Jasmine plant - types, description, care and cultivation.

The genus of the plant Jasmine is wide and diverse. These are decorative fragrant bushes that adorn gardens and park areas, and indoor flowers during flowering, filling the room with an exciting, heady aroma, and whole plantations of shrubs grown to produce essential oil or tea.

In many household plots there is a similar plant “Chubushnik” of the Hortense family, mistakenly accepted by amateur gardeners for jasmine, but having nothing to do with it, only vaguely reminiscent of a smell. So what is real jasmine?

Jasmine shrub: plant description

Kind Jasminum (jasmine) make up more than 200 species of evergreen or deciduous exotic shrubs of the family Oleaceae (olive), with upright or lianike stems reaching 1-3 m or more, inhabiting the tropical and subtropical zones of the Earth. Shoots can be naked or pubescent.

In temperate and cold climates, it is grown as a container culture for indoor rooms and conservatories.

Petiole, without stipules, leaves of juicy green color, depending on the species, can be simple, unpaired, triple, of different lengths and shapes. Leaf plates are either thick leathery, or with a gentle pubescent cuticle. They are located on the stem in pairs or in succession, making up a magnificent crown.

 

A modest and at the same time noble-looking flower with a rich pleasant aroma that intensifies in the evening hours (for this property in the East jasmine is called the “queen of the night”), not large 2.5-5 cm, have a tubular shape with a simple or terry crown of delicate narrow petals (in most species resembling an asterisk) from 5 to 12 pieces, single or component corymbose,or umbellate inflorescences of yellow, white or reddish color. Only 2 stamens on short threads are located inside the tube.

The plant grows and develops rapidly. It blooms profusely from May to September, some species are characterized by year-round flowering, for example, the variety "Beauty of India" of the type "Sambac".

Fruits are spherical or oblong berries with seeds also having species differences.

The nearest natural habitat of jasmine in the Caucasus and Crimea. Natural growth of shrubby jasmine yellow (Jasminum fruticans), about 1 m high, has been noticed, some sources claim that this species is frost-resistant and can withstand temperatures up to -250, and white or medicinal jasmine (Jasminum officinale), growing in the form of deciduous vine with lignified stems, cirrus leaves and medium-sized up to 2.5 cm, but very fragrant flowers.

Types and varieties of jasmine

Among the great variety of species, 90 of them are used in container growing in Europe and Russia, which differ in color of flowers, leaf shape, stem structure. Especially popular:

• polyanthus (j. polyanhum) - differs year-round flowering, thin curly drooping stalks reach 3 m long, in need of support. All vegetative parts are covered with the smallest villi from which the crown acquires a bluish tint. Small stars of fragrant flowers, whose rich sweet smell spreads several meters, are located throughout the stem, strewn the bush from top to bottom, giving a special decorative effect;
• flattened (j. decussatum) - jasmine shrub, small in size with upright lignified stems, requiring regular shortening, stimulating the number of buds. Leaves lanceolate leathery, unpaired, light green. The modest single-row flowers exude strawberry aroma in a pale purple hue. It blooms in summer;
• shrubby (j. fruticans) - upright bare stems grow up to 1.5 m; small, dark green color, leathery leaves are located on thin flexible shoots in pairs; yellow semi-umbrellas of not large flowers crown the shoots, bloom in spring;
• holoflowered (j. nudiflorum) - unique in winter flowering, a small shrub with drooping thin stems, endowed with an insignificant number of small leaves dropping them in winter, giving way to blooming thinly smelling yellow flowers;
• large flowered (j. grandiflorum) is an evergreen showy plant with liana-like bare stems, lignified below, growing to 10 m in need of support. Leaflets opposite, cirrus, consist of 5-7 rounded pointed 2-3 cm thick plates. Umbrellas located at the top of the shoot consist of large, up to 10 pieces of white flowers, unusually fragrant, resembling the smell of spring freshness, used to produce essential oils. The beginning of flowering in June, the duration is 5 months. Grasse, France, grows whole plantations for Chanel perfumes;



• drug (j. officinale) - serves as the native species for the stock of new varieties. A distinctive feature of the species are leaves, the upper plate of which is dark green in color, the lower one is light, the ciliated edges, without pubescence, are located on the stem for 2-3 pairs. White fragrant flowers are collected in inflorescences of 5-6 pieces, appear in April. All vegetative parts of the plant have medicinal properties. Aurenum - one of the most popular varieties, is notable for creamy yellow spots on the leaves.

Special attention is paid to florists by the variety Sambak (j. Sambac), known under the names "Indian" or "Arabic", apparently, according to the area of ​​its natural growth, only the wild species no longer exists as a result of natural intraspecific crossing, and in Arab deserts will not grow, preferring the moist shady jungle of the tropics. Eastern Himalayas considered homelandand Arabian gardens are decorated with jasmine exclusively as a cultivated ornamental plant adored for its beauty and fragrance.

