Crowley Nursery, 16423 Jomar Road Sarasota, 941-322-0315.

Shisheido Ever Bloom, Dolce & Gabbana Garden, Gucci Bloom, Coach Floral--these sought-after perfumes evoke the effervescent scents of a fresh spring bouquet. Floral fragrances are among the most popular group of perfume scents on the market--with notes of rose, jasmine, gardenia, cherry and orange blossoms proving especially captivating. These soft, romantic and feminine aromas are guaranteed to keep the spirit of spring alive all year round--especially if you have them blooming in your garden to enjoy every time you take a step outside. Kathy Crowley of Crowley Nursery and Gardens, located in Myakka City, gives us the lowdown on the best-scented flowers to blossom here.

SRQ: I was jogging around the neighborhood the other day and smelled the incredible scent of jasmine flowers. It inspired me to look into planting either a flowering vine or flowering hedge in the front yard that also smells great during the day. What scented flowers grow the best in Sarasota?

Kathy:  There are so many types of shrubs and vines that bloom here and are very scented. Some Jasmine vines grow so fast, you trim them back and wonder why it never blooms. At the Nursery, we like the Grand Duke of Tuscany (Arabian Jasmine) and Sambac Jasmine--both can be made into Jasmine tea by steeping the blooms in black tea.  Grand Duke can be a shrub or a small vine and blooms all summer long.  Aglaia odorata, a Chinese perfume plant, emits a scent that makes one wander around trying to find out where the scent comes from. We can also grow the Joy Perfume tree, known for its fragrant flowers, and what JOY perfume by Dior is made from, as well as the tropical Ylang Ylang plant, which Chanel No.5 perfume scent is made from. 

And if you are looking for something not easily found, it would be Frangipani Vine, an evergreen vine and vigorous climber in zones 10-12, and may reach up to 20'. Likes sun to part shade. A large-leafed coarse vine with large shiny leaves sporting showy prominent veins. During spring to summer, clusters of propellor-shaped, pure white flowers with yellow centers (much like plumeria) cover the rare vine, emitting a sweet fragrance. Very tropical looking and will bloom and scent all summer long till winter arrives. So we have many choices from vines to shrubs to trees for those loving floral fragrances.

If you have a particular gardening question you'd like answered and featured in a future column, email SRQDailyGardening@srqme.com

Crowley Nursery, 16423 Jomar Road Sarasota, 941-322-0315.