Florabunda Seeds - View and order from our Wildflower, Cottage Garden, Heirloom & Unusual Varieties Seed Catalog.

Fragrant Annuals

Items 163 - 194

163. BLUE WOODRUFF
Asperula orientalis
A must for blue flower lovers. This annual mounding plant grows to one foot high and will form a wonderful ground cover. Woodruff is said to signify humility because it grows so close to the ground. Lilaclike flowers are fragrant and will bloom all summer and well into fall. Start early spring. Thrives in moist wooded area. Listed in an 1879 catalogue. Well self-seed.
$3.00

164. DATURA
Trumpet Flower, Angel’s Trumpet’ Datura metel
Large 15-20 cm long, white trumpets festoon this annual plant that can be used in a mass or as a specimen. Provide full sun and fertile, welldrained soil to produce large leaves and lots of gorgeous, fragrant flowers that will bloom and bloom to the first frost. Start them indoors 12 weeks before last frost. All parts of this plant are dangerous if ingested. Listed in an 1879 catalogue. Drought tolerant. Tr.
$3.00

165. SWEET SULTAN ‘The Bride’
Centaurea imperialis
A rare and renowned variety of Sweet Sultan with 8 cm mounded tufts of white flowers on long stems, excellent for cutting. Sweet vanilla fragrance. Their bloom time extends right through till frost. Deadhead occasionally D.S. 45 cm tall. Space 30 cm.
$3.00

166. SWEET SULTAN MIXED
Centaurea imperialis
Scented flowers with colours ranging from rose to lilac-pink and purple-violets.
$3.00

SWEET PEAS Lathyrus odoratus
A flower with a mystique exhaulted to almost angelic proportions is the heavenly sweet pea. The gardener’s love affair with the Sweet Pea goes back to 1699 to the cool, mountainous pastures of Sicily where it was ‘discovered’ by an Italian monk. Seed was sent to a Dr. Uvedale, a gardener and physician in England who grew it under glass. Its heady fragrance made it most desirable and after the development of several new colours and an increase in bloom size, it was much sought after cut flower gracing the finest of tables. In the language of flowers, the sweet pea means adieu or departure.

Fanciers adore its intoxicating perfume, its colour and its generosity as a cut flower (but disagree on cultivation methods!). We soak the seeds, sow them directly in fertile soil in early spring 2.5 cm deep, pinch back when 15 cm high and provide netting or strings for them to climb up. Mulch to keep roots cool. Cut bouquets often to prevent seeds from forming. “Keep on cutting, keep on flowering” said J.S. Eckford, the son of Henry Eckford, the great Victorian sweet pea grower.

A nursery catalogue from 1907 shows 461 varieties trialed at the Royal Seed Establishment in Reading, England. These exquisite and highly fragrant varieties from yesteryear are slowly making a comeback and we at Florabunda are delighted to offer the following twelve choices.
$3.00

167. CAPRI
An old Spencer variety with large, fragrant light blue flowers.

168. BLACK KNIGHT
First introduced in 1898, this vareity has extremely fragrant maroon and violet bi-colour blooms.

169. PAINTED LADY
Introduced in 1737, this intensely fragrant vareity is a carmine pink-white bi-colour. L.B. Wilder in The Fragrant Path writes “to pick them when the dew is still upon them. It is then when they are the sweetest and most refreshing to inhale.”

170. FLAGSHIP
Dark blue flowers bloom from summer late into the autumn.

171. LEAMINGTON
From the Spencer Family of sweet peas, this variety has medium-sized, fragrant, lilac lavender blooms.

172. KING EDWARD VII
The year 1903 brought this sweetly scented, crimson addition.

173. QUEEN ALEXANDRA
in 1906, this deep scarlet shade quickly became a favourite.

174. LADY GRISEL HAMILTON Lathyrus odoratus
“Do I imagine or is it fact that lavender and mauve and purple Sweet Peas have the sweetest fragrance? There is an old variety called Lady Grisel Hamilton that is delightful.” writes L.B. Wilder in The Fragrant Path. Bred in 1899.
$3.00

175. OLD SPICE MIX
An heirloom mix of flowers ranging in colour from bi-colour purple, pink, scarlet; rose to cream and renowned for its potent fragrance and exceptional heat tolerance.

176. LORD NELSON
1907 brought this navy blue choice.

177. UNWIN’S STRIPED (BUTTERFLY) MIX
From 1887, these unusual heirlooms feature various coloured blooms that are striped on a white or cream background.

178. WELCOME
The large intense red blooms make this an irresistible addition to your garden.

179. WHITE ENSIGN
Developed in England in 1901. White Ensign boasts large, wavy, ruffled white petals.

180. MAMOUTH MIX
This “newer” version of the sweet pea was propagated in the early 1900s. It has similar growth habits to the old antique varieties but has larger flowers and is less fragrant. There is a rainbow of colours in the mix.

181. PRINCE OF ORANGE
A pure orange version of this popular sweet pea. Some older horticultural books suggest that it was named in honour of the Dutch Royal Family – the House of Orange.

