Flowers are the ideal gift idea. When you think the person has everything and doesn’t know what else to give them, flowers send a special message of affection. 

What could be lovelier than gifting flowers that have the most fragrant aroma? Aromatic flowers are diverse in shape, size, color, and fragrance. You will be surprised at how many scents you can inhale!

Many cosmetics are made from natural flower scents like lilies, peonies, roses, and vanilla scents from the chocolate cosmos. There are lovely and refreshing sweet-smelling flowers with fruity aromas too. 

Here is a list of flowers that smell undeniably sweet and are ideal for giving as gifts. Who can resist a gift that comes with an enchanting scent? Read on to learn about the most aromatic blooms money can buy.

Rose

If you haven’t “stopped to smell the roses” yet, you are truly missing out on a great sensory experience. Besides the myriad choice of colors, they are also scented. Scents may be subtle to more intense. Nonetheless, sweet-smelling flowers were never as good as the rose. They offer tremendous flower power. 

The rose has it all, the aroma, the texture, and the color. If you’re buying them from a grocery store or local florist, you must pick out what smells fresh and looks best. Also, look for tags that say roses are fragrant, as some are bred for pure good looks, ignoring the scent.

English roses should be your first choice when insistent on the sweetest-smelling flowers. The Heritage and Gertrude Jekyll are the top-notch roses among these. Hybrid tea roses tend to be sweet-smelling too. These are Joey, Princess Charlene de Monaco (very sweet-smelling), and Mr. Lincoln. 

Nonetheless, these are prone to stain with a disease, even if kept for a short while in a vase. If you are giving a potted rose plant to someone, it is important to consider whether the rose variety is disease-resistant.

Roses, in the interim, had been bred only for their looks. We have David Austin, a British rose cultivator, and breeder, to thank for the fragrant rose revival. His son now continues to breed roses in the tradition of his innovative and far-sighted father. 

Giving such varieties of potted roses will be appreciated more as they are repeat growers. Many have more or less the hint of the typical rose odor, but experts swear there are nuanced differences in scents.

Narcissus Paper White

Narcissus was largely appreciated for its scent in the early 1900s. The Paper White Narcissus is native to the Mediterranean part of the world. 

Bulbs grow in typical warm weather, but you will also find flowers in cooler climates. The flowers that grow in colder climes are smaller and snowy white. They have a delicate aroma, unlike any other sweet-smelling flowers you’ve ever laid your nose upon. They grow well indoors as potted plants or in a container. 

A potted variety works best if you’re giving this as a gift. Gradually, whole rooms will be redolent with the fragrance of the Paper White Narcissus.

Hyacinth

Hyacinths are great gifts as they come in vibrant colors like bright pink, purple, and pristine white. These flowers always look radiant, and growth is abundant and full. These bloom in spring, and their fragrance, like sweet-smelling flowers, is strongest at this time. 

When you think of giving hyacinths to someone, consider that these are quite large and tend to flop down. They require support in a bouquet and even in a pot. 

The Pink Surprise variety is a great hyacinth for its color and sweet smell. The powder Delft Blue has a mild scent but looks lovely.

Stargazer Lily

The heady scent of the stargazer lily can’t be defeated. In D.H. Lawrence’s novel ‘Sons and Lovers,’ a line says, “The tall white lilies were reeling in the moonlight, and the air was charged with perfume…she drank a deep draught of the scent”. Stargazers weren’t the reference here, but had Mrs. Morel experienced their scent; she would have responded the same way! This is a hybrid lily variety and is often the sought-after choice to present to people.

This sweet-smelling flower is a hit with its dazzling blooms of dark pink and white blends and rich and abundant aroma. Boasting a mildly spicy and deeply alluring fragrance, the scent can be overwhelming to some people indoors; some revel in its glory. 

You will be tempted to get up close and personal for a stronger whiff, but don’t be surprised if it leaves you dizzy. You may also have a bright red spot on your nose as the pollen stains quickly. These lilies grow well outdoors in partial shade in pleasantly cool weather.

