On Gardening: Flora, fauna and fragrance with Supertunia petunias
As gardeners we think about flora and fauna, but I would like to suggest one more thing. And that is fragrance. Fragrance is one of those memory makers. Memories for the children who grow up with garden fragrance and for spouses celebrating anniversaries. It’s not just the memories of the flowers’ beauty, but also that Mom and Dad grew them and what the time was like.
Today I had a flashback to a moment in time as I walked out onto my patio. I wasn’t planning an olfactory experience nor did I even think about growing more Supertunia petunias than ever before. As I watered and took pictures, I remembered a trip to the plant trials in California.
Twenty years ago, this was like the adventure of a lifetime for a horticulturist making yearly treks to see all the new plants that would soon arrive. I would fly into San Diego and several days later return home via San Jose or San Francisco after stopping at each participating grower.
One year I stopped at a large greenhouse and the entire glass building was dedicated to petunias. I don’t remember the grower, but I’ll always remember the most thrilling olfactory experience in my life. The greenhouse had everyone’s petunia varieties at peak bloom, and the aroma and beauty are still remembered.
This year it was time for some new containers. I was looking for an assortment of sizes: 10-inch, 12-inch, and 16-inch too. There is no telling what you might find when shopping for containers. I found a set of earth tones that really reminded me of the colors you might see in Taos, New Mexico.
All of the containers were filled with good, lightweight potting soil that had slow-release fertilizer incorporated. The nicest thing about my patio is sunlight. Throughout my three-quarters of an acre landscape, sunlight is a premium. In Georgia, I assure you we water almost daily during the growing season.
But back to my containers! Oddly, when I got home, the turquoise-colored one in the set dictated I went with Bermuda. By that I mean Supertunia Bermuda Beach, the prettiest coral pink petunia ever. I chose a triadic color scheme selecting Supertunia Saffron Finch and Supertunia Mini Vista Inigo petunias as partners.
A white pot will allow for any colors of flowers you may choose. Colorful pots may do that too, but it will also open the door to take advantage of that color as a critical element in the design. My set of pots had a rusty orange selection, and I went with a color scheme we might call a split complementary. I chose Supertunia Mini Vista Indigo and Mini Vista Yellow with Supertunia Persimmon.
My patio is not that large - about 400 square feet. But I have 24 Supertunia petunias along with Superbells calibrachoas, Luscious lantanas and Queen Tut papyrus growing in these tight quarters. I have all the classes of Supertunias, Vistas, Mini Vistas and regular selections.
Our grandparents grew old-fashioned seed-produced petunias that were reseeded from year to year. While these were noted for their fragrance, I can tell you that the Supertunias (while champions in trials for their performance and beauty) have a fragrance that is definitely worth stopping to smell the ... well you know, petunias.
Make this the year you grow for fragrance and start making memories and see if your nose knows what my nose knows!
____
(Norman Winter, horticulturist, garden speaker and author of “Tough-as-Nails Flowers for the South” and “Captivating Combinations: Color and Style in the Garden.” Follow him on Facebook @NormanWinterTheGardenGuy.)
(NOTE TO EDITORS: Norman Winter receives complimentary plants to review from the companies he covers.)
Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.