182. EVERLASTING PEA Lathyrus latifolius
A cottage garden favourite, this perennial variety will climb its way up to 3m sporting 30 cm wide flowers of rose and purple. A hardy player, climbing along a fence, wall or just allowed to ramble in a hard to fill area, providing almost evergreen foliage and months of blooms. Unscented. Sow early spring/late fall. I.

183. TIDY TIPS Layia platyglossa
Lemon-yellow, single daisy-like flowers fringed with tidy white tips bloom effortlessly all summer on this drought-tolerant, hardy annual. Although native to the Pacific coast, a more familiar sight in English gardens. Pity. A minty fragrance to the entire plant. D.S. early. Ht. 30 cm, Sp. 20 cm. N.
$3.00

184. SWEET ALYSSUM ‘Violet Queen ’
Lobularia maritimum
From two Greek words “a”, meaning not, and “lyssa”, meaning “rage” or “madness”. Thought by some ancient herbalists to relieve some forms of madness. Aheady scent of honey fills the air near this low-growing variety that bears tiny, rich violet flowers that are excellent in beds or planted out in containers. D.S. early. Ht.15 cm . Poor soil OK.
$3.00

185. EVENING SCENTED STOCK Matthiola longipetala ssp. bicornis
Though unassuming by day their fragrance has been held in high regard by the likes of Gertrude Jekyll and R. Verey. Scratch some seeds into areas where larger, showier flowers grow and the evening fragrance will bring you much joy. Ht. 30 cm.
$3.00

186. 4 O'CLOCKS (Belle de Nuit)
Mirabilis jalapa
"Beauty of the Night" and 4:00 allude to the flowers habit of opening up and releasing their scent when the sun is no longer upon them. Seeds sown after last frost quickly form dense 60 cm shrubs covered in trumpeted blooms in clear colours of rose, red, yellow or white. Dig tubers to store like dahlias. D.S. or Tr. Germ. 65o-70o. Sun. Sp.40 cm.
$3.00

187. LEMON BERGAMOT Monarda citriodora
Considered by some to be among the loveliest of the monardas with its whorls of pink-purple flowers growing in clusters 10 cm across up the stems at intervals. Entire plant scented of lemon and mint; grown on a large scale for essential oil. Edible flowers. D.S. or Tr. Germ 70o-75o. Ht. 60 cm. Sp. 30 cm. N.
$3.00

188. JASMINE TOBACCO Nicotiana alata grandiflora
One of the most fragrant flowers I know of, it can be smelled more than 3 m away as it comes into its best after the heat of the day has passed. All summer long the 7 cm white trumpet-shaped flowers pour forth their lavish jasmine scent as if rewarding the gardener in the only way they know how. Not for smoking. Germ 70o- 75o. Tr. Needs light to germ. 1 m tall. Space 30 cm. O.
$3.00

189. WOODLAND TOBACCO Nicotiana sylvestris
Similar to jasmine tobacco but a much larger plant towering to over 1.5 m. This large leafed plant is topped with fragrant white flower clusters.
$3.00

190. PETUNIA Petunia integrifolia pendula
Brought to the attention of gardeners from Brazil in the mid 1800’s, this deliciously scented, trailing annual flower is loaded with trumpet shaped, 3 cm, magenta blossoms that go strong all summer. Take it easy on the fertilizer or it will produce too many leaves. Sow seeds in Feb.March and plant out in May. Good cut flower. Tr.
$3.00

191. PHLOX Phlox drummondii ‘Leopoldi’
Clusters of sweetly scented flowers are produced on well-branched, sturdy stems that last all summer until frost. Blooms of clear rose pink with small white centers make them an appealing addition to the border and they are just as lovely in a vase. They will survive in just about any soil, but will thrive on light, rich soil and lots of heat. L.B. Wilder writes in The Fragrant Path “And the hotter the day the stronger and more insistent becomes the breath of Phlox.” Hummingbird and butterfly magnets. Ht. 30 cm Sp. 25 cm
$3.00

192. MIGNONETTE ‘Machet’
Reseda odorata grandiflora
The old name for it was “Frenchman’s darling.” It was grown in balcony planters in Paris and London in the 1700s and is famous for its superb sweet and raspberry-like fragrance. Small pale red flowers grow in clusters. A favourite of the Empress Josephine, these unobtrusive plants can be grown with showier, unscented flowers and are superb in containers. D.S. Ht. 30 cm. Sp.15 cm .
$3.00

193. PINCUSHION FLOWER Scabiosa atropurpurea
Native to SW Europe, Henry J. Moore described them to be “so exquisite as to be almost beyond description.” Lavender, pink, red, yellow and white double flowers are borne in profusion from midsummer to frost. Their long stems support hundreds of honeyscented florets that produce a pincushion effect and make them wonderful long-lasting cut flowers. Plant them in a border or meadow garden to keep the bees and butterflies coming! Ht. 80 cm Sp. 30 cm D.S. or Tr.
$3.00

194. LACY PHACELIA
Phacelia tanacetifolia
Showy pale violet-blue clusters with protruding stamens uncurl like a fern’s fiddlehead. Plants are well branched and bloom right through frost with occasional deadheading. Fragrance reminiscent of grapes. Easy. D.S. Ht. 80 cm. Sp. 25 cm. O. N.
$3.00