The nose doesn’t have much going for it in the month of November. That’s why we treasure any little bit of sniff going our way. The smell of fallen leaves is always heady to me, especially sugar maple leaves (Acer saccharum).

Then there’s the lowly little annual (in my climate) edging plant aptly called sweet alyssum (Lobularia maritima). A bank of these little fellas can perfume a whole garden with their sweet vanilla scent. And they like the cool weather.

Modern hybrids seem less smelly to me. They are also less likely to self-seed.

In my USDA Z5/Cdn Z6 garden, I always used to get enough self-seeded sweet alyssum to get me through another year. It takes them a while to establish, but as the heat of summer dissipates there was always a decent show to remind my nose what it does for its living.

If you buy seed, be sure that fragrance is mentioned. If you buy in starter packs, do sniff before buying.