| Author/Contributor(s): | Wilder, Louise Beebe ; Lacy, Allen |
| Publisher: | MacMillan of Canada |
| Date: | 11/01/1990 |
| Binding: | Paperback |
| Condition: | USED – Very good. An unmarked copy with tight binding and some moderate shelf wear. |
First published in 1932, The Fragrant Path has become the definitive work on gardening for scent. More than a thousand plants with fragrant leaves, flowers, or fruits are described--annuals, bulbs, shrubs, climbers, herbs, perennials, trees, and roses. Mrs. Wilder begins by outlining the fragrant year, from early spring with its "husky, rough scent" of primroses and the "curious sweet dusty exhalation" of Asiatic witch hazel, to autumn and its "tang of bitter-sweet Chrysanthemums" and such plants as heliotrope and wild grapes that do not release their scents until after the first frosts.
The Fragrant Path includes special chapters on night-scented flowers, fragrant flowers for the rock garden, plants that attract bees, wild flowers of fragrance, and plants of perfume for the southern garden. There is even a chapter entitles "Plants of Evil Odour" to serve as a cautionary against making any particularly malodorous mistakes.
Comprehensive like no other book available and full of the good humor and advice of Louise Beebe Wilder, The Fragrant Path is a necessity for any gardener, armchair or otherwise.