Tobacco plant Fragrant Cloud - Nicotiana x sanderae

Tobacco plant 'Fragrant Cloud' also known as Nicotiana x sanderae, is a heavy-blooming flowering tobacco with white trumpet-shaped flowers. It is most certainly the most fragrant of the Nicotiana varietiea and the one that displays the largest flowers.

Nicotiana or tobacco plant or jasmine tobacco is a member of the Solanaceae family and comes from the tropical and subtropical regions of South and Central America. It is a tender, short-lived herbaceous perennial that is cultivated as an annual in temperate climates. This heavy bloomer bears flowers all throughout the summer up until the first cold spells. Still rarely used in French gardens, tobacco plants would gain to be known for the originality of their often deliciously scented flowers and the exotic touch it brings to gardens. Most species of tobacco produce flowers that open in the late afternoon, diffusing their jasmine-like scent all night long, and close in the early morning, at first light. These plants are described botanically as being vespertine. Some hybrids now offer daytime flowering with blooms in a variety of shades.

Nicotiana unfold its inflorescences displaying loose, raceme-like cymes. The long calyx made up of 5 fused sepals, encircles the base of the corolla and once the flower wilts, hosts the tiny seeds. The corolla is composed of 5 petals fused into a tube that divide, flaring sharply into 5 slightly indented lobes that form stars from which 5 long stamens shoot out. As for the leaves, they are often covered with a short glandular down which exude a viscous, sticky substance.

Nicotiana x sanderae 'Fragant Cloud' blooms all summer, from July to October, in a profusion of long, highly scented, white trumpet-shaped flowers. This is undoubtedly the variety that produces the most intense fragrance and the largest flowers (7 cm in diameter) with deeply indented, slightly acuminate petals. The plant produces a mass of floral stems that emerge from the light green clumps of leaves arranged in rosettes. This variety features a well-branched habit and forms a charming bush that reaches 80 cm to 1 m high and 30 to 40 cm wide.

Nicotiana love full sun or light shade in well-drained soil that is consistently moist without being wet and positions sheltered from the wind. They will look wonderful in mixed borders, bed edges or in large container displays on a patio. They are an unparalleled choice for scented gardens, accompanied by Mirabilis jalapa, Datura meteloides, the spider flower Cleome Colour Fountain or the Matthiola bicornis also known as Evening Scented Stock, each playing its part in an olfactory symphony.

Did you know that the way Nicotiana plants are pollinated is directly related to the nicotine content of the flowers? Indeed, research has shown that varieties with low levels of nicotine need bees, butterflies etc. to pollinate them. In fact, the scent of the flowers is supposed to attract them. On the other hand, varieties with very high levels of nicotine can be lethal to insects. They have since then adapted by turning to self-pollination. How else can this be achieved if the handiwork of the pollinator is compromised?

Warning: seeds are best meant for very experienced gardeners who are used to sowing very fine seeds. These seeds are as fine as dust and are hardly visible to the naked eye.