How to Grow and Care for Orange Jasmine

Orange jasmine, also commonly known as orange jessamine or mock orange, is a tropical flowering shrub with a strong, sweet fragrance of citrus and licorice, attracting bees, birds, and butterflies. Orange jasmine is not a jasmine plant but is in the citrus family. Orange jasmine grows best in USDA zones 10-12, requiring warmth, morning sun, filtered afternoon light, and humidity above 50%. Orange jasmine is not frost tolerant and must be moved indoors in wintry climates during cool weather.

Orange Jasmine Plant Care

Here are the main care requirements for growing orange jasmine:

• Plant it or lightly prune it in the spring.
• Keep soil moist but not soggy, giving about 1 inch of water per week.
• Prefers full sun in the mornings but dappled light in the afternoon.
• Maintain ideal temperatures between 70 to 100 F; move inside when temperatures drop below 50 F.
• Give fertilizer for evergreen plants regularly during the growing season.
• Grow it in a container if outside of USDA zones 10-12; move inside during colder months.

Warning

In the United States, orange jasmine is invasive in Hawaii and Florida. In other parts of the world, it's invasive in Australia, Hong Kong (China), Mauritius, Reunion, and Bermuda. It's particularly problematic since it's a host plant of Diaphorina citri, or Asian citrus psyllid, which is an insect that spreads citrus greening disease.

Light

Orange jasmine plants require protection from hot, direct sunlight. Locate the plant where it receives morning sunlight and afternoon shade or where it will get dappled sunlight or shade all day.

Soil

Plant orange jasmine in well-drained soil free of nematodes (roundworms). Well-drained soil is critical, as orange jasmine doesn’t do well in waterlogged soil. If your soil lacks drainage, improve soil conditions by adding organic material such as compost, chopped bark, or leaf mulch. The shrub thrives in moderately acidic, neutral, or alkaline soil with a pH between 6.6 and 7.5.

Water

Water orange jasmine plants deeply whenever the top two inches of soil feels dry. Generally, one inch of water per week is about right. However, more frequent irrigation may be needed if you live in a hot climate or the plant is in a container. Never allow it to stand in muddy soil or water.

Temperature and Humidity

As tropical plants, orange jasmine does best in humidity above 50 percent and must have temperatures above 40 degrees Fahrenheit, as they are not frost-tolerant. The plant can tolerate lower levels of humidity.

Fertilizer

Feed orange jasmine plants once every three to four weeks throughout the growing season (spring through fall), using a fertilizer designed for evergreen plants. Alternatively, apply a balanced, water-soluble fertilizer formulated for evergreen shrubs if the plant is in a container. For the amount to use, follow the product label instructions.

Types of Orange Jasmine

Murraya paniculata's evergreen shrubby leaves are oval, shiny, and a deep green extending frominteresting, gnarled branches. At maturity, which can take three to four years, the shrub can grow to eight to 12 feet tall and wide, with a round growth habit.

Its botanical name, "Murraya," is named in honor of Johann Andreas Murray, an 18th-century professor of botany and medicine. Two varieties of M. paniculata include:

• M. paniculata 'Lakeview': This variety is the primary species plant commercially available.
• M. paniculata 'Exotica': Also called mock orange, this variety has larger flowers and leaflets (1 1/4 to 2 3/4 inches). The specimen plant has narrower petals and smaller flowers.
  

Other cultivars of orange jasmine are not readily available outside of the plant's native range. If you are looking for a similar plant with orange blossom-like flowers, consider these two alternatives:

• Mock orange (Philadelphus coronarius): Hardy to USDA zone 4.
• Mexican orange (Choisya ternata): Thrives in USDA hardiness zones 7 to 10.

Pruning

Orange jasmine grows quickly while young and may need repeated pruning to maintain its shape. Orange jasmine can be trained into a small tree andused as ahedge by pruning often when it is young since it grows rapidly. Prune as needed to remove dead, damaged, or diseased branches.Avoid harsh pruning—it’s best not to remove more than one-eighth of the shrub’s yearly growth.

Propagating Orange Jasmine

The plant can be propagated from stem-tip cuttings in the spring or early summer:

1. Using a sharp knife or pruners, take a four-inch cutting from a portion of the plant that does not have flowers. Strip all but the top couple of leaves from the cutting.
2. Fill a four-inch pot with a lightweight potting mix and water it until it is evenly moistened. Dip the snipped end of the cutting in rooting hormone and insert it in the soil about one inch deep.
3. Place the cutting in a bright location outdoors but away from direct sunlight. Once you see new growth, the cutting has rooted. Transplant it into a larger container or in garden soil. Once it is established, it should grow quickly.
   

