Gardening with Gita
This One is for Fragrance Lovers
By
Jul 23, 2008 - 10:11:40 AM

Mention the word “jasmine,” and chances are the first thought that will come to one’s mind is a muggy night somewhere in the tropics, the sweet smell of flowers filling the warm air. Not quite true any more: unlike earlier times, when such unusual plants had to be ordered through specialty mail-order nurseries, many garden centers now bring the tropics here by stocking several kinds of jasmines, thereby exposing those of us who might not otherwise have a chance to experience the exotic scent the flowers emit. Whereas a vague analogy, but in terms of fragrance, a jasmine is to summer what a Daphne odora is to a winter garden.

Of the various jasmines, one that is commonly found at garden centers is the Arabian jasmine, Jasminum sambac, a sun-loving, bushy evergreen with a scrambling growth habit; and, in addition to the pure white flowers that give out the intense perfume, the glossy foliage of the plants is fairly attractive, making them an all-rounder houseplant, especially for the lovers of fragrant flowers. While a little hard to find but truly the king of all jasmines is a variety called ‘Grand Duke of Tuscany,’ which not only bears the most unique-looking double flowers, but just a whiff of the fragrance is bound to take one’s breath away.

Although not winter hardy around here, it is worth the effort to over-winter jasmine plants indoors during the cold season; in fact, once acquainted to these tropical plants, it can become somewhat of a habit to be on the lookout for the different kinds available, for each has its beauty and one-of-a-kind fragrance. Incidentally, we let our plants bask in the sun on the patio during summer months, which makes the time spent outdoors even more pleasurable.

While totally unrelated, a jasmine that casts its spell at night is Cestrum nocturnum, sometimes called the “queen of the night,” a title quite befitting for the assets the plants possess; whereas the leaves are rather weedy-looking and flowers more or less inconspicuous, on warm, humid nights, waves of a scent so strong sweep over the area surrounding a blooming plant that the nose can sense the presence even before the eyes can! 

So, to make the most of the gift Nature has given us, I try to bring a few opened flowers or ready-to-open flower buds inside of whichever of our jasmines is in bloom and let the sweet, calming perfume fill the living area; perhaps a slight exaggeration, but as I am preparing this column, the solitary flower kept nearby that I picked this morning seems to have made the work a little stress-free!

Gita’s Tip of the Month: Now that the annuals are at their peak, it might be a good idea to make notes of their performance, to help plan next year’s garden.  
 
gitaagrawal@juno.com   


© Copyright by Village Publishing LLC