Perfect Perennial Pairings for an Aromatic Garden
Posted by Annie Algren on Jun 1st 2025
Perfect Perennial Pairings for an Aromatic Garden
Incorporating aromatic perennials into your garden offers numerous benefits that can enhance your gardening experience, both visually and sensory-wise. While fragrance from plants most notably comes from the blooms, it can just as often make an impact with its foliage. Here are three perfect aromatic perennial pairings that combine fragrance, hardiness, and versatility and will offer sweet scents in each season
Mock Orange (philadelphus spp.)
Attributes
A deciduous shrub with lush, dark green foliage and an abundance of wonderfully fragrgant, large white flowers resembling orange blossoms.
Growth Habit
Dense, upright, round
Soil Type
Loam
Bloom Color/Scent
White, sweet orange-like scent
Size
3-6' H x 3-6' W
Bloom Time
Late spring- early summer
Use
Excellent as a privacy screen, shrub border, foundation planting, or spring blooming specimen.
Maintenance
Prune after flowering if desired.
Benefits
Tolerates drought, deer/rabbit resistant, attracts pollinators, strong scent while in bloom
Walker’s Low Catmint (Nepeta faassenii)
Attributes
A durable herbaceous perennial with aromatic gray-green foliage, forming low, sprawling clumps
Growth Habit
Clumping
Soil Type
Loam, will tolerate clay
Bloom Color/ Scent
Purple- Minty, herbal scent
Size
24-32” H x 24-32” W
Bloom Time
Early Summer to Mid-Summer
Use
Perfect for rock gardens, cottage gardens, mixed borders, boulevard plantings, or massed in groupings or rows.
Maintenance
Dense spikes of small, tubular flowers benefit from a good trim after blooming
Benefits
Drought/salt tolerant, deer/rabbit resistant, low maintenance, long-lasting blooms, fragrant foliage, attracts pollinators
Anise Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)
Attributes
A MN native herbaceous perennial with tall, violet-blue flower spikes and bright green, anise-scented foliage
Growth Habit
Upright, clumping, spreading
Soil Type
Loam, will tolerate sand, clay
Bloom Color
Blue/Purple- Sweet, licorice-like aroma with minty undertones
Size
24-48” H x 24-36” W
Bloom Time
Early Summer to Fall
Use
Suitable for use as a tall accent, background planting, or mass planting in sunny beds and pollinator gardens
Maintenance
Prune in early spring to encourage bushier growth and after the first bloom to encourage a second bloom. Divide every 3-5 years to control spread
Benefits
Tolerates drought, deer and rabbit resistant, attracts numerous pollinators, fragrant foliage
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