The English dogwood, also known as mock orange, has huge, fragrant blooms that last for weeks and make it one of the showiest plants of mid to late spring.

This time of the year as our native dogwoods and azaleas have completed their glorious spring display, something magical happens.

Today’s young gardeners will see, and utter: “Is that a dogwood, where is that fragrance coming from?”

The answer is that’s an English dogwood and that fragrance is the mock orange that is also the other name of the plant. You are probably wondering how can this be, a shrubby dogwood with a fragrance that is almost hypnotic.

Last year, about this time, I stopped at a small mom and pop garden center in LaGrange, Ga. I immediately knew it was something special as it looked like the headquarters for the rare and unusual. There were mountain laurels blooming and yes, a good selection of English dogwoods. The huge, fragrant blooms last for weeks and make it one of the showiest plants of mid to late spring. The Garden Guy got one and it has already proven to be a treasure.

I am already guessing you are not familiar with this shrub, and asking please, please, what is it. Botanically speaking it is known as Philadelphus coronarius after an ancient Egyptian King in 283 BC.

It’s from southern Europe and not a dogwood, nor is it related to the orange. There are other species and hybrids of Philadelphus such as Phildelphus x virginalis and even a native Phildelphus lewisii all with the mock orange name and worthy for the garden.

The taxonomic placement of this shrub has been a little fun to watch over the years. Forever it was listed as a member of the Saxifragaceae family giving it relatives like Astilbe, Bergenia, and Heuchera. Many still place it there. But now the taxonomic hierarchy has placed it in the Hydrangea family and this has been accepted by official government agencies.

Your real question is if this plant is so great and The Garden Guy loves it why is it not for sale everywhere?

The answer is hard to figure. It is deciduous but so are hydrangeas and we love them. It can get gangly or a little unruly looking but a little pruning will keep that in check.

Maintain plant structure by pruning the oldest wood and excess basal shoots after the bloom. These basal shoots form a large clump that can be divided or separated in late winter. If the plant needs rejuvenation, cut to the ground after blooming. Lastly, it can reach 8-feet tall but that is no hill to climb, right?

The flowers, however, are as showy as the dogwood. They are 4-petaled, 5-petaled, double and semi-double usually measuring about 2-inches across. You can find them in single, semi-double and double forms.

The blooms are produced by the hundreds, along arching stems that form a fountain-like appearance. And like the name suggests many have a fragrance as enticing as orange blossom.

The English dogwood or mock oranges almost never lose their blooms to late spring freezes. It is cold hardy over a huge area from zones 4-9. It is a long-lived shrub suitable as specimen-type plantings in the shrub border and as screens or hedges. Another interesting feature of the plant is its exfoliating bark that reveals orange underneath.