This big plant, which I think is probably a bush that has gone horribly wrong through lack of pruning, that is in the front corner of my garden. It blooms three times a year and has a very strong smell, especially at night. I don't particularly like the smell as it is very pungent to my nose and makes me sneeze like crazy. Somewhere in the back of my mind I have smelt that smell before - I think in England when I was a kid, but I can't bring it to mind...
This is the overgrown beast...
And this is a close up of the flowers. The flowers themselves only seem to last a couple of days but new buds open for at least a couple of weeks. Bees are all over it like crazy.
At first I wondered if it was Mock Orange, but now having smelt MO - this isn't it! It doesn't produce any type of noticable fruit, and I haven't noticed any babies popping up anywhere from seeds. This one bush smells up the entire neighborhood at night, especially this round of blooms as we have had some damp weather and it seems stronger than ever. I have to close all the windows at night!
Hetty, do you remember the smell of the Hawthorn in the hedges in Europe? It smells sort of like that, but much stronger.
Acually, my Pummelo is just starting to flower - now there's a lovely smell that doesn't get up your nose like the Beast does! We have had an odd day here and there of rain showers and somewhat cloudy conditions, and the plants are going crazy - it must be rather like what it would be like to live in Carol and Daves area. Speaking of which, they have been having lots of rain and cold temps over on the BI - visitors were telling me that they were lucky to get out of Hilo airport as there was talk of closing it down because of flooding conditions...Snow on top of the mountains...BRRR!.
No, it's not NBJ, I do have one of those way down the bottom of the garden but I have never ventured way down there in the dark so I have never smelt it!
The Plummies I bought from you are doing so well, Hetty, despite being cramped in pots for ages while they were messing around with the septic. Once they got their feet into the ground they have just taken off and have some flower buds on them - I can't wait to see the colors! None of the Plummies have lost their leaves yet this year, although I do have a couple of white which never do. Recently I took a couple of cuttings from a half way house that Frank runs (they were prunning) and they have rooted nicely - this one smells just like a rose, I have no idea what it is of course, just a local NOID.
Will do, It has buds on it now, but they are not yet open...strong tea rose smell on mother tree. Will post when it flowers.
Hi Jen, the flowers look like a Murraya. If it is not Mock Orange, Murraya paniculata, it might be Murraya exotica.
Can you show a picture of the leaves? They should be pinnately compound with around 9 leaflets.
Aloha Dave,
Here is a picture of the leaves - they rather look as if they have spider mite, funny, they didn't look as mottled in real life...
Thanks Jen, the plant matches up with Murraya paniculata, Mock Orange. Don't know why it won't act like one.
It is possible that there are sterile cultivars. Mock Orange is often propagated by cuttings.
Mahalo Dave,
Fancy this being a mock orange after all! I always though mock orange had a nice smell, sort of citrus-y, now I wonder what the hedge we had that I thought was mock orange, really was - it was much nicer.
Can't wait for it to finish blooming, it's so strong!
Aloha.
It could be that the scent is SO strong it becomes unpleasant...
Sure doesn't look like a mock orange. Looks like some kind of citrus. Here is photo of mock orange flowers. The leaves are rather thin and dulI. Used to grow it and the smell was real nice.
i think the common name of mock orange is the culprit here. several different plants go by that common name. metro is right, i believe. it's Murraya paniculata; the leaves are dark and shiny and kind of leathery or substantial.
Hi Fancyflea, common names can be confusing. Your Mock Orange is a Philadelphus species in the Hydrangea Family, Hydrangeaceae.
Jen's Mock Orange is Murraya paniculata in the Citrus Family, Rutaceae.
Oooohhh. Thanks for the info Metro...
Dave...isn't that other one Philadelphius virginalis or something like that?
Hi Carol, the Philadelphus x virginalis hybrid and Philadelphus 'Virginal' cultivar are supposed to have double flowers. The above Philadelphus is a single flowering type.
There are so many cultivars that it makes one dizzy trying to figure them out!
Thanks for all the info, come to think of it the flowers do have a citrus look about them, but they certainly do not have the nice sweet smell of citrus. Thankfully the last heavy rain we had did them all in! It's a very pretty thing in bloom, but not one I would choose to plant, wish mine was like yours Fancyflea!
Aloha.
Murraya has always been one of my very favorites. it's evergreen, blooms in flushes all year and is a very clean tree. here is my old one, left behind when i moved, as seen from the second story porch.
Pretty tree trackinsand, and so much more well taken care of mine, which is just in the hedgerow along with hibiscus, palms and other things that just grow wild. I agree it's a bloomin' fool, did yours have the very strong smell, especially at night, too?
thanks. yes, a very powerful scent which i dearly loved....it takes training once they've been let go so long, but you can find the main trunk on yours and trim it up and make it a standard. they don't seem to WANT to be trees though; they will continue to sprout side shoots for a long time until the trunk gets more mature and hardened. night time was always the strongest but i suspect that is because the breezes die down at night so the smell kind of just hangs in the air. i have a small one now, planted by the back door to replicate my old place further south. it's doing ok but doesn't bloom quite as often because we get colder up here.
