Questions on: Jasmine Ron Smith, Horticulturist, NDSU Extension Service

Q: When I lived in California we had a flowering plant in our backyard that was called Moonlight Jasmine. The aroma in the evening was wonderful, and I have asked people around here but no one knows what I am talking about. I would like to grow it here and I am trying to find a place to purchase it. (Lengby, Minn.)

A: I am not surprised that no one in this part of the country knows what you are talking about! It simply is not a hardy plant in our zones. It grows as far north as zone 7, which is a long way from Lengby, Minn.! That zone travels across southern Oklahoma, the panhandle of Texas, and into the southern parts of New Mexico, Arizona and California.

If you want to grow something with a nice fragrance try Abend Duft or the night-scented stack. It's not much to look at, but sure smells great. It is an annual.

Q: Can you give me some information about jasmine? (Elgin, N.D.)

A: All the jasmine are twining but not self-supporting plants. They all require fertile, well-drained, moist soil conditions to look their best. Most important, they need to be grown from Tennessee on south to make it outdoors. Their hardiness ranges from zones 7-10.

Q: Can you please tell me what kind of plant this is? I received the seed from South Carolina. It grows up a trellis and has beautiful flowers that look like morning glories. It also has very large leaves. Can you tell me also where I can buy more seed? (Jamestown, N.D.)

A: The only plant I know of that could fit your description is the Carolina Jasmine—Gelsemium sempervireus. This would be a tender annual in our part of the country and a perennial in the Carolinas.

I suggest getting a couple of nursery catalogs from the Carolinas sent your way. That way you can pick out the very plant you want.

Q. I was given a piece of a jasmine to root. It was doing well and had bloomed once. (When we got up in the morning it smelled heavenly!) The leaf margins started yellowing and finally the whole leaf yellowed and dropped. Several are now in this condition. Can you tell me how to remedy this?

Thank you in advance—you have so much helpful information in your column. (Jamestown, N.D.)

A. Without plant tissue to diagnose, I can only guess that a nutrient deficiency was showing up—nitrogen, iron, sulfur, etc. You didn't say what you were rooting the jasmine in—water, sand, peat or some other media. You also didn't mention whether or not rooting had actually taken place.

Generally, flowering cuttings root very poorly, if at all. Flower production is an energy drain and should be prevented, if possible, while rooting is being attempted.

If you are using "typical" North Dakota water to root the jasmine, it is likely suffering from severe iron deficiency at the least, which would account for the defoliation.

I recall well the beautiful fragrance from the jasmine when we were living in Arizona. Enclosed is the publication "Home Propagation Techniques" as a reference for you. Others may get this publication from county offices of the NDSU Extension Service.

Thanks for writing.

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