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How to grow jasmine - poet's jasmine (Jasminum officinale)

How to grow jasmine

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Plant
Flowers
Prune

All jasmines have small star-shaped flowers with a distinctive sweet fragrance. Some are tender and only suitable for growing in a conservatory or greenhouse, but the hardier varieties are perfect for greening up a wall or fence, as long as they have wires to support them. Plant jasmine somewhere sunny, warm and sheltered, preferably near a seating area where their scented flowers can be enjoyed.

How to grow jasmine

Grow jasmines in moist but free-draining soil in full sun, up a sturdy support such as a trellis or wires. Feed weekly with a high potash fertiliser in summer and mulch in autumn with well-rotted manure or leaf mould. Cut back after flowering.

Where to grow jasmine

How to grow jasmine - star jasmine growing up a brick wall — Star jasmine growing up a brick wall

For best results, grow jasmine near a wall or fence in moist but free-draining soil in a sheltered sunny site. Many varieties will tolerate shade, but they do best in full sun.

You can also grow jasmines in large pots.

In the video below, watch Monty plant a jasmine to provide fragrance to a seating area at Longmeadow.

How to plant jasmine

Jasmine growing up a support post

Dig a planting hole and add well-rotted manure or compost to the bottom. On heavy soils, add grit to aid drainage. Provide support using an angled cane, which should be pointing in the direction of wires or a trellis for later growth.

Watch Monty's video, below, to find out how to repot a jasmine:

Caring for jasmine

Summer- and winter-flowering jasmines should be pruned after flowering. Watch Alan Titchmarsh's video, above, to find out how to prune and train jasmine after it has finished flowering. Both types of jasmine can be pruned back hard if they have outgrown their original planting spot.

Look out for vigorous new growth to train into your desired shape and space. Plants will take a few years to start flowering again.

Feed weekly with a high-potash fertiliser in summer, tying in young shoots to their supports as and when you need to. In autumn, it's a good idea to mulch around the base of the plant with well-rotted manure, compost or leaf mould.

How to propagate jasmine

Jasmines can be propagated by layering or from cuttings. Outdoor varieties are best propagated from hardwood cuttings taken in winter, but tender and glasshouse varieties do best from softwood or semi-ripe cuttings taken in spring or summer.

Growing jasmine: problem-solving

Jasmines are easy to grow with no serious pest and disease problems. Indoor-grown plants may be prone to greenhouse pests such as mealybug and red spider mite, while outdoor plants tend to attract aphids.

Quick Tips video: Why won't my jasmine flower? Find out, below.

Advice for buying jasmine

Make sure you choose the right jasmine for your growing space. Check its height, spread and hardiness before buying
Make sure your jasmine has healthy leaves and flower buds before buying and when it arrives

Where to buy jasmines online

Jasmine varieties to grow

Jasmine 'Sunbeam'

Jasminum 'Argenteovariegatum' – has long, twining stems of variegated leaves in green, pink and cream, and white summer flowers. A fast grower, it's ideal for covering a large south- or west-facing wall.
Buy Jasminum 'Argenteovariegatum' from Amazon
Jasminum Sunbeam – a new variety with golden leaves that are at their brightest in full sun. The fragrant, white flowers appear from June to August. Sunbeam grows quickly, and is ideal for covering a large south- or west-facing wall.
Buy Jasminum Sunbeam from Marshalls Garden
Jasminum angulare – an evergreen climber with white flowers appearing between July and November. A South African native, it’s half-hardy so needs overwintering indoors in frost-prone areas.
Buy Jasminum angulare from Shrubland Nurseries
Jasminum x stephanense – with pale-pink flowers in June and July, this is a vigorous, deciduous climber. It will cope with partial shade as long as the soil is free draining.
Buy Jasminum x stephanense from Crocus
Jasminum beesianum – a vigorous, semi-evergreen climber, with red-pink flowers in summer. It's frost hardy, but may suffer in harsh winters. Choose a sheltered spot where you can enjoy the fragrance. Remove old and overcrowded shoots after flowering.
Buy Jasminum beesianum from Thompson & Morgan
Trachelospermum jasminoides – the classic star jasmine is a woody, evergreen climber with rich, dark-green leaves that turn bronze in winter. The scented, white flowers appear from mid- to late summer.
Buy Trachelospermum jasminoides from Crocus

Frequently asked questions

My jasmine leaves are turning brown - what can I do?

Some jasmine varieties, particularly star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides), suffer in frost with their leaves turning brown and falling off. They should recover as temperatures increase. To prevent this from happening, make sure your jasmine is planted in a sheltered spot, away from cold winds, or cover it with horticultural fleece when frost is forecast.

Can I grow star jasmine in a container?

Yes, star jasmine can be grown in a container. Choose a pot with a diameter of at least 45cm and add a crock at the bottom to stop compost falling out of the drainage hole. Part fill with a loam-based compost such as John Innes No. 3 and plant your jasmine at the same depth it was in its previous pot. Star jasmine needs a structure to climb up, so make sure you can train it up a wire frame or trellis fixed to a wall or fence next to the pot, or up an obelisk positioned in the pot itself.

Which jasmines are hardy all year round?

Common jasmine (Jasminum officinale) and winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) are hardy, so can be grown outside all year round. Star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides) is hardy throughout most of the UK, but may need winter protection. Tender jasmines, such as many-flowered jasmine (Jasminum polyanthum), are best grown as a house or conservatory plant, where they can be moved outdoors in summer but taken in again when temperatures fall in autumn.

Should I train my jasmine up a trellis or wires?

Jasmines can be trained up a trellis or tensioned wires fixed vertically or horizontally, or both. Once fitted, tensioned wires will last longer than a trellis and need virtually no maintenance, except occasional tightening. What's more, it's easy to extend the framework as and when you need to. Fit them using zinc-plated vine eyes, so the wires are held away from the wall or fence for ventilation. Wooden trellises can rot after a few years and are difficult to maintain once the plants have started growing up them.