Stepping into the garden and seeing beautiful flowers, hearing birds sing and feeling the pride of accomplishment are even better when combined with the earthy, spicy, sweet and astringent scents of carefully selected fragrant plants. UC Master Gardener Alexis Valentin has made aromatic plants a priority in her Fresno garden and shared her expertise recently with members of the Caruthers Garden Club.

“Fragrant plants give me happiness,” she said. “Even when plants are dormant, rain and dew make them smell nice.”

A wine business professional, Valentin transferred to Fresno 11 years ago. She is a supertaster, born with the ability to taste certain foods and flavors more strongly than most, a skill that she used to discern the hundreds of distinct flavors and aromas in fine wines. Now retired, the skill allows her to guide others in the enjoyment of aromatic gardening.

Plants produce fragrant flowers and foliage not just to perfume the garden for us to enjoy, they reap the benefits, she said.

“Volatile oils and chemical compounds produced in leaves of some plants can be toxic to insects,” Valentin said. “The smell alerts pests – including insects and small animals – to avoid the plant.”

Valentin encourages gardeners to grow plants from saved seeds or propagation. “It's free!” she said. Even the leaves and stems she brought from home as fragrance samples for the garden club could be used to propagate new plants.

“Cut back to a node, dip in rooting compound and place in well-watered, rich soil in a nice sunny spot,” she advised.

One sample was Cleveland sage, an evergreen shrub in the mint family with small, very fragrant leaves. “It's so strong and astringent, it reminds me of Ben Gay and Tiger Balm,” she said.

Valentin suggests clipping stems and bringing them into the shower, where heat and steam release the perfume.

Another sample was citronella, which is marketed as a mosquito repellent, a claim Valentin said is untrue. Regardless, the plant, part of the geranium (pelargonium) family, releases a grassy, floral, lemony scent when cut or crushed. Related plants have been bred in dozens of scents, including chocolate mint, cinnamon, eucalyptus, peppermint, orange, balsam and apple.

Herbs are another important part of an aromatic garden, including rosemary, lavender and thyme.

“Thyme is a must in your fragrant garden,” Valentin said. “Creeping thyme or woolly thyme can be planted in rock crevices or between paving stones. They will tolerate light foot traffic and release their pungent smell as you walk on them.”

She shared a recipe for freshening the home that doesn't involve artificially scented candles or commercial “air fresheners.”

Place in a pot:

• 8 cups water
• 3 sprigs rosemary
• 1 lemon, sliced thin
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon peppercorns

Heat on the stove to fill the house with a lemony, slightly astringent, wintery aroma.

The list of fragrant plants is enormous. Here are a few to start with that do well in our climate, and require minimal water and maintenance:

• Bee balm
• Butterfly bush
• Cleveland sage (and all sages)
• Honeysuckle
• Lantana
• Lavender
• Manderilla
• Pelargoniums
• Rosemary
• Star jasmine
• Thyme