About

Gardenia jasminoides, commonly known as gardenia and cape jasmine, is an evergreen flowering plant in the coffee family Rubiaceae. It is native to the subtropical and northern tropical parts of the Far East. Wild plants range from 30 centimetres to 3 metres (about 1 to 10 feet) in height. They have a rounded habit with very dense branches with opposite leaves that are lanceolate-oblong, leathery or gathered in groups on the same node and by a dark green, shiny and slightly waxy surface and prominent veins.

With its shiny green leaves and heavily fragrant white summer flowers, it is widely used in gardens in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate climates. It also is used as a houseplant in temperate climates. It has been in cultivation in China for at least a thousand years, and it was introduced to English gardens in the mid-18th century.

How to grow it

Evidence of G. jasminoides in cultivation in China dates to the Song dynasty (960–1279 AD), where both single- and double-flowered forms have been depicted in paintings, such as those of the Song emperor Huizong, and the tenth-century artist Xu Xi. The Yuan dynasty (1271–1368) saw it on lacquerware, and the Ming dynasty on porcelain (1368–1644). Called zhi-zi in traditional Chinese medicine, it was a folk remedy for jaundice, oedema and fevers. English statesman Sir John Barrow saw gardenias in nurseries in Guangzhou, China, in 1794.

G. jasminoides came to Europe via the Cape Colony in southern Africa, which had been founded in 1652 as a way-station between the Netherlands and Asia. There, Daniel Des Marets, Superintendent of the Dutch estates of William III, collected material that ended up in the herbarium of English naturalist Hans Sloane in the 1680s.

Where it grows

Gardenia jasminoides is native to southern East Asia, mainland Southeast Asia, and northeastern South Asia, including Nepal, Bangladesh, Cambodia, East Himalaya, Hainan, Japan, Laos, mainland China, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam, where its native habitat is forest and undergrowth along streams, and on sloping and hilly terrain to an altitude of 1,500 metres (4,900 feet). The species has been introduced to other areas with suitable climate and habitat, including Caroline Islands, Comoros, Korea, Marianas, Marshall Islands, Society Islands and Tubuai Islands.

Uses

Gardenia flowers can be eaten raw, pickled, or preserved in honey. In China, the petals are used in tea for their aroma, while a yellow-red dye used in textiles and sweets has been extracted from the pulp of the fruit. Gardenia jasminoides fructus (fruit) is used in traditional Chinese medicine to "drain fire" and treat certain febrile conditions. It has anti-inflammatory and antipyretic effects.

Other Gardenia plants

Gardenia mutabilis · Star Flower · Tahitian Gardenia · Gardenia tubifera · Gardenia