🌸 A Symphony of Scents: London’s Spring Aromas 🌿
This 20 March, awaken your senses to the fragrant delights of spring in London. From the lily-like aroma of Viburnum burkwoodii to the fresh apple scent of sweetbriar leaves, discover the unexpected perfumes of early blooms and foliage. Explore the almond-scented Clematis armandii, the honeyed notes of Muscari, and the muscat-like fragrance of moschatel in damp woods.
Whether you’re a gardener or a nature lover, this article will guide you through the city’s most enchanting spring scents. Don’t miss it—return on 20 March for a sensory journey through London’s fragrant season!
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Scent
Due to the small number of wild flowers in bloom, this is not a good month for scents. However, other than the early scented shrubs such as Daphne, Mahonia, Lonicera, Chimonanthus and Hamamelis there are some fine new ones. Virburnum burkwoodii has a scent reminiscent of lilies, Corylopsis (cowslips), Pieris (vanilla and lily of the valley) and some Ribes can be both sweet and minty. There are still many scented violets as well as primroses with their own delicate, mossy scent. In damp woods, moschatel is also producing its more unusual muscat and elderflower aroma.
Sometimes, it is the leaves rather than the flowers that carry the strongest smells e.g. red deadnettle, ground ivy, bay and box. The best of all is probably the fresh apple scent on the new leaves of sweetbriar Rosa rubiginosa which can be strong enough to drift on the air. Honey scents are common enough e.g. Ceonothus, Sarcococca and Muscari. Clematis armandii, Viburnum fragrans and V. bodnantense are all almond-scented. Flowering crab apples in numbers emit that light, sweet scent so evocative of orchards and there are just enough of them in Fulham Palace gardens to give the required effect on still, warm days.
In gardens, there is much more to be enjoyed than bruising the leaves of culinary herbs. Trees such as magnolias have a surprising variety of scents. The early species, such as Magnolia stellata and M. soulangiana are not usually as fragrant as the later ones e.g. Magnolia denudata (lemon), M. salicifolia (lemon and aniseed). Others smell of tropical fruits.
The Cornelian cherry is still emitting its spicy scent and Azara microphylla still smells strongly of vanilla. Other common scented garden plants include the many sweet smelling narcissi, some honey scented crocuses and violet scented irises. A much more unusual scent is found in the spring snowflake which has been described by various authors as having hints of violets, hawthorn, wallflower and mignonette.
