When people find out I work at a flower shop but I don't like the smell of (most) flowers, they either laugh at what a funny place the world is....or they shove some peonies in my face, saying "But have you smelled these?!? Smell them!!!" While peonies, jasmine, lilies, and narcissus may smell like heaven to you lucky ones, to some of us they merely bring on headaches. Thank goodness, then, for these understated blooms, no less lovely for their lack of scent.
Tulips & Anemones: One day in the flower shop, I was discussing the strange magic of scent with a customer: everything smells different to everyone. Stargazer lilies smell of floral perfection to some, but to me they smell like hot dogs. I mentioned that I love tulips because they just smell green and fresh with a hint of honey, when another customer interrupted with, "Tulips smell like mothballs!" Only to you, dear lady. To me they are divine. Anemones are completely unscented, as far as I can tell. The bright red and purple ones are a bit too straightforward for my taste, but I love these subtle pink-green-cream blooms.
Poppies: These alien-pod crepe-paper flowers are a delight — I want to wear them as a skirt. I've mentioned my love of poppies in all their forms, so their lack of fragrance is just one of their many, many attributes. These multicolored bunches you can get at farmer's markets make a perfect gift, no other flowers or greenery required.
Ranunculus: Like a tutu crossed with a cabbage, a ranunculus is one of the sweetest flowers of spring. They come in a wonderful array of colors that look fabulous grouped together. Join the We Like It Wild girls on Design Sponge as they sing the praises of ranunculus.
Calla Lilies: My favorite calla lilies are of course the smoldering, mysterious near-black variety (because I love black plants) but all callas are graceful, dramatic, and free of scent. I do find them difficult to mix with other flowers, preferring to let them shine on their own. See Design Sponge's Flowers A-Z for excellent arranging tips from someone who doesn't have the same hang-ups I do.
Amaryllis: & Protea Amaryllis (actually Hippeastrum but everyone calls them Amaryllis) are traditionally associated with Christmas, but there's no need to limit yourself so. I'm still seeing them around, and these salmon-pink-orange blossoms look wonderful with all the peaches and sky-blues of spring flowers. Or you can go all-orange-out as I did, combining them with the plastic-seeming protea (or pincushion), double tulips, and ranunculus. A lush arrangement, with no scent!
Any other favorite fragrance-free flowers? Allergy sufferers — are there any blooms that you can enjoy with abandon?
(Images: 1., 2., and 5. by Tess Wilson, 3. & 4. DesignSponge)
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This is very funny to me. I love tulips and poppies, but feel like they each get a demerit for not smelling!
Sometimes I like the smell of flowers and sometimes I don't. The problem for me is when I have multiple vases of flowers and the smell gets overwhelming. I try to mix the varieties so I can have one vase of smelly flowers and the rest are not.
Sunflowers, tiger-lilies, chrysanthemums, gladioli, hydrangeas, and orchids are other common cut flowers without scent.
But I love strong scented flowers like all the scented lilies, polianthes, freesias, liliac, old roses, hyacinths. Fortunately I don't get headaches. I'm sorry for you. But at least can you till enjoy the shapes and colours. ;0)
I also get headaches from strong flower scents. I think my mom truly believes that I am somehow the devil's spawn because I just don't appreciate the smell of her roses.
I'm taking notes... My husband hates the smell of flowers too - based on his reactions, I think they actually smell like excrement (to put it politely) to him. Subsequently he is not a fan of any flowers really - not even the look of flowers! Lilies or really strong flowers are nauseating to me too, but I enjoy a rose or two. I also used to buy unscented flowers because my last cat would go nuts over good smelling flowers. She once ate all the thorns off some roses, and proceeded to puke them elsewhere.
Ha! People tend to treat me like a freak when they find out I despise the smell of roses and lavender. I don't mind most other flowers' scents, though.
Just to note, some of these flowers do have scents, but they are faint: tulips (yes, they smell...), chrysanthemum (but I notice it fades fairly quickly after cutting, usually), and daisies, ime.
I love most flower scents, but tuberose is usually about 50X too strong, same with gardenia, which I don't mind if it's not right up in my nose, in which case, I like it. My friend won't have hyacinth in the house, and also hates lily of the valley.
Here's a suggestion: never take scented flowers to sick people (and arguably, to grieving people) - one can form an unpleasant emotional connection to smells. It is too bad to have to give up flowers because they make you sad, or feel icky.
ANY smelly lily gives me an immediate headache and upset stomach. Grocery shopping at Easter time is super awful: the large floral department at my grocery store is right at the front door and next to the produce dept. You actually have to walk all through the floral area to get to the rest of the store. But, I'm fine with all other flowers. When we bought our house we didn't know that the lovely ornamental grass all around the property in several different beds was actually hundreds and hundreds of tiger and day lily plants. It took me two summers to get most of them out. That first summer was the worst ever. :P
Another thing about smell: having invasive surgery and/or going under general anathesia can cause many people's sense of smell to get out of whack. People with no allergies or smell sensitivities can wake up to everything smelling horrible and overpowering to them. It's best to send unscented bouquets to people in the hospital for just that reason. Even if your friend didn't go into the hospital for such a thing, their roommate may have. You can tell your florist to switch out scented for unscented similar flowers in whatever flower arrangement you choose.
Gardenias give me sick headaches. That offended a couple of coworkers who think allergies are phony. Most other flowers are tolerable in small quantities. I'm thankful cut flowers are expensive so my exposure to them is minimal!
@Miami's Elaine & @TXTODSGRG- Tuberose & gardenias are the ones I struggle with the most, probably followed by jasmine.
@Thorndale- Don't give up on working with flowers- perhaps you'll happen upon an outdoor opportunity, like at a flower stand or farmer's market? I would warn against working anyplace that deals in high volume, of course: seemingly innocent flowers can cause serious issues when there are 20 buckets of them.
Wow, that is timely. My mom and I just spent an entire weekend trying to remember the name "ranunculus," and it was still bugging me. THANK YOU.
Also, my recommendation is straw flowers. They aren't big and flashy, but they are very cute with an absolutely incredible texture. The petals are already dried-out when they are alive and, as the name suggests, feel like straw. Because of that, when they start getting a little old, the stems go bad but the blossoms stay cute forever, so you could potentially keep them around indefinitely if you mount them on wire like in the picture linked above.
Oh thank god I'm not the only one that thinks Stargazers smell like hot dogs. I had bought them around Easter to liven up the house and every time I'd pass by the dining table the aroma of encased meat product filled the air. As pretty as they were, I dumped the whole batch.