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Jasmine: How to Grow Indoors | The Old Farmer's Almanac

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Jasmine

Botanical Name
Jasminum spp.
Plant Type
Houseplant
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Part Sun
Bloom Time
Summer
Flower Color
Pink
White
Yellow
Hardiness Zone
7
8
9
10
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How to Plant and Grow Jasmine

Catherine Boeckmann
June 15, 2023
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The sweetly-scented jasmine flower can fill a room or a garden with its heady scent. Though jasmine is a vine usually grown outdoors, some varieties can also be grown as houseplants. There is some confusion regarding jasmine and which variety is fragrant. Read more about growing jasmine.

Jasmine can be pruned as a shrub near the house or a walk so that its intense fragrance can be enjoyed by passersby as well as the hummingbirds and butterflies that are drawn to the flowers. The genus Jasminum contains more than 200 vines and shrubs.

Types of Jasmine

Common jasmine or Poet’s jasmine (Jasminum officinale), also called True Jasmine, is a deciduous vine with clusters of starry, pure-white flowers that bloom all summer. It’s a twining climber with rich green leaves that have five to nine leaflets, each up to 2½ inches long. The very fragrant flowers are up to 1 inch in diameter.

Hardy to zone 7, the vine grows vigorously ( 1 to 2 feet per year, up to 20 feet) and looks stunning climbing a large pergola, fence, or very large trellis. In the landscape, jasmine can also be pruned as a shrub near the house or near a walk so its intense fragrance can be enjoyed and so you can watch hummingbirds and butterflies come to the flowers. Common Jasmine is native to Asia.

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Winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) is an “old-timey” shrub often found around Victorian homes. The beautiful yellow flowers are unscented, 1-inch wide, and they appear in winter or early spring before the leaves unfold. Winter jasmine is a good bank cover that will spread by rooting where the stems touch the soil. It is also very attractive when planted above retaining walls, with the branches cascading over the side. Hummingbirds love this vigorous vine!

Most other Jasminum species are semi-tropical vines, which are best planted in the spring after the danger of frost is past.

Not a True Jasmine

Star jasmine or Confederate jasmine looks similar but is not a true jasmine. It is actually native to China and is known scientifically as Trachelospermum jasminoides. Hardy in USDA plant hardiness zones 7B through 10, the phlox-like flowers bloom on twining stems in spring and summer and are highly scented.

star-jasmine_0_full_width.jpg
Star Jasmine. Trachelospermum jasminoides


 

Read Next

Planting
  • All summer-flowering jasmines prefer full sun to partial shade; winter or early spring bloomers do fine in partial shade. The ideal planting position should be warm, sunny, and sheltered.
  • Jasmines have few soil requirements: They like moderately fertile, loamy, sandy, and moisture-retaining yet well- draining soil with a moderately acidic, alkaline, or neutral pH.
  • Most Jasminum species are semitropical vines, best planted in spring after the danger of frost is past. 
  • Plant in-ground anytime from June to November. Dig only so deep that the plant crown is level with the soil surface. Container plants are best planted in the fall.
  • If grown as a twining vine, jasmine will need to be supported on an arbor or trellis.
  • As a shrub, jasmine can get lanky and semi-vining, so it needs frequent pruning. Common jasmine grows to a height of 10 to 15 feet as a lanky, semi-vining shrub, growing 12 to 24 inches a year.  Winter jasmine shrubs grow to 4 feet high and 7 feet wide.
  • If you’re going to grow jasmine as a shrub border, you can set them at least 8 feet apart.

Jasmine as a Houseplant

  • Place in a partly sunny spot to encourage robust growth. Indoors, space near a window and provide a trellis or support. Place soon-to-bloom jasmine in a partly sunny spot. After it blooms, place near a south-facing window.
  • Indoors, jasmine needs to stay cool with well-circulated air. Try to keep the temperature between 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. 
  • Humidity is important. Set the plant pot on a tray of pebbles or gravel; add water to the top of the stones. Run a humidifier, if possible. 
  • Water only when the top inch of potting mix is dry to the touch.
  • Plant jasmine in porous material as well as bark, peat, and other soil that drains well. Soil needs to be moist but not soggy.
Growing
  • Tie the vine’s stems to a fairly heavy support.
  • Pinch the tips to stimulate lateral growth and prune after flowering if necessary to restrain growth.
  • If the vine is grown as a groundcover, trim the upward-twining stems. Additional plants can be propagated from stem cuttings.
  • Water once per week, increasing frequency or volume during dry periods. During the summer, allow the soil to be moist and let it dry between waterings. Water less in fall. In winter and spring months, keep the plant slightly dry. 
  • Prune out thin, old shoots after flowering (which is spring) to shape the plant.

