SUBURBAN GARDEN WITH JASMINE

Jasminum grandiflorum, also known variously as the Spanish jasmine, Royal jasmine, Catalonian jasmine, among others is a species of jasmine native to South Asia. In India, its leaves are widely used as an Ayurvedic herbal medicine and its flowers are used to adorn the coiffure of women. In Pakistan, it grows wild in the Salt Range and Rawalpindi District at 500–1500 m altitude.

It is closely related to, and sometimes treated as merely a form of Jasminum officinale. It is a scrambling deciduous shrub growing to 2–4 m tall. The leaves are opposite, 5–12 cm long, pinnate with 5–11 leaflets. The flowers are produced in open cymes, the individual flowers are white having corolla with a basal tube 13–25 mm long and five lobes 13–22 mm long.

The fragrance of the flowers is unique and sweet. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental plant in warm temperate and subtropical regions.By method of solvent extraction the Jasmine flowers are converted into Jasmine Concrete and Jasmine Oleoresin (sold as Jasmine Absolute). Both products have a huge demand in the fragrance industry. Methyl jasmonate isolated from the jasmine oil of Jasminum grandiflorum led to the discovery of the molecular structure of the jasmonate plant hormones.

The plant grows extensively in the Mediterranean region and it has also been introduced widely in other temperate zones, like Southern Australia, where it flourishes in suburban gardens. As the plant is difficult to have in the house as a cut flower, a traditional method of enjoying the flowers indoors is illustrated here. The burgeoning buds that are about to open that evening are collected and are strung on thread with a needle. In a couple of hours, the buds open and the delicious fragrance fills the room the garland is hung in. The flowers stay fresh for a couple of days without water.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.