Fabulous Philadelphus

Robust in harsh weather, luxuriant in its profusion of white blooms and with a fragrance to die for, what's not to like about philadelphus? Graham Rice picks his top varieties

- Graham Rice

AS you stroll through your early summer garden, you may catch a powerful breeze of orange-blossom fragrance the first hint of one of the most dependable plants in the garden. This will be the mock orange, philadelphus, one of our toughest, most cold-hardy and most resilient of deciduous shrubs that combines the almost intoxicating fragrance with an effervescent profusion of white flowers.

There are dwarf varieties for the front of the flower garden, and taller varieties for the back of the border or as specimens. Some of those with arching growth are especially pretty and we now have the first variety that almost makes a pillar rather than a bush and the first with an all-summer flowering season.

Foliage and flowers

The foliage is unremarkable, but there are a few with colourful foliage for us to enjoy through the rest of the season.

In early summer, the flower clusters line the branches of the previous year's shoots. Usually 1-2in (2.5-5cm) across, in their simplest form with four petals of the purest white, some have a purplish mark or haze inside the base of the flower. Double flowered varieties bloom longer.

All are happy in full sun, or in a little shade from the side, in any reasonable soil that is not parched or waterlogged.

Annual pruning

The plants require little attention, although annual pruning helps promote flowering. The traditional approach is to prune immediately after flowering, cutting back shoots that have flowered to just above a new shoot lower down in the plant. An old branch can also be removed at the base each season.

An alternative approach, when a plant is growing strongly, is to cut the whole plant back almost to the ground promptly when flowering is over. In rich conditions and when the soil is kept moist, vigorous growth will result in an astonishing display the following year.

9 top philadelphus