Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Share

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
1 rating

Thursday - July 12, 2012

From: Coral Gables, FL
Region: Southeast
Topic: Herbs/Forbs, Shrubs, Vines
Title: Plants that smell like chocolate from Coral Gables FL
Answered by: Barbara Medford

QUESTION:

I am looking for plants that smell like chocolate. I live in south Florida. We are currently growing and testing Berlandiera lyrata. Do you know of other plants whose flowers smell like chocolate?

ANSWER:

There turned out to be quite a list of these. We just searched the Internet on "plants that smell like chocolate." Two are native to North America and you can follow the links to our webpages on them. The rest are non-native, and we can't even vouch for whether starts of them can be obtained or if they will survive in Florida.

Native to North America:

Calycanthus floridus (Eastern sweetshrub). From About.com Carolina Allspice - Calycanthus floridus .

Berlandiera lyrata (Chocolate daisy).

Non-native to North America:

From About.com Akenabia Quinata, Chocolate Vine. Also from Invasives.org Akenabia quinata.  This plant originated in China, Japan and Korea. Several sources named it as extremely invasive, which you don't want going on in Florida.

From OMG Facts Cosmos atrosanguinus. SFGate Chocolate Cosmos: An Inedible Flower. Native to Mexico and possibly extinct in its home habitat.

AllExperts Calla Lily

University of California Master Gardeners Some Plants for the Chocolate Theme Garden

 Chocolate Flower Farm

 

From the Image Gallery


Eastern sweetshrub
Calycanthus floridus

Chocolate daisy
Berlandiera lyrata

More Herbs/Forbs Questions

Mercer Society of Harris County Plant Sale from The Woodlands, TX
March 15, 2011 - Love the Name! Anyway, the Mercer Society of Harris County will be having its annual plant sale late this month and as usual I will be attending. I'm trying to find some tropicals and sub-tropicals...
view the full question and answer

Magnolia species are allelopathic
August 02, 2014 - Have a healthy Southern Magnolia tree around 8 years old. It seems like everything I plant next to it dies.: Variegated Spirea, Stokes Aster, Hydrangeas. Is there something it secretes like the waln...
view the full question and answer

What plants grow well in Athens, TX?
January 18, 2011 - Athens, Texas, we have very sandy soil mixed with clay, what plants grow well here?
view the full question and answer

Wildflowers in Bloom in Hudson Valley NY in July
May 19, 2015 - We are hosting a rustic wedding on July 11, and we would like to decorate with wildflowers. We live in rural NY state, in the Mid-Hudson Valley, and there are many sites from which to pick wildflowers...
view the full question and answer

Cottony infestation on Turk's Cap in Austin
July 05, 2010 - The Turks Cap in my front planter is well-established and, overall, happy and blooming. However, some of the top leaves, those in the most shaded area, have what looks like a thin, loose layer of cot...
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.