Judging by the tsunami of “likes” on our Facebook page, you all love fragrant plants. Fuel that passion with these 16 shrubs that we promise will fill the air with haunting, romantic fragrance. Some are sweet and others spicy, laden with showy flowers or with sneaky little blossoms you never see coming. All of which will greet you from a block away. (Let’s make it 17–because who can resist the seductive fragrance of a Royal Star Magnolia in bloom!) For sweet scented shrubs perfect for zones 4-7, click here.
Zones: 8 – 9
Small, tender evergreen tree with glossy, olive green foliage which has an anise-like aroma when crushed.
Highly prized for the profusion of sweetly fragrant blooms, excellent for cut flowers.
Variegated Japanese Mock Orange
Zones: 8 – 11
Creamy white flowers are small but have a terrific orange-blossom fragrance.
Himalayan Sweet Box
Zones: 6 – 9
Great groundcover for the shade garden! Fragrant white flowers are followed by blue-black fruit.
Zones: 5-9
Low-maintenance and compact, this oregon grape has showy yellow blooms and evergreen foliage that changes color through the seasons.
Gilt Edge Silverberry
Zones: 7 – 11
Evergreen shrub with golden margins, and tiny fragrant flowers followed by small red berries.
Chindo Sweet Viburnum
Zones: 7 – 11
Excellent dense tall hedge with fragrant spring blooms followed by red berries that later turn black.
Arabian Jasmine
Zones: 9 – 11
Intensely fragrant little white flowers open at night and close in the morning, fading to pink as they age.
Zones: 4 – 9
A compact shrub with aromatic spikes of rose-pink flowers held above glossy foliage.
Night Blooming Jessamine
Zones: 9 – 11
Small greenish white flowers have superbly sweet fragrance, an intoxicating addition to the evening scented garden.
Banana Shrub
Zones: 8 – 11
Fragrant, creamy-yellow blooms shaded with purple have a banana-like scent.
Eternal Fragrance Daphne
Zones: 6 – 9
A compact, tidy shrub with clusters of blush-pink flowers that last for months.
Zones: 5 – 8
Fragrant Olive
Zones: 8 – 11
Tiny flower clusters have a delightful apricot-like fragrance against dark green finely toothed foliage.
Angel White Lilac
Zones: 3 – 8
One of the best lilacs for warm winter areas. Spectacular clusters of fragrant pure white flowers produced without winter chilling.
Aphrodite Sweetshrub
Zones: 5 – 9
Large, sweet apple-like scented, bright red, magnolia-like blooms, and glossy foliage.