Unpretentiousness of cultivation, extraordinary beauty, captivating fruity sweet aroma have made indoor jasmine flower of the Sambac species popular among lovers of exoticism and breeders.

Numerous varieties with individual characteristics, agricultural technology, and nuances of care have been bred.

1. The beauty of India (Belle of India) - an intermediate form between a bush and a liana, a more demanding variety for high temperature and illumination in winter, increased humidity of soil and air, which is more than compensated by year-round flowering (more abundant in the spring-summer period) double, with elongated petals, up to 3 cm in diameter with fragrant flowers.
2. Grand Duke of Tuscany (Grand Duke of Tuscan) - also a year-round flowering variety. Flowers resemble small roses, blooming loose on the stem for several days and dry up, remaining on the stem. The largest diametrical size of the corolla reaches 4 cm, endowed with a rich, sugary-sweet, but pleasant smell. A slowly growing shrub, tolerates open sunlight or shading, and the drying of an earthen coma, and waterlogging leads to the death of the plant.

3. Mali Chat (Mali Chat) is another representative of a slowly growing shade-tolerant shrub, only with scanty 1.5 cm flowers, possessing a whisk of an unusual multi-tiered shape and captivating enveloping caramel aroma. Flowering from March to October. Pretty recently bred variety. The only requirement is to maintain a constant soil moisture.
4. Orleans maiden (Maid Of Orleans) - the most unpretentious and popular jasmine in the world. Easy to grow, slowly growing shrubbery, enchanting with simplicity, abundance and grace of flowers, although not a double whisk, but boiling-white in color, embodying tenderness, purity, purity and unsurpassed honey “sacred” aroma, it is not for nothing that Sambaka flowers are used in religious ceremonies of Asia . The flower lives only a day, but falling in its place a new one appears, providing continuous year-round flowering to the bush, if you arrange for the plant long-term illumination in the autumn - winter period. The only caveat of care is, watering after the earth coma is completely dry, the plant is very sensitive to the bay. Its compact forms easily fit on the windowsill, since jasmine tolerates pinching and pruning of shoots.

Common distinguishing features of the Sambak species from other members of the genus are large leathery leaf plates, oval with a pointed tip, up to 12.5 cm long, up to 7.5 cm wide, evaporating a lot of moisture, so they need to be sprayed. The arrangement on the stem is rare, opposite, on short petioles, bright green in color, smooth, only have several setae at the base, with pronounced central and lateral veins. At home, you can grow as an ampel plant.

Growing Features

Jasmine shrub in the open ground grows well and blooms for a long time only in tropical and subtropical climates. Lowering the air temperature below +100 leads to the death of the plantbut the inhabitants of the northern regions enjoy his charm at home. The ability of jasmine to equally well tolerate both shade and open sun make its cultivation available in rooms with any window orientation.

The only thing that jasmine does not like is a sharp change of placefor example, if a flower has been kept in the shade for a long time and transferred to open sunlight, it will certainly experience stress, stop growth and may even get burns on the leaves, and vice versa, accustomed to strong light and appear in the shade - will discard foliage. If you need to move, try to do it gradually.

 

Given the tropical origin, for full vegetation and especially flowering, the flower needs warmth, humidity, a long daylight, replaced by a dark cool night. Try to provide additional lighting in the autumn-winter period, using any phyto lamps. Daytime temperatures do not matter much if in a room it is very hot and dry air more often water and spray leaves, increasing humidity - jasmine prefers 50 - 80%, create additional moisturizing mechanisms using electric humidifiers or simply placing water containers around the flower or placing a pot on pan with wet pebbles, expanded clay, moss. Open the windows at night, lowering the temperature in the room, but watch out for cold air flows - jasmine is afraid of drafts, it may lose buds.

An important point! You can not use garden soil for indoor cultivation, only a special soilless mixture with a lot of organic matter, in ordinary soil the roots can rot.

The substrate should be light, drained. For loosening garden soil or container soil, use perlite, a natural natural component that does not allow the soil to condense, providing constant air exchange, actively absorbing moisture during irrigation, gradually giving it to the roots later on.

 

Young indoor bushes for the first 2 to 3 years of life need to be transplanted into a larger pot, further transplantation is only needed to replace depleted soil, as the plant itself tells you when reducing or stopping flowering altogether, usually there is a need after 3 to 4 years. Street bushes are planted immediately in a permanent place, regularly fed with complex fertilizers.

Jasmine responds to timely pruning or pinching with a beautiful crown shape and abundant flowering (many species produce flower buds on new shoots), form a crown after flowering of the stems.