Growing Orange Jasmine from Seed

Propagating the plant from cuttings is the easiest method, as seeds are not widely available and germination may take more than a month, but if you want to try with seeds you have collected from your plant, you can start them indoors. Here's how to do it:

1. Extract the seeds from the fruit. Soak the seeds in water for a couple of hours.
2. Place the seeds on the surface of seed pots filled with sterile potting mix. Do not cover them; they need light to germinate.
3. Keep the seeds evenly moist but not wet at around 82 degrees Fahrenheit. The location should be bright but not exposed to direct sunlight. The seeds germinate in 30 to 40 days.
4. Transplant seedling into a larger container or in garden soil once it has several sets of true leaves,

Potting and Repotting Orange Jasmine

When grown in containers, orange jasmine should be repotted when it begins to outgrow the container. Note: The roots of orange jasmine are fragile. Here's how to move an established plant into a larger container (opt for a new pot that's two inches wider):

1. Water the plant well a few days beforehand.
2. Trim off any dead foliage, removing no more than one-eighth of the total growth.
3. Remove the plant, root ball, and soil and transfer it to the new container.
4. Gently backfill with fresh potting mix around the root ball.
5. Water well to settle the soil.

Overwintering

Below USDA zone 10, potted orange jasmine must be brought indoors for the winter. Place it in a bright room or on a sunny windowsill and water it regularly.

Common Pests and Plant Diseases

Although this species doesn't usually have problems with diseases, it will attract certain pests. You may see soil nematodes, scale, whiteflies, and sooty mold. Nematodes (roundworms) can be beneficial or detrimental to the garden; when detrimental, they attack plants and spread plant viruses. The best way to prevent nematodes is to buy plants from reliable sources (plants can be infected with nematodes at the nursery) and plant them in nematode-free soil. Neem oil can also help control nematodes.

Scale insects appear as fine white lines or tan, scaly bumps on leaves and stems. They suck the sap from plants, removing essential nutrients. Treat for scale by pruning infected branches and applying a horticultural oil during the insect's hatch.

Whiteflies can transmit diseases to the plant and promote sooty mold, which is a cosmetic problem. Whiteflies can be controlled with various organic and chemical treatments, including neem oil and horticultural oil, and with natural predators, such as ladybugs, lacewing larvae, and whitefly parasites.

Sooty mold is a black fungus that appears on leaves and can shade them from sunlight.To prevent sooty mold, do not let water sit on the leaves. Eliminating whiteflies and scale helps prevent mold because these insects emit honeydew, which promotes mold growth.

How to Get Orange Jasmine to Bloom

Orange jasmine usually begins blooming in its second year and repeatedly flowers throughout the year. If your shrub looks healthy but does not bloom, the reason could be too much nitrogen from lawn runoff, which triggers leaf growth but no flowers. You can counter this by feeding the plant a fertilizer high in phosphorus (P), encouraging blooming. For the amount to use, follow the product label instructions.

Bloom Months

Orange jasmine typically blooms year-round in its ideal climate. It produces flowers when it's warm, so plants in cooler climates might flower during the warmer spring, summer, and fall months.

How Long Does Orange Jasmine Bloom?

Orange jasmine blooms last throughout the year, reblooming constantly. They may produce fruits (small, 1/2-inch red berries) at the same time as flowering. Blooms last longer with consistent warm temperatures, humidity over 50%, full sun in the mornings with filtered light, and moderately moist soil.

What Do Orange Jasmine Flowers Look and Smell Like?

Orange jasmine produces small, 1-inch, intensely fragrant flowers. Flowers are most fragrant at night, with a musky citrus fruit peel scent mixed with licorice.

How to Encourage More Blooms

Sunlight is the key to encouraging more blooms. Provide adequate sunlight to produce more abundant blooms.

Common Problems With Orange Jasmine

Given the right growing conditions, orange jasmine grows easily with few problems.

Yellowing or Dropping Leaves

Overwatering orange jasmine can cause yellowing leaves and sometimes leaf drop. Yellowing can also be a sign of chlorosis, a nutritional deficiency. This deficiency may also be caused when the plant receives too much water, not giving it time to absorb nutrients from the soil.

Water when the plant is dry about one to two inches from the surface. Too much water can also cause the plant to develop root rot, which can kill the plant.

Wilting Leaves

When an orange jasmine plant is underwatered, it will begin to wilt. Carefully reintroduce some water slowly to not shock the plant.

From: thespruce