In Praise of Philadelphus

Clare Lovegrove, from Lovegrove's Nursery in Gloucestershire, with a guide to selecting and growing these beautiful and fragrant summer-flowering shrubs - 25 May 2025

The genus Philadelphus, commonly known as mock orange, comprises about 60 species. These species are native to North America, Central America, Asia, and southeastern Europe. Philadelphus has several appealing qualities that make it a valued addition to any garden. It makes an elegant, classic and fragrant choice, that’s incredibly robust and easy to grow. It provides a reliable display every year but with minimal attention.

For fragrance

Philadelphus flowers are renowned for their sweet, citrusy fragrance. They can fill your garden with a lovely scent, especially in late spring and early summer, but not all varieties are equal. For example, when I smell Philadelphus ‘Erectus’ I liken it to having a hint of bubble gum and Philadelphus PEARLS OF PERFUME ^PBR as having a long-lasting scent with a slightly spicy undertone.

Philadelphus ‘Erectus’

Not only do varieties differ but the way people perceive scents can also vary greatly. This can be due factors including genetics, experience and memory, environment and health. However, Philadelphus ‘Belle Étoile’ is reliably considered a top choice for its fabulous strong scent. Its abundance of large single white flowers, with a hint of purple in the centre, make it visually appealing too. It grows to about 1.2-1.8 metres in height, making it a manageable size. It’s a great variety if you want to enjoy the classic scent of mock orange.

Try Philadelphus ‘Sybille’ as an alternative with arching branches and smaller flowers, often rated equally for perfume. It is a little smaller in height (1-1.5 meters) although more sprawling in habit. Another popular contender for best scent is Philadelphus maculuatus ‘Mexican Jewel’, an attractive upright choice with smaller delicate flowers but needing a sheltered position. Others to consider for strong fragrance include Philadelphus purpurascens or Philadelphus microphyllus.

Philadelphus ‘Belle Étoile’

If you have a smaller garden or limited space Philadelphus ‘Manteau d’Hermine’ is an excellent choice, producing an abundance of double white, highly fragrant flowers in clusters. Blooming early in the season, it forms a neat compact shrub of about 1 metre height and spread.

For attractive blooms

Philadelphus produce beautiful flowers, mostly pure white but occasionally cream or with a hint of purple at the base of the petals. Their flowers create a striking and reliable visual display in late spring and summer. Many varieties are at their best in June and July when other shrubs are waning.

Philadelphus ‘Beauclerk’ is a popular choice for its attractive blooms. Highly fragrant, large, saucer shaped, single white flowers open in generous clusters from late spring to June. Flowers are sometimes tinged pink with age. It’s ideal for back of the border with a height and spread of 1.5-2.5 metres.

Philadelphus ‘Beauclerk’

If you prefer a double bloom. Philadelphus ‘Virginal’ has always been popular. However, my favourite double is Philadelphus 'Snowbelle' which is extremely free-flowering and more compact. It produces profuse sprays of snow white, cup-shaped, fragrant double blooms in early to mid-summer. Its foliage is a lovely fresh green and it has an upright habit with height and spread of 1-1.5 metres.

Philadelphus ‘Snowbelle’

Other stand out choices for attractive bloom include those with a beautiful contrasting purple calyx. Notable varieties include Philadelphus delavayi f.melanocalyx, which has dense racemes of heavily scented white flowers with purple calyxes. It’s a large and upright shrub which can grow to 3 metres tall. Another rare and beautiful form is Philadelphus purpurascens, also with deep purple calyx but a more compact growth habit to 2 metres.

Philadelphus delavayi

For longer flowering

In the past one of the draw backs of Philadelphus is its relatively short flowering period. On more robust varieties, a way of overcoming this is to climb a clematis through which adds another period of flowering interest. Some say that double flowered varieties bloom for longer but there are now newer varieties to consider that are long flowering.

