White Summer Flowers

It seems so many fragrant summer blooming flowers are white. Star Jasmine is still blooming and my Stephanotis is just starting to bloom. The Jasminum multiflorum that came with our house seems to always be in bloom(that'll be another post).

I wanted to share this other fragrant white flower, Mandevilla laxa. I saw it blooming on the wall at the nursery of The Huntington Botanical Garden about 5 years ago and was happy to be able to buy one. I had it in a 15 gallon can with just a few stakes until a few months ago when I planted it in the ground of our backyard. It has already reached the top of the trellis and is looking fabulous!

The genus Mandevilla was named for Mr. Henry Mandeville, hence we pronounce Mandevilla- MAND-a-VILL-a and NOT with the spanish y tortilla sound.

It's a wonderful plant if a bit hard to find. Maybe the fragrant flowers will make my summer a bit bearable(I hate summer heat). Enjoy your fragrant summer flowers.