Compared to most vines, Carolina jessamine, Gelsemium
sempervirens, is relatively docile. It grows at a moderate rate to
only about twenty feet tall, so will not overwhelm shrubbery like
potato vine and honeysuckle often do.
Name and characteristics
Compared to most vines, Carolina jessamine, Gelsemium sempervirens, is relatively docile. It grows at a moderate rate to only about twenty feet tall, so will not overwhelm shrubbery like potato vine and honeysuckle often do. It climbs with ‘twining vines’, so will not attach onto paint like Boston ivy and creeping fig do. These twining vines are loosely wrapped and do not expand much, so do not constrict their support like wisteria does. Carolina jessamine blooms in late winter.
where to plant
Because Carolina jessamine behaves so well, it is one of the few vines that can be grown on a trellis against a wall, without worry about what it will do to the wall. It climbs chain link fences well. However, on open, vertical bar fences, it will need to be tied with plant tape every few feet.
how to care for
Carolina jessamine is not demanding. It wants only the same regular watering that the rest of the garden gets during the growing seasons. Fertilizer can darken the light colored foliage, but at the expense of some of the bloom. Vines that get too congested on top should be pruned back severely after bloom.
where to purchase
Carolina jessamine can be hard to find because it is difficult for nurseries to keep in stock. ‘Plena’ or ‘Pride of Augusta’ is even harder to find.
Tony Tomeo is a consulting horticulturist and arborist for New Image Landscape of Fremont. His weekly radio broadcast, “New Image Garden Report,” can be heard at 8:10am on Friday mornings on KSCO, 1080 AM of Santa Cruz. Tony can be reached at (888) 226-9191 or
tt****@ne***************.com
.