Attentive caring attitude, observing the rules of care for a unique plant will respond with a beautiful, healthy crown, abundant flowering and exotic fragrance, bringing a maximum of positive emotions.

Home Care

Among tropical exotics, the jasmine shrub is considered the most unpretentious, but this does not mean at all that there are no rules for its cultivation.

There are some individual subtleties of care inherent in a certain type of jasmine that contribute to healthy growth and abundant flowering, without adhering to them, you can not wait for flowering.

At home, sambac varieties are usually used. They are very effective in flowering, with a delicate non-sugary aroma. The maintenance rules are more or less similar, the main thing is to maintain consistency, you do not need too low temperatures during the dormant period, such as polyanthus or large-flowered ones, but there are varieties among them that require special attention, so before buying a flower, you need to study the details of its cultivation. General conditions for jasmine sambac species are as follows:

• temperature condition in the range of +180 - 250 in winter, +250 - 300 in summer, but even at lower temperatures the bushes adapt and grow well if they are constant and do not fall below +100, but sharp fluctuations lead to inevitable death, this is possible with prolonged ventilation premises in the winter;



• lighting should also be constant, try not to change location without special need, if a flower grows in the sun, do not take it into the shade and vice versa. In the autumn-winter period for varieties of year-round flowering, provide additional lighting, daylight hours should be at least 10 hours;
• air humidity increased, but comfortable 65%, too dry air increases the vulnerability of the plant to the defeat of pests, use all possible methods of moisturizing. Spraying blooming jasmines is not worth it directly, brown spots can form from accumulated drops, this will ruin the aesthetics of the flower, moisten only the air around;
• watering plays an important role in vegetation, it is necessary to pay special attention to this, take into account the variety of jasmine, some must be kept moist all the time, others must be dried, but what is important - in any case, do not allow the soil to flood, the delicate root system will instantly decay. Remove excess water from the pan after 15-20 minutes;
• soil composition must be balanced, neutral or slightly acidic, experienced gardeners warn - use a slightly acidic peat based substrate (horse has a pH of 2.8-4.0). The best option would be to acquire a specialized substrate, loose, nutritious, including perlite, organics (sawdust), mineral additives. In the future, when watering, add a little lemon juice 2-3 drops (1-2 times a month) so that the soil does not alkalize, the drainage layer in the pot is at least 3-5 cm, depending on the volume;
• top dressing regular during the period of active vegetation, budding and flowering after 10 days is necessary, only be careful - overfeeding is toxic to jasmine, use small concentrations. Granular fertilizer is best used, it slowly dissolves, having a beneficial effect on the roots;

• bush formation depends on the variety and the wishes of the owner, you can leave the vine growing around the support or pinch the shoots 2-3 times a year, creating a fluffy crown.

The jasmine plant is very fond of fresh air, regular airing positively affects the appearance of the bush.

Be extremely careful when airing rooms - a draft is the worst enemy of jasmine.

Jasmine transplant

Young plants are replanted every spring, in early March, increasing the size of the pot by 2-3 cm, jasmine prefers a tight pot. Adults over 5 years of age - as the pot grows.

If the roots are too tightly entwined and do not straighten, they must be cut with a sharp knife along the root coma to a depth of 2.5-5 cm (4-5 incisions), remove brittle, old ones, giving the opportunity for new growth. Sprinkle all remaining roots with crushed coal, for disinfection.

 

A baseless substrate is used, which includes:

1. Base (horse peat (pH 3-4), coconut fiber, sphagnum moss).
2. Organics (sawdust, needles and crushed coniferous bark, chopped straw).
3. Filler (perlite, vermiculite, coarse sand).
4. Mineral additives (nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus).

In the pot with a large amount of drainage, lower the roots, deepening the root neck by a maximum of 1-2 cm, a deeper location can complicate flowering.

Fill the resulting voids with a substrate, shed well. Provide diffused light for the transplanted jasmine for several days.

Jasmine propagation

Indoor flower jasmine, like many of its relatives, is propagated by all vegetative parts.

 

It is easiest to use cuttings, especially since after trimming them there is enough. By layering, it is also not difficult to breed a bush. Growing from seeds at home is already a more troublesome painstaking task, rarely used by gardeners, and varietal traits are not transmitted through seeds, although retail chains offer a large selection of seeds of new varieties, but there is still no guarantee for the expected end result, so gardeners prefer proven methods .

Cuttings

Not quite lignified shoots (two-year-old) with 3-4 internodes are used, but green apices can also be used, only rooting of last year's cuttings is more productive.

An ideal planting material is considered to be a stalk taken from a side shoot that has last year’s “heel” (lower internode) and the top of this year.

