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Homemade Fragrance Garden

Smart Solutions : Episode SSL-837 -- More Projects »
Gardening expert Marianne Binetti provides tips for creating a fragrant garden.
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Figure A
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Figure B

  • The easiest way to have a fragrance garden if you have a small space is in containers (figure A).

  • Create a garden room that includes an area that has picket fencing (figure B). It creates an instant garden wall. Be sure it's in a spot that gets at least three to four hours of sun each day.

  • Decorate trellises with fragrant annual vines.
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Figure C
  • Build raised flower beds to ensure good drainage. The soil will warm up sooner in the spring, and bulbs in raised beds are less likely to be damaged by mice or moles that destroy bulbs. An easy way to do a raised bed is by simply lining your fragrance garden with rocks (figure C) and filling in with a good top soil.

  • Use gravel that you have as a natural garden floor. Set stepping stones in the gravel to make it easier to walk on. Plant thyme and corsican mint underneath the stones so that when you walk on them, the scent is released.
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    Figure D
  • No matter what kind of plant or flower you choose, arrange them from tallest in the back to smallest in the front (figure D). This creates a pyramid of blooms. For example, place flowering shrubs in the back--things like lilac and forsythia--then perennials, then creeping plants like thyme. Try to have at least three levels of plants with three different fragrances for maximum effect.

  • Lilac is one of the most popular fragrant plants. They bloom during various times during the spring, depending on the variety. Choose a variety to have blooms all throughout spring.
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    Figure E
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    Figure F
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    Figure G
  • Plants that bloom with white flowers attract pollinating insects (figure E) because of their strong scents, rather than the color.

  • Lilies (figure F) are the divas of a fragrant garden. They have long legs and exotic blooms and are easy to grow, no matter what the climate.

  • Create an ornamental lily stake with an old outdoor chair (figure G). It will keep them upright, as they tend to droop. Just take the seat out of the chair and give it a fresh coat of paint if you like.

  • Herbs such as basil or oregano are good for fragrance, too. Just brush your fingers against them to release the scent.

  • Make sure the sun hits your fragrance garden if you plan to spend time sitting in or around it.
    • Resources
    Easy Answers for Great Gardens: 500 Tips, Techniques, and Outlandish Ideas
    by Marianne Binetti
    Sasquatch Books, 2000
    Order this title from Amazon.com.

    Guests
    Marianne Binetti
    Gardening Expert / Author
    PO Box 872
    Enumclaw, WA 98022
    Phone: 360-825-6186
    E-mail: Info@BinettiGarden.com
    Website: www.binettigarden.com
    Also in this Episode
    Smart Solutions : Episode SSL-837
    •Practical Clothing Layers
    •Homemade Fragrance Garden
    •Throwing a Dessert Party
    •Smart Solution of the Day
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