Night Scented Stock

I used to grow Night Scented Stock back in the days when I had a garden and the smell was always exquisite. My next-door neighbour always had a display of Allysum, Lobelia and French Marigolds and I remember, one evening, two elderly ladies admiring his garden and commenting on what a lovely smell. I was my Night Scented Stock they could smell.
Having a garden again, I decided to grow some this year. The boss had never grown them and I was boasting about the beautiful smell they had. What a disappointment. Two large beds and a planter full and no smell from any of them. I have no idea why this should be the case unless the soil is the problem or perhaps the smell has diminished with breeding. I say diminished. You could stick your nose in them and there was no smell at all. It isn't me. The Roses and Dianthus all smell beautiful and manure still smells like manure.
Has anyone else had a similar experience with Night Scented Stock?

 

Well it only smells at night, but I'm guessing I'm stating the obvious.
Bit of a straggly plant if I remember correctly.

 

Very straggly. I only grew it for the scent. It normally gives off the scent in the evening as well. It must be once the sun is off it.

 

It's a long time since I grew them, I do remember them smelling nice after dark but also that they didn't look that spectacular or last that long. I'd suggest trying nicotiana another year, instead - I find mine smell delicious at night, look pretty during the day, and don't seem to mind the current drought. I bought a cheap packet of seeds from Wilkos' last year, and here they all are back again, having seeded themselves!.

 

I've got Zaluzianskya capensis its scented after dark and the flowers close during the day, there is also Z. ovata similar but a bit bigger.
Lots of Datura are also night scented.

But I think with most it is twilight at the earliest, otherwise they would scent on cloudy days if it was sun related.
Mostly the warmer the night the better the scent.

 

Last time I grew them (which was several years ago) they had no scent so I haven't tried them since.

 

We grew it once. It did produce a pleasant fragrance. I seem to recall it attracted tonnes of months of every shape, size and colour, which I liked but some might be creeped out by that.

The scent was nice, but the flowers were not impressive. Another year we got better scent and a much better show off a different flower. I wish I could remember what it was. I thought it was sweet william but when I look that up, I'm not so sure.

 

I also have Nicotania and Zaluzianskya ovata. Neither have much smell. Night Scented Stock was always a very powerful smell. Mine had hundreds of flowers but no smell.
@Michael Hewett I am glad to find I am not the only one to experience No Scented Stock.

 

Covid????

 

Sorry @pete, alas it was many years before that

 

I find that often with scented plants you can stick your nose right in them and the scent is not that strong but it does waft up on the breeze when you dont expect it.

 

Yes I've noticed that with Sweet Williams ...

 

Is there a sweet william that grows about 3ft tall? I grew something years ago that I was sure was sweet william that grew that tall, but when I Google it it says they reach only about 25cm which is only about 10 inches.

Whatever it was I grew, I'd like to grow them again.