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Annuals/Searching for a flower

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Expert: - 10/22/2008


Question
My looking for the name of a small (one inch) rounded flower with small leaves, green long stems, with a very sweet rich aroma (like a gardenia but more feminine). My mother who is Greek use to have it in a pot in the yard.
Can you please help me?

Answer
Anna, this is a very tough question.  It is almost IMPOSSIBLE to find a flower from a description.  I'd "reject" the question, but by posting it, it might conceivably sound familiar to someone, somewhere reading this.  So we'll post it anyway.

You did not mention the color of this flower; please let us know.  Also, tell me what time of year it bloomed -- Spring?  Summer?  Late Summer/Fall?  Winter?  (Seems to me that flowers do bloom in Greece, which they do not on Long Island.)

Could you eat any part of this plant, like you would Rosemary or Thyme?  Did it flower the whole time?  Did the "small" leaves look like Clover?  like Chives?

My best guess:  Sweet Clover.  Comes in light Violet and White around here.  Smells delightful.  Flowers are shaped like Globes.  Leaves are small and round:

images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?_adv_prop=image&fr=yie7c&va=red+clover&sz=all  [Purple/Red Clover]

images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3Fei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Dphoto+white++clover&w=338&h=450&imgurl=www.watercress-net.org.uk%2Fwildlife%2Fimages%2FCloverWhite.jpg&size=32.4kB&name=CloverWhite.jpg&rcurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.watercress-net.org.uk%2Fwildlife%2Fimages%2FCloverWhite.htm&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.watercress-net.org.uk%2Fwildlife%2Fimages%2FCloverWhite.htm&p=white+clover&type=jpeg&no=1&tt=635&oid=ff7bfcf75a2c8f3e&tit=CloverWhite.jpg&sigr=120h1m24e&sigi=11ph7c8lt&sigb=11tvsd5hb

[White Clover]

rsvp,

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Annuals

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Decisions, decisions... If you can't make up your mind which Annuals to grow, you're not alone. Problem with your new flowering Annuals flats? I`ve been there, done that. Petunias, Sweet Alyssum, Larkspur, Marine Blue Lobelia -- they all grow here at my house on Garden Street on Long Island, N.Y.. Cutting and Cottage Gardens, Sun and Shade Gardens, White Gardens and Night Gardens, I`ve done them all. Annuals are the perfect summer flower, bursting with color June through fall's first frost. I can`t speak on Cactus or tender Tropical Plants -- they don`t grow outside in my Zone 7. I`m no Farmer, so I cannot guide you on Fruits and Vegetables. But whether it`s an Annual you want to start from seed, mail-order or pick up at your local garden center, I can help you grow amazing blooms this Summer. Yes, together, we can turn your neighbors green with envy.

Experience

I have a lifetime of gardening behind me here on the North Shore of Long Island. While I have degrees in related fields, there's nothing like hands-on work to build real knowledge. I stay on top of current science -- there's a boom in research, and Kingdom Plantae is filled with surprises. By the way, I really do live on Garden Street.

Publications
Gannett newspapers, The New York Times, and hundreds of others - but not on Annuals.

Education/Credentials
B.A., botany; graduate credits in European Intellectual History and Political Science; minor coursework in related fields, docent training at our local botanical gardens (required for volunteers). I'm currently working on an advanced biochemistry degree.

Awards and Honors
I could tell you, but then you'd know who I am.

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