Sweet Alyssum

Sweet Alyssum has tiny blooms that grow in white clusters on single stems. Giving someone these flowers is a good idea in window boxes or hanging baskets. 

As its name suggests, sweet alyssum smells incredibly lovely, but it is a cascading plant and will ultimately have to be replanted outdoors. The plant will need sun, partly or wholly, so see that containers are placed in a source of natural light. 

Purple varieties like Dark Night are also available and are sweet-smelling flowers.

Primrose

Cicely Barker found the sweet smell of primrose so appealing that she wrote about it in her poem, ‘The Primrose Fairy.’ The verse is about the primrose blooming in spring, and the first thing you notice is the scent. 

The primrose flowers are compact and come in various brightest colors, from purple and yellow to red and orange. More somber whites and burgundies are on offer too. They all sport a beautiful fragrance symbolic of a cool, fresh spring season. Native to the British Isles and Europe, these flowers may smell of tangy orange too.

These blooms are given as small sprays and in baskets. They can be replanted and grown in dry or wet conditions. They prefer cool climates, and the sweet-smelling flowers of the primrose will be at their optimum in such conditions. Evening Primrose is a different genus but has a robust aroma only at night.

Viburnum

Viburnum has an unusual smell, much like cloves. Michael Dirr, a renowned horticulturist, states that a garden without viburnum isn’t a garden and compares its absence to life being “without music and art.” 

It is a large plant with flowers growing in clusters of creamy white. It adds a great accent to a garden and a colorful bouquet. 

The Korean variety is a most beloved spice variety. Buds are dark pink and then become white when blooming takes place. The hint of clove in an otherwise sweet-smelling flower is so distinctive it adds glitz to any floral arrangement. The aroma could be more elaborate, but it is memorable.

Freesia

A spray of Freesias resembles an ensemble of dancers in colorful costumes. The colors of the flowers are as enigmatic as their scent. They are small blooms but full of elegance and exotic beauty. 

Given to someone in a transparent glass vase, the appeal of the flowers is enhanced. Flower heads are perched atop long stems, so a bouquet of these offset with white gladioli looks good. A single stem may bear six to eight horn-shaped blooms.

The blossoms have all kinds of scents, depending on who is doing the whiffing! Some say that freesias smell like honey and mint or a mix. Other people swear that freesia has hints of a strawberry aroma. Many say they smell delicious, like the cereal Froot Loops. 

Whatever the smell, all folks agree that the scents are delicious, sometimes woody and sometimes like a citrus bloom, making freesia one of the top-of-the-list sweet-smelling flowers.

Honeysuckle

The warm, sugary scent of the honeysuckle flower is so comforting; it reminds you of grandma baking cupcakes. 

In ‘Secret Island,’ Enid Blyton makes no secret about their endearing fragrance and how birds are attracted to this flower gem. 

The flower grows on a vine. Sure, you can give it to someone in a pot or a basket, but at some point in time, it will have to be planted in a garden. 

Adorned with the smell of cookies and lemonade, kids love to have a hint of this aroma around as they play in gardens.

Other Blooms

So many other blooms smell as sweet, if not sweeter than the sweet-smelling flowers mentioned. 

For instance, the velvety smooth Gardenia smells heady and alluring, compared with Jasmine flowers, especially when it’s humid. These have been the basis of many perfume brands, such as Diorissimo and Miss Dior. 

Perfumes by Nina Ricci have also used flower scents such as those of the lingering aroma of the Lily of the Valley. Lily of the Valley is found in many flower bouquets, especially at weddings. It is also great as a fragrant accent to any arrangement. 

You may also think of radiant and fragrant blooms such as Magnolias and Tuber Roses.

Conclusion

Everyone would love to receive a flower arrangement, even if it’s not in a pot. The flowers may only live for a week in a vase but still add a sense of beauty wherever they are.

People will appreciate sweet-smelling flowers more than regular ones with no aroma. You may give these to the person in a pot to replant or as a spray or basket. 

If you think of giving someone a flower gift in a pot, it will last a long time and be memorable for that person. Fortunately, there are a lot of flowers that produce aromas from subtle to robust. They are unmistakably powerful and can lift a person’s mood.