grew to 5’ tall and 6’ wide in one season.
We have one perennial here in U.S. Zone 5, and that is the wisteria floribunda.  It is a hard plant to get started, usually blooming in 3-5 years, but once started you will love the long purple/white clusters of flowers.  It would be wise to get one that is already in bloom when you purchase it.  Plant it alongside the edge of a patio for best exposure.
Lastly, each year my husband and I plant Four o’clocks, Mirabilis Jalapa, near the patio as well.  It has multicolored blooms, and they open around 4PM each day.  They love full sun but can survive partial shade.  There  is a lemon scent that is pleasing in the evening.
It’s time now to design your patio, so have fun with scents this summer.  Happy Gardening.