By Sharon Cohoon, Sunset senior garden writer

The scent of garlic sizzling in a skillet always makes your mouth water.  But somehow the same scent isn't so attractive in an ornamental plant. 

Lots of gardeners in Sunset Western Garden Book climate zones 13-24 and H1, H2 grow Tulbaghia violacea (society garlic) anyway just because it's so darn tough.  But you can have a similar look without the nasty-smelling leaves by substituting Tulbaghia fragrans, suggests San Diego landscape designer Amelia Lima.  (Though the botanically correct name is T. fragrans, we'll stick with T. fragrans here because that's how most growers categorize it.)

Tulbaghia fragrans has grassy foliage likes its cousin society garlic but its leaves are longer, thicker, and more gray-green than blue-green.  The plant's habit is also a little looser.  So the effect, says Lima, is more "gardenly' or "cottagey."  The example shown here is from a Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., garden she designed.

Like society garlic, T. fragrans has small, trumpet-shaped, lavender flowers.  Only these are very sweetly scented; some people say they smell like gardenias. They also make excellent cutflowers. 

Tulbaghia fragrans blooms from winter through early spring.  It won't be as easy to find as society garlic, so you may have to ask your nursery to special order T. fragrans.  But I know it's still out there.  (In my area of Southern California, Magic Growers in Pasadena propagates it, and Capitol Wholesale Growers does in the San Jose area.  So far I haven't come across a catalog or online source, but if I've overlooked one, please let me know.