fragrant flowering trees along driveway

I live in zone 8/8b and would appreciate some suggestions for fragrant flowering trees or large shrubs that I can plant along side my driveway. The area gets full sun and I can only plant about 2 to 3 feet away from the driveway since it borders my neighbors yard. Something that would grow to about 12' to 15'.

 

So 15' x 6'. Pretty limiting. Maybe some kind of flowering crab, like 'Adirondack'.

 

How about Viburnum tinus? It is an upright growing broadleaf evergreen (3-7 m tall) and has beautiful very fragrant flowers in ealy spring. The website http://www.hedgesdirect.co.uk/acatalog/viburnum_tinus.html has some good description and photos. The ones they show are little bushy hedge plants but if left unpruned it makes a great narrow tall shrub here in Vancouver. I believe it takes sun as long as it isn't too dry. I'm not sure if it would work in your particular climate but you could ask around.

 

Thank you for the suggestion, I had considered Viburnums because they have white flowers, which is what I would prefer. I would also like something with multiple trunks. The width of the tree is not really an issue, but something that will tolerate being planted close to a driveway and not infringe too much upon my neighbor's yard is preferrable I have asked his permission to plant something there since it will technically be in his yard.

 

You could look at Magnolias, too; M. grandiflora and M. stellata are hardy to your zone (and colder), and have lovely large white flowers that smell great. You can also, if you wish, train them into shrubs; I've seen it done here in Ecuador.

Another option, if you take good winter care of it, is Frangipani. But you'd have to mulch and burlap-wrap it for the winter, because it's technically only hardy to Z9/9b.

Sambucas (elderberries) are another option; I really like the sweet smell, and mine (which are the Andean variety) smell good for a fairly large radius around the tree. These are super-hardy, too, and some species have edible berries.

 

Flowers of V. tinus are not fragrant, however.

 

You could also take a look at:

Japanese lilac - Syringa reticulata ' Ivory Silk' is a white flower form that makes a nice smallish tree to 20' or so tall, fabulously fragrant

Sweet Olive - Osmanthus fragrans is an evergreen with a heavenly scent often occurring at times of the year when other species are not in bloom

 

The lilac is large- and wide-growing, and has a heavy odor like that of privet when in bloom. The osmanthus might do the trick if hardy there. It tends to have an upright habit and could take a long time to exceed the height cutoff, if it ever did. Its flowers are not conspicuous but their aroma is highly appealing to many.