Trachelospermum jasminoïdes Star Of Venice - Star Jasmine

Trachelospermum jasminoides 'Star of Venice' distinguishes itself from the traditional star jasmine by its more generous flowering and its fairly compact growth, which is more suitable for small gardens and container cultivation. Its white flowers diffuse a sweet and sugary fragrance capable of perfuming an entire area of the garden on summer evenings. Adorned with glossy evergreen foliage that takes on beautiful reddish hues in cold and shady conditions, this lovely climbing plant also remains attractive throughout the year. It can be planted in the ground near a fence, or to cover the ground, which it will invade, or even in a large pot on the terrace or balcony.

The star jasmine, in Latin Trachelospermum jasminoides, is a climbing or creeping plant of the Apocynaceae family, related to periwinkles, as well as to Alamanda and Mandevilla (the Dipladenia, glory of our summer flowerpots). Its origins can be found in China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, where it grows on the edge of forests and among shrubs.

The 'Star of Venice' cultivar was recently introduced in the Netherlands. It takes a little while to establish, developing long stems that quickly lignify, with its evergreen growth able to reach a height of 3m and a width of 1.50m over time. The branches are adorned with opposite leaves, with entire lamina, ovate in shape with pointed tips. They are thick and leathery, glossy, green in colour, varying in darkness depending on the nature of the soil. Their size ranges from 5 to 12 cm in length, 2 to 4 cm in width. When the plant suffers, due to cold or intense drought, the leaves take on a beautiful red colour, more intense in partial shade than in full sun, and then they fall. When conditions become more favourable, new leaves appear to replace them. The twining branches, when encountering a moist surface, emit aerial roots that allow the plant to cling to walls, the ground, or stones, similar to ivy.

Another asset of the Trachelospermum jasminoides 'Star of Venice' is its particularly abundant white flowering from May to July, depending on the climate, often with a second bloom in September, and above all, divinely fragrant. The flowers are grouped in small clusters in the axils of the leaves and at the tips of the branches. The turbinate bud opens into a small corolla with a short tube that widens and divides into 5 narrow petals arranged in a spiral. The diameter of the flowers reaches 2 to 3 cm. The fruit, rarely observed in European latitudes, resembles a pair of small curved green beans joined together at their base and tip. When ripe, they bear seeds with an egret. Like many plants in the Apocynaceae family, false jasmine contains alkaloids that are toxic to humans.

A single plant of this false jasmine 'Star of Venice' is capable of perfuming an entire area of the garden, especially in the evening and during warm weather. In most climates, except for the coldest ones, it can be planted in well-drained and humus-rich soil, preferably in a sunny or semi-shaded location. With relatively slow growth, tolerating summer drought once well-established, this Trachelospermum is most often used as a climbing plant to cover a fence or small structure, but it can also form magnificent ground cover as an alternative to ivy. In colder regions, it can be grown in a pot to be sheltered during winter. It can easily be stored in an unheated conservatory to enjoy its beautiful winter foliage. Balconies and terraces can also accommodate its prodigious flowering by placing the plant in a large container.