Fragrant flowers for your garden

Why not choose plants that perform best when you are actually around to enjoy them? Plant a few of these aromatic gems around your home and add a whole new level of relaxation.

It’s all very well to look out for plants that will produce your favourite colour combinations, but have you considered fragrances? Wouldn’t it be lovely to plant flowering plants that will pander to both your eyes and your nose?
Moses Makona, a gardener with Mukwano Tree Planting Association recommends the gardenia, a flowering shrub and miniature roses, smaller versions of roses.

The Gardenia
The gardenia (Gardenia Jasminoides) is a flowering shrub in the coffee family. It produces white flowers and has a beautiful scent. It is best to plant them near windows or verandahs, so that the scent can waft into your living spaces, usually at night.
Propagate it using cuttings. “Cut a piece at the bud, put manure on it and wait three days. There is a type of manure that we use. But you can use compost. We then tie it to a mature Gardenia plant and wait three months for it to germinate. After that, we plant the stem in the ground,” says Mukona.
Plant them half a metre to one metre from each plant, because they grow big. They don’t need a lot of maintenance. Pruning and adding a little manure to the soil will do, although you don’t have to apply the manure.
There is no need to mulch or weed. Water it once a week. It will take two years to mature, but will flower within three months. 10 to 15 of its flowers will bloom for two months, then they will wilt, while other flowers that will bloom for another two months take over. They bloom all year round and can grow to six feet.

Miniature roses
Sam Mugenyi of Gardens and Homes says miniature roses often have the same fragrances and come in the same colours as normal roses. Their small sizes make them ideal for planting in containers, but you can plant them in the gardens as well. There are many types of miniature roses – compact, bushy, cascading, climbing, micro-mini and mini flora, among others. They bloom all year round. You can also cut the flowers for mini-bouquets.

“We cut the stems, plant them in small polythene bags and put them directly in the sun. They need a lot of sunshine. Then we water them once daily, either in the morning or in the evening. They take two weeks to grow. After that, we plant them in the ground. Space them half a metre from each other,” Mukona says of their propagation.
They have miniature roses in red, white and pink, but they can come in any colour. Although they don’t grow big, keep pruning the branches. They grow to about four feet and don’t need weeding.
Just like normal roses, green flies and aphids attack them. Use ambush or marathon to get rid of them.

Position them, as edging for beds and for the taller plants; and around the verandah or along walkways where your visitors can bury their noses in the blooms as they pass by.

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