Jasmine as a Houseplant

  • Jasmine plants like water. The soil should always be slightly moist, but not soggy.
  • Fertilize jasmine twice a year with fertilizer that is rich in potassium and phosphorus. During the growing season of spring and summer, liquid fertilizer can be fed to the plant every few weeks.
  • Keep jasmine under control with proper pruning, especially at the beginning of spring. Remember, jasmine is a climbing vine!
  • Repot in springtime. Prune the roots when moving to fresh soil, as needed.
Recommended Varieties
  • The Jasmine cultivar ‘Argenteovariegatum’ with cream-white variegation on the leaves, has gained the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit. It’s cold-hardy, deer-resistant, and smells heavenly. In June, a massive display of pink buds opens to powerfully fragrant sugar-white flowers. Bloom continues through August. Very pretty multidimensional vine for a large pergola, fence, or very large trellis. The flowers are most fragrant in the evenings and morning. Very stable variegation. Adaptable to full sun to dappled shade. Light summer water in rich to average soil, including clay soil. Regular summer water speeds growth and establishment in the first summer.
  • If you’re growing jasmine as a houseplant, Jasminum polyanthum is the variety commonly used when growing jasmine indoors. It has a sweet aroma, especially in the evening. 

Gardening Products

Wit and Wisdom
  • In Hawaii, jasmine and ginger blossoms are often used in leis to celebrate Lei Day on May 1.
  • Jasmine’s scent is thought to be calming and soothing.
  • The essential oil of Jasminum officinale is known as the ‘King of Oils’ and has been used to aide the quality of sleep, reduce anxiety, and reduce depression.
  • It’s also an age-old herbal medicine and healing agent that has been used for antiseptic or anti-inflammatory powers.
Pests/Diseases
  • Common jasmine is relatively problem free, pest free, and disease free.
  • Winter jasmine can be affected by spider mites. If this happens, cut them to the ground after blooming and discard the infested plant material. Feed the crowns to stimulate new growth.
  • Yellowish leaves indicate the need for fertilizer, which should be applied in spring.
  • For houseplants, look out for mealybugs (white, cottony masses under leaves and on stems). To remove, use a cotton swab dipped in alcohol.
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Houseplants

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Comments

Madison (not verified)

1 year 6 months ago

Would you know where I could find common jasmine seeds? I am having a difficult time tracking them down.

joe (not verified)

2 years 6 months ago

I have a couple of 20W LED corn bulbs that I used to use to QC paint jobs, and I bought a 100 LED grow light to make a grow station. I plan to use it to get my cucumbers big enough before transplant to defeat The Evil Powdery Mildew that's plagued me for the last three years running (bought some resistant-seeds this time, too). I picked up a kalanchoe on a whim, and now I find that I'd like to grow some showy and fragrant flowers after planting time hits. Will jasmine do okay under bright lights with cool conditions? It's in a basement. Thanks!

Emily Fredrickson (not verified)

2 years 8 months ago

Hi! I was wondering if anyone knew of any good uses for the jasmine flower or any other parts of the plant as I have a large supply of them dried. I have been putting them in my tea, but I have so many that I would like to know if there any better uses. Also, does anyone know of the benefits of eating this plant? I found some stuff on the internet and not a lot of it is proven, but I would trust a testimonial. Best wishes!

Valerie (not verified)

1 year 3 months ago

I collect them for my daughter. She makes soaps, balms, essential oils, teas, perfume among other things. Having the plant is good for both of us. Hope this helps.

Hi Emily, To chip in here … Note that only jasmine officinale is edible. If you live in the South do not mistake “Carolina Jasmine” for real Jasmine. It is “false Jasmine” aka Gelsemium Sempervirens and considered too poisonous for human consumption. 

We like making sachets of dried flowers. Here’s how to make sachets. 

The edible flowers of jasmine officinale are intensely fragrant and are traditionally used for scenting tea, as you know. In North America, jasmine is rarely used in foods however, you’ll see it in Thai cuisine and especially in seafood dishes. Jasmine flower is also use to make sweet syrups for desserts. See recipes from yummly, a popular recipe site.

Kris (not verified)

3 years ago

We would like to put a garden container on a second story porch to let the plants spill over and soften the heft of the porch.
Can jasmine vines climb down instead of up? Any vine, as a matter of fact.

keith bozarth (not verified)

3 years 3 months ago

I have a 15 year old jasmine hedge that has become overly thick and woody. It is pruned regularly but over time the stems have become thick and the hedge is several feet thick. It's about 8 feet tall, covering a fence. If we prune back to, say, a foot thick hedge almost all leafs will be eliminated. Will the plant resprout? Our climate is mild enough that the plants grow year-round.

Hi Keith,
Jasmine is hard to kill, so you can definitely heavily cut it back. Cut back the jasmine to about 2 feet from the ground. However, keep in mind that it won’t bloom for 2 or 3 years after such a heavy cutting.

Hard to kill? I have had about 6 plants in year or so and can not keep one alive. The flowers turn brown. I've planted them in the ground as directed and also repotted them. dead