Fragrance is the one quality that cannot be seen in a photograph, so it tends to be forgotten at the point of purchase. Gardens are chosen from images, and scent never appears in them. The result is a great many gardens that look considered and smell of nothing. Fixing that takes two decisions: choosing plants whose flowering months between them cover the year, and putting each one where you will actually walk past it. This guide covers both, with the flowering months given for subtropical and warm temperate Australia.
Quick facts
| Plant | Botanical name | Flowering months | Mature size | Best position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gardenia | Gardenia augusta | October to April | 1m x 1m | Beside a door or path |
| Star jasmine | Trachelospermum jasminoides | October to November | Climber to 6m | Fence or wall near seating |
| Mock orange | Murraya paniculata | September to March, in flushes | 3m x 2m | Hedge along a boundary path |
| Sweet osmanthus | Osmanthus fragrans | March to June | 3m x 2m | Near a window |
| Port wine magnolia | Michelia figo | September to November | 3m x 2m | Beside a path, brushed in passing |
| Frangipani | Plumeria rubra | December to April | 5m x 4m | Full sun, near an outdoor table |
| French lavender | Lavandula dentata | August to December | 1m x 1m | Path edge, brushed by hand |
| Rosemary | Rosmarinus officinalis | June to October | 1.5m x 1m | Hot dry edge near the kitchen |
| Southern magnolia | Magnolia grandiflora | November to February | 4m to 8m | Lawn specimen or screen |
Choosing the right fragrant plant
The heavy, sweet perfumes come from the warm-climate evergreens. Gardenia is the strongest of them and flowers over six months in the subtropics; our guide to growing gardenia covers the feeding and pH it needs. Murraya paniculata flowers in flushes a few days after rain and scents an entire street when it does; see our mock orange care guide. Star jasmine is the best-value scented climber in the country and is covered in star jasmine as an ornamental vine.
For autumn, when almost nothing else is scented, sweet osmanthus carries small apricot-scented flowers that are easy to miss visually and impossible to miss otherwise. It clips well enough to use as a hedge, which makes it one of the most underused fragrant shrubs in Australian gardens.
For summer, frangipani is the defining scent of an Australian December; see frangipani varieties. Teddy bear magnolia carries large lemon-scented flowers through the same months on a much more compact tree than the species.
Aromatic foliage works differently from flowers, releasing scent only when touched, which makes lavender and rosemary path-edge plants rather than background ones. And a number of the strongest-scented flowers release their perfume after dark to attract moths, which is worth knowing if you use the garden in the evening; see the science behind nocturnal flowers.
Where to position fragrant plants
Scent only works at close range, so placement matters more than plant choice. Put flowering fragrance where you stop moving: beside an outdoor table, along the approach to the front door, or under a bedroom window that stays open in summer. Star jasmine on a fence beside a seating area does more than the same plant on a back boundary.
Put aromatic foliage where it gets brushed. Lavender and rosemary along a path edge release scent every time someone walks past, which is a different and more frequent experience than a flower that performs for three weeks a year. Keep strong perfumes such as gardenia and frangipani away from an outdoor dining table where the scent can overwhelm food, and use them at the approach instead.
How to plant
Dig a hole twice the width of the root ball and exactly its depth, so the top of the root ball finishes flush with the surrounding soil. Loosen the sides of the hole and tease out any circling roots. Backfill with the excavated soil improved with compost, firm gently and water in thoroughly.
Gardenia is the fussiest of this group and wants acidic soil between pH 5.0 and 6.0, with morning sun and afternoon shade in hot districts. Lavender and rosemary want the opposite: full sun, lean soil and sharp drainage, and both rot in enriched, heavily mulched beds. Plant them on a slight mound with a gravel mulch rather than a bark one. Frangipani needs full sun, frost-free conditions and free-draining soil. Mulch everything else to 75 millimetres, keeping mulch clear of the stems.
Ongoing care
Watering
Water new plants deeply twice a week through the first summer, then weekly. Gardenia is the thirstiest and drops buds if it dries out while flowering. Murraya, osmanthus and michelia settle into weekly watering and cope with dry spells once established. Lavender and rosemary need very little once away and are far more often killed by watering than by drought.
Feeding
Feed gardenia with an acidic or azalea and camellia fertiliser in early spring and again after the first flush. Murraya and osmanthus take a balanced controlled-release fertiliser in early spring. Frangipani responds to a high-potassium feed as growth starts in spring. Do not feed lavender or rosemary beyond a light spring application, as rich soil produces soft growth and weak scent.
Pruning
Tip-prune gardenia after each flowering flush to keep it dense. Clip murraya after flowering rather than during, or you cut off the flush you are waiting for. Prune star jasmine hard in late summer if it is outgrowing its support. Cut lavender back by about a third after flowering, never into bare wood, since it will not reshoot from it. Prune frangipani only to shape, in late winter, and let the cuts dry before rain.