The jasmine stalk is trimmed immediately under the “heel” at an angle of 450, the top - backing 1 cm from 3-4 internodes. The lower leaves are removed completely, the rest are cut in half. Treatment of the heel with growth stimulants (root, epin, heteroauxin) increases the chance of root formation.

 

For rooting, a mixture of peat and coarse sand or perlite, or another baking powder is used.A prerequisite is the permeability of moisture and air. The mixture is disinfected with a solution of potassium permanganate.

A landing container with a volume of 0.5-0.7 l, having moisture outlets and drainage, is filled with soil, slightly compacting, and watered with settled water at room temperature.

Prepared jasmine cuttings are immersed in the soil (strictly vertically) until the leaves are covered with a glass jar to create a greenhouse effect. A peculiar greenhouse is transferred to a warm (+200) place, for example, a warm windowsill, shaded from direct sunlight.

Further care until the cuttings are rooted (as awakened kidneys tell you) consists in daily ventilation of the greenhouse, removal of condensate from the surface of the can, and moistening of the soil (as it dries). When the first leaves appear, the jar is removed, the stalk is transplanted into a groundless mixture for an adult plant and taken care of as an adult plant.

Layering

In a planting container filled with a mixture for germinating cuttings, the shoot of the mother plant is bent, having previously made an incision in the cortex under the internode, lowered into the hole with an incision, securing it in soil with a V-shaped clip, and sprinkled it to the leaflets. The top of the shoot is cut off, leaving 3-4 internodes, the leaves are shortened. Build a "greenhouse" from the package. Further care is like a handle. The appeared leaflets signal the rooting of the layering. Trim secateurs with a stalk connecting with adult jasmine, transplant a seedling in a pot with a nutrient mixture.

In these ways, you can grow several new bushes. Young indoor jasmines bloom for 2-3 years of life, depending on the variety.

Pest and Disease Control

Jasmine is a plant quite resistant to diseases and pests. According to the observations of gardeners, indoor bushes can be affected by ailments only because of a violation of the rules of care.

 

Dry air causes an attack of a spider mite hiding in the soil, sinuses and on the back of the leaf, as evidenced by light and yellow spots and a spider web. With a large accumulation of the pest, the leaves quickly dry out, and mite colonies pass to neighbors. Immediate treatment with biologics can save you from spreading. Use Fitoverm. At the first signs, a folk remedy can also help - an infusion of onions or garlic.

Another lover of hot dry microclimate and a very dangerous powdery mealybug, leaving cotton balls in the leaf sinuses, on the back of the leaves, on the stems and shoots, are a cluster of larvae sucking plant juice. Jasmine stops growth, shoots are deformed. Females leave waste products in the form of sugary fluids (honey dew), the source of the soot fungus, a very dangerous disease that causes the death of the flower. The same Fitoverm or similar biological product Confidor, or any other, but after manual removal of the “cotton balls” will help to get rid of it with a towel moistened with soapy water.

 

Warm, too humid air, waterlogged soil (bay) lead to the spread of fungal diseases (rot), leading to severe inhibition of the plant, which is manifested by stunting, falling flowers and buds, wilting vegetative parts, yellowing of leaves from the crown of the plant, the appearance of mushroom mosquitoes, sometimes a flower cannot be saved. If such signs appeared, it is necessary to change the soil, removing rotten roots, trim all affected areas to healthy tissues. If there were signs of a fungal disease (dark spots on the leaves, rotted tops of the shoots), start treatment with a fungicide: Fundazol, Maxim, Khom. After 3-4 days, the plant can be sprayed or sprinkled with a growth stimulator, for example, Zircon.

Do not make mistakes in caring for jasmine, maintain a comfortable indoor climate and then “natural air fragrance”, a luxurious plant will not cause trouble, but only positive emotions.

Why jasmine leaves turn yellow, the bush does not bloom

Although jasmine is considered a relatively unpretentious plant, incidents sometimes occur. All causes of yellowing of the leaves are associated with a violation of the content regimen. Too hot and dry, or vice versa, they flooded the plant, and the temperature is low - it froze, or temperature drops and it thus responds to stress. Diseases and pests (this has already been said).

 

Lack of or over-fertilizing is a very important point. As for any other plant, but especially for jasmine - it’s better not to overfeed than to overfeed. Experienced gardeners focus on this - the doses calculated for the plant are divided in two, it is better to feed them more often, but in a lower concentration.

These reasons can stop flowering. Excess nitrogen is reflected in a lush crown with succulent leaves and interferes with budding. With a lack of potassium and phosphorus, the plant does not have enough strength for the development of a flower. Soil - in alkaline, it will not bloom at all. Sunflower or severe blackout also affects flowering.

Come with love to your pet, make sure that jasmine lives in comfortable conditions, or correct mistakes and the magnificent fragrant riot of flowers will not keep you waiting.