The Star Jasmine, otherwise known as the Trachelospermum Jasminoides or Chinese Ivy, Chinese Jasmine, Star Jasmine, Confederate Jasmine, Jasmin rhynchospermum, Jasmin rhyncospermum, is a rather well known climber plant by gardening enthusiasts around the world.
Best known for its average maintenance and fast growth, this climber will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its green colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
This is why all the topics you need to know in order to achieve this will be covered in this Star Jasmine Care Guide. Ready? Let’s go!
The basic care guidelines you need to remember for your Star Jasmine are the following:
- Water: The Star Jasmine prefers constant watering each week and more during the hot season.
- Light: Keep your Trachelospermum Jasminoides in an environment where it can receive partial to full sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Star Jasmine in soil with well-draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of sand, chalk, and loam.
And as with many other plants, these are the only three care factors you need to remember to make sure your Star Jasmine is, for the most part, healthy and well to survive.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Star Jasmine belongs to the Apocynaceae family, the genus Trachelospermum and the species Jasminoides, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Trachelospermum Jasminoides (trak-ee-lo-SPERM-um jas-min-OY-deez).
As with other Trachelospermum’s, the Star Jasmine is an evergreen plant, which means it will be present year round in your garden.
Growing Region
The Star Jasmine is a plant native to the Western & Southern Japan to Vietnam.
You might be wondering why your Star Jasmine’s native region is important. Well, if you know where your plant originally came from, you’ll know which environment conditions it prefers, and with it, knowledge on how to replicate it at home.
With this in mind, the Trachelospermum Jasminoides will be most used to the heat zones in the 9 – 10 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 7b, 8a, 8b, 9b, 9a, 10a, 10b and the ideal climate zone is between 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, H1, H2.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Star Jasmine is a relatively fast grower, which makes things tricky for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But, how big does the Star Jasmine actually get? What should you expect in terms of size? Let’s dive right in…
The Trachelospermum Jasminoides can grow up to 2′ – 20′ (60cm – 6m) in 2′ – 20′ (60cm – 6m).
Water
In terms of watering, the Star Jasmine is a fairly simple plant to take care of.
This is mostly because it has a straightforward watering schedule and somewhat regular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Trachelospermum Jasminoides prefers constant watering each week and more during the hot season.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively average needs in terms of water.
Watering
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Star Jasmine in soil with well-draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has good drainage, moist, and occasionally dry properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
In our experience, the famous ‘thumb’ or ‘finger’ test is what works best for the Star Jasmine since with it, you will be able to give it the right amount of water, every time – regardless of the environment or placement where you do decide to keep it.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Star Jasmine prefers to have soil with good drainage, moist, and occasionally dry properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of sand, chalk, and loam.
This is why most experts agree that the Star Jasmine requires soil with loam (silt), which will give you the right conditions it needs.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably alkaline, acid or neutral soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Star Jasmine requires partial to full sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this climber will do well as long as you keep it in partial to full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Trachelospermum Jasminoides in little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day).
Season
Being an evergreen plant, the Star Jasmine will be present year round in your garden.
But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the spring (early, mid, late), the summer (early, mid, late), the fall, and during the winter.
Flowers
You can expect your Star Jasmine to flower around the spring months from April to June (spring).
In particular, this climber is well known for its fragrant and showy flowers around the plant enthusiast community.
The Star Jasmine produces some beautiful white, or gold/yellow and white flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Star Jasmine have a beautiful green color during most of the year.
In particular, they have a simple arrangement with a opposite organization in its leaves.
You can expect the leaves from your Trachelospermum Jasminoides to be around (3-6 inches) in size.
Attracts, Tolerance and Resistance
The Star Jasmine is well known for its tolerance to drought and animals like deer, so don’t worry if any of these come along, your Trachelospermum Jasminoides will be fine.
Garden
Does your Star Jasmine have any garden recommendations? Does it serve any gardening purposes? Here’s how you can get the most out of your new plant.
Most Trachelospermum Jasminoides owners agree that this climber will look great in most rustic, cottage and tropical gardens of all types.
Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of coastal garden, city and courtyard, and in informal and cottage styles.
In particular, the Star Jasmine’s best location within your garden is in wall-side borders, patio and containers, ground covers, banks and slopes, trellises, pergolas, arbors, and in walls and fences, others use it for landscaping in a ground cover, firescaping/fire wise, coastal exposure, border, container, espalier, or a woodland garden.
Companion Plants
Star Jasmine’s do well with some other plants beside it. One good companion plant is the Clematis, which will pair up nicely with your leafy friend.
Others consider that a nice Lantana will work well too, so choose whichever you find works best for you!
Conclusion
So that’s it! These are the main plant care requirements that you need to keep in mind in order to have a healthy Star Jasmine in your garden or home.