Common problems and fixes
Yellow gardenia leaves with green veins mean iron is locked up by high soil pH. Apply chelated iron for a quick correction and lower the pH for a lasting one. Bud drop follows any sudden check, most often drying out or a cold snap.
Murraya that never flowers is usually being clipped too often; give it two months without a cut and the flush will come. Woody, splayed lavender with a bare centre has been left unpruned too long and cannot be recovered by cutting into old wood, so replace it and prune the replacement annually. Sooty mould on any of these shrubs indicates scale or aphid underneath; treat the insect and the mould weathers away. Frangipani rust shows as orange pustules under the leaves in late summer and is cosmetic in most years; rake up and bin fallen leaves.
Fragrance works differently in Australia
Volatile aromatic compounds evaporate faster in heat and humidity, which means a frangipani or gardenia in Brisbane or Darwin carries noticeably further on a summer evening than the same plant in Melbourne or Hobart. It also means fragrance peaks at dusk here, which happens to be when most people are outside.
If you garden in the south and want evening scent, concentrate fragrant plants in the warmest sheltered spot you have - typically a north-facing courtyard that holds the day's heat.
Fragrant plants by climate
| Plant | Scent | Where it performs |
|---|---|---|
| Frangipani | The classic Australian summer scent | Brisbane, coastal NSW, Perth, Darwin |
| Gardenia | Rich, strongest in the evening | Brisbane, Sydney, Perth, warm Melbourne |
| Murraya | Orange blossom, after rain and at dusk | Brisbane, Sydney, Perth, Darwin |
| Star jasmine | Sweet, heavy, spring | Every Australian capital |
| Native gardenia (Randia) | Intense evening perfume | Subtropical Queensland and NSW |
| Native frangipani (Hymenosporum) | Honey-sweet, spring | Queensland and NSW east coast |
| Lemon-scented myrtle | Intense citrus foliage | Subtropical east coast |
| Boronia | Extraordinary, brief, difficult | Cool southern gardens |
| Rosemary and lavender | Foliage scent on touch | Adelaide, Perth, Melbourne |
The Australian natives worth knowing
Several are outstanding and under-used. Native frangipani (Hymenosporum flavum) produces honey-scented cream flowers on a tree suited to east coast gardens. Native gardenia (Randia fitzalanii) gives intense evening perfume and is far tougher than shrub gardenias. Lemon-scented myrtle releases a powerful citrus scent when leaves are brushed, and is used commercially as a bush food.
Brown boronia is the famous one - the scent is extraordinary and the plant is genuinely difficult, being short-lived and demanding sharp drainage and cool roots. Worth trying in a pot in a cool climate rather than committing a bed to it.
Place it where you will actually smell it
- Beside seating and doorways, not at the back fence. Scent at the boundary is wasted.
- Under a window you open in the evening.
- Along a path where people brush past - essential for foliage-scented plants like rosemary and lemon myrtle, which release scent on contact rather than into the air.
- In an enclosed courtyard, where still air concentrates fragrance rather than dispersing it.
- Sheltered from wind - an exposed position blows scent away before you notice it.
Do not overdo it
Several of these are powerful, and in an enclosed Australian courtyard on a hot still evening a large gardenia or murraya can be genuinely overwhelming. One or two strongly scented plants near seating is usually enough; a whole garden of them competes with itself.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most fragrant plant for an Australian garden?
Gardenia for sheer intensity over the longest season, and murraya for the scent that travels furthest. Between them they cover most of the year in the subtropics.
Which fragrant plants flower in winter in Australia?
Sweet osmanthus flowers from March into June, and rosemary carries flowers through winter into spring. In cooler districts daphne fills the same gap, though it needs perfect drainage and resents being moved.
Where should I plant fragrant shrubs?
Where you slow down or stop: beside the front door, along a path, or near outdoor seating. Aromatic foliage such as lavender and rosemary belongs at a path edge where it gets brushed in passing.
Do fragrant plants attract bees?
Yes, since perfume exists to attract pollinators. Lavender, rosemary and murraya are particularly good for bees, so keep them a little away from doorways if anyone in the household reacts badly to stings.
Why has my gardenia stopped smelling?
Scent production drops sharply in low light and in cool weather. A gardenia in too much shade will still flower but the perfume weakens noticeably. Move it to a position with morning sun.
Ready to plant?
Choose two or three that flower in different months and position them where you walk. Our fragrant plants range covers everything in the table, and the gardenias collection lists every cultivar we carry, from compact groundcover forms to full-size shrubs.
Growing roses alongside? Our rose care guide for Australian conditions covers planting, feeding, pruning and the black spot problem by climate zone.
