There are a wide variety of commonly-grown non-native and native plants in home gardens as well as local wild spaces that could be poisonous if enough of the plant were to be ingested. (Hardly any plants cause problems just from touching them, Poison Ivy being an obvious exception for those sensitive to its sap.)

An eight-foot high vine is very short (most mature well beyond that size, including the Jessamine). Not as much information exists on the deer palatability of many vine types, perhaps because they usually grow too tall for deer to reach the foliage, though of course that would not necessarily be the case here if the obelisk is the only support structure available to the plant.

We could use more information about the site conditions to make a recommendation. For example, how much direct sun does that spot receive in summer? (Full sun is 6-8 or more hours of unobstructed light.) Does the soil drain well, skew dry, or tend to get soaked by a nearby downspout outlet?

Very few perennial and cold-hardy vines are fragrant that don't reach 20 to 30 feet or more in size at maturity, so is that trait highly important?

Would the plant be in the ground or in a container? We were presuming you meant in the ground, but wanted to ask since the winter hardiness of some species will be much less reliable if grown in a pot, where the roots are less insulated by the limited soil space.

Miri

Full sun until early evening in spring/summer.  Well drained.  Deer traffic, but I do use repellents and my veg garden is enclosed by an electric fence that mitigates the deer population.

If there is a non vine climber that suits the criteria and conditions, that worth considering too.

Unfortunately, pruning back most large-maturing vines will not work well, as it would significantly cut down on flower production, and growth is so fast on most vines that it would outgrow the obelisk more than once a year anyway. We can share some ideas, setting aside a deer unpalatability trait for the moment in case the fencing or use of deer repellent works satisfactorily well.

• compact Clematis cultivars
  • some are bred to mature in the 6-8 foot range, more or less (the Raymond Evison series includes several candidates)
  • they will not be fragrant
• if the grower information on plant size was accurate when these varieties were first introduced, a hybrid Trumpet Vine (Campsis x tagliabuana) cultivar in the Summer Jazz series (Summer Jazz 'Fire' or S.J. 'Sunrise Gold') might work
  • supposedly, they get only 5-8 feet high (other Trumpet Vines get much larger and are very rampant)
  • since they bloom on new wood (not the stems that overwinter, but growth put out that summer), pruning in late winter to restrict size, if needed, should not affect flowering
  • the vine will probably need tying to the support, since it can't really attach via aerial roots as it normally would, unless the obelisk is made out of wood
• maybe Trumpet Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens), though they really want to get 10-20 feet, and I think they bloom primarily on old wood, meaning ill-timed pruning will reduce flowering
• if you can control the suckers spreading underground by installing a barrier that extends a few inches into the soil (we don't know how far is needed), then maybe Hardy Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata) would work
  • suckers are rampant, but at least can be mown off easily
  • bloom period is quite long, though plants resprout quite late (May, potentially even early June), though growth is very fast to make up for the late start
• a compact variety of climbing rose, tied as it grows since it won't wrap around and hold itself up
  • look for a cultivar with good disease resistance
  • some cultivars bloom on both old and new wood, so this leaves some wiggle-room for the timing of pruning, if it's needed
  • some are more fragrant than others
  • this would only be worth trying if you can keep the deer away
  • they pair nicely with compact Clematis for extended color

Miri

Thanks.  There is no obelisk in the garden now, but we might add one if we find a plant choice we like.  

Thanks.  There is no obelisk in the garden now, but we might add one if we find a plant choice we like.  

You're welcome.