Philadelphus Pearls of Perfume ^PBR is a breeding breakthrough, the first to bloom on old and new season growth, extending the flowering season significantly. It provides an abundance of pure white, double blooms from May to August with a fabulous long-lasting perfume. With a compact growth habit, reaching 1.2 metres in height and 60cm spread, its well suited to the front of a border, the smaller garden or a container.

Part of a UK-bred Philadelphus series with a long flowering window of six weeks is Philadelphus Petite Perfume Pink ^PBR, the world’s first pink Philadelphus in addition to being very fragrant. It boasts a profusion of single, pink-tinted flowers that are darker in the centre. A very pretty shrub with a compact, mound forming habit reaching 1.2 metres in height. Philadelphus Petite Perfume White ^PBR produces an abundance of highly scented, single white flowers, for no less than six weeks in May-July. It’s an easy to grow shrub, with compact, rounded habit.

For foliage

It doesn’t have to be all about the fragrance and flowers, there are some excellent choices for their foliage too. Particularly showy is Philadelphus coronarius ‘Aureus’ which is a fine addition to a partially shaded spot. The bright yellow foliage makes an early feature in the garden, later fading to a chartreuse-green. Heavily scented, creamy white flowers, come in clusters in early summer. You can clip Philadelphus coronarius ‘Aureus’ immediately after flowering to encourage fresh bright-yellow leaves. It has a bushy, upright growth habit, reaching 2 metres in height and 1.5 metres spread.

Others to look out for include Philadelphus coronarius ‘Variegatus’ with elegant cream and green variegated foliage, Philadelphus coronarius ‘Mirador’ with attractive green and yellow foliage and Philadelphus ‘Innocence’ with pretty green leaves, speckled with yellow.

Philadelphus coronarius ‘Variegatus’

For wildlife

Philadelphus flowers are nectar/pollen rich and known for attracting bees, butterflies, moths and other pollinators, which can be beneficial to the overall health of your garden. Their flowers often fill the gap in the season when other shrubs are waning. 

Philadelphus also produce small fruit capsules containing numerous small seeds which are consumed by many species of bird, including goldfinches. The larger philadelphus varieties provide good twiggy cover year-round.

Philadelphus coronarius makes a good wildlife choice, sitting well in cottage, wildlife and low maintenance landscapes. Smothered with pearly white, single, four-petalled blooms from June-July, it has a rounded habit to 3 metres. This variety is very happy to grow in full sun or partial shade. If you don’t have room for this simply choose a single flowered, well-scented variety.

Where/how to grow

Philadelphus is relatively easy to grow and care for. They are tolerant of most soils and can tolerate drought, but flower best in a moist but well-drained soil. Whilst most philadelphus prefer full sun or partial shade, there are a few varieties that can tolerate shadier conditions better than others, in particular Philadelphus ‘Virginal’, Philadelphus ‘Minnesota Snowflake’ and Philadelphus coronarius.

Philadelphus will benefit from regular pruning, which promotes new growth and better flowering, but it is not essential every year. You can get away with simply pruning when it is too big, has got spindly or is flowering less. Nearly all flower on previous year’s growth. Prune after flowering in late July, cutting back to a good bud and/or removing one quarter to one third of old growth down to the ground. If it has become overgrown and unsightly you can prune hard to renovate, cutting back to 30cm around July.

Philadelphus is great as a stand-alone specimen, in a mixed border, as part of a hedge or some varieties are suitable for planting in a container. They are perfect planted near doors, pathways and seating to make the most of their scent. There are tall varieties, erect varieties, compact varieties and varieties with arching growth.

So, with qualities a plenty, enjoy selecting a Philadelphus or two to suit your garden!

Lovegroves is a specialist plant nursery based in Gloucestershire and on the borders of Herefordshire and Worcestershire. Clare produces an inspiring selection of rare and unusual trees, shrubs and climbers, complemented by a few other choice plants. All of her plants are peat-free and British-grown.

Website: www.plants-paradise.co.uk