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Scented winter flowering shrubs

wisehedgecronewisehedgecrone Posts: 118
in Plants
Hi all!
sorry for indifferent typing but ive fractured my wrist!
We have cleared an area of garden and i'd love an area of relatively slow growing scented winter flowering shrubs which dont get too huge or can be kept within bounds. We already have, elsewhere:
hamamelis
mahonia

and i was wondering about Winter Flowering white/pink forsythia - Abeliophyllum- and how easy that is to grow. can it be a free standing shrub or must it be fence/wall trained? Does it require full sun?

Which sarcococca is best for scent and doesnt get too big?

Climbers: chocolate vine? Any thoughts on that or others?

i will underplant with spring bulbs, hellebores and spring perennials ultimately

Any suggestions welcome! cant wait for my wrist to heal....
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Posts

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    The scent from my sarcococca confusa on a sunny winter day is heavenly!  Not a fast grower and simple to clip back if needed.  :)

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • steephillsteephill Posts: 2,841
    Daphne would seem to fit the description you give.
  • Ladybird4Ladybird4 Posts: 37,906
    Chimonanthus praecox is another fragrant shrub for Winter. Mine is near to a Sarcococca and you could get drunk on the combined scents!
    Cacoethes: An irresistible urge to do something inadvisable
  • Joyce GoldenlilyJoyce Goldenlily Posts: 2,933

    Lonicera fragrantissima.

    Winter flowering honeysuckle. Almost evergreen, bush, non climbing and once established loved as a nesting site by blackbirds. Can be easily pruned to height etc. Delicious scent.

    I planted a pittosporum a few years ago which is a wonderful evergreen shrub with very small primrose yellow tubular flowers, very rich lemon citrus scented flowers all year round down here in Cornwall, but I cannot remember the full name. I gave mine a heavy prune 2 years ago and almost killed it. It is still alive, making new shoots but still very unhappy.

    Myrtle is another richly scented evergreen bush which down here will grow into a tree but I am sure, with judicious pruning could be kept to the size required as it is slow growing.

    Viburnham Bodnantence Dawn is another excellent perfumed winter flowering shrub.

    Daphnes are lovely but down here mine only seem to survive for about 5 years before turning up their toes.

    Witchazels are another lovely family but be sure to smell the flowers before buying. I bought one for my daughter, out of flower, thinking it was scented and nothing.




  • RubytooRubytoo Posts: 1,630
    edited January 2019
    If by Chocolate vine you mean Akebia, it grow madly here, also did in Yorkshire in a friends garden. We have clay soil they had sandy. They used to call it demented.
    So I imagine it is pretty vigorous. The stems seem to root easily if you miss tying them in. East wall here and it flops behind the compost bins rooting as it goes if you don't watch it, it gets everywhere.
    It is nice though.


    Doves sarcococca  is possibly better than hookeriana digyna, but that has a
    longer narrow leaf and reddish new stems so is nicely different. We have
    both and the digyna tends to sucker more than the other I think? Not bad
    but a large old clump needs a few bits pulling to keep it in the border.
    Scent is as lovely, and around two and a half feet tall.

    Hope your fracture heals soon.
  • wisehedgecronewisehedgecrone Posts: 118
    Ladybird4 said:
    Chimonanthus praecox is another fragrant shrub for Winter. Mine is near to a Sarcococca and you could get drunk on the combined scents!
    Fab - doesnt Chimonanthus take a few years to settle in before it flowers? or is that something else?
  • wisehedgecronewisehedgecrone Posts: 118
    ive never grown pittosporum so that sounds good! love Chimonanthus and vseen that in various gardens. Agreed the scent from them, and others suggested here, are incredible. Never heard of Doves sarcococca though! 
    Joyce - have lonicera fragrantissima in the front garden and its got very unruly and needs a prune after its done flowering. love virburnums and i do have a Dawn but i keep pruning it back so it doesnt flower very well! 
    Thank all of you for your wonderful suggestions!



  • MarlorenaMarlorena Posts: 8,705
    My Daphne 'Jacqueline Postill' is out now, and will flower until mid April.. it's very hardy and doesn't care about the weather... easy to keep at 6' x 3' or about 8' x 4' as mine is,  but capable of 12 x 6 unpruned, at least..


    East Anglia, England
  • granmagranma Posts: 1,933
    Cornus mid winter isn't scented but it's a beautiful shrub for winter .it's decidues but the stems are a lovely pale beige to Orange then turn to a exquisite red so you get a fantastic colour mix of both.,along with yellow greenish  florets similar to elderflower in looks .But much smaller .these turn to a creamy white as the year goes on.

  • wisehedgecronewisehedgecrone Posts: 118
    I agree - have that cornus midwinter fire elsewhere. Only limited room so will have to be selective! Am also thinking of a Fothergilla - I know it's not winter flowering but I think some varieties have lovely autumn leaf colour.
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