Family: Solanaceae
Common name: Night blooming jasmine, Raat ki raani, Queen of the night
Did you know that Night blooming jasmine has one of the strongest fragrances in the world, spreading more than 20 meters from the plant? The plants look rather unappealing, growing to a height of about 3-4 meters under good growing conditions.
They bloom profusely, producing bunches of flowers, each having 20-50 flowers in them. The flowers are white with a long narrow corolla, and 5 small petals.
As the name rightly says, the flowers bloom in the night filling the night air with a heady, strong fragrance, and then close in the morning. The plant can bloom about 4 times a year, with all the Night-blooming jasmine plants in an area blooming at the same time.
They produce white berries with seeds when pollinated. The plants can self-pollinate, but they also attract bats and moths that feed at night. Night blooming jasmine belongs to the family, Solanaceae, the one that has tomatoes, potatoes, and eggplants. So there is suspected toxicity of leaves, berries, and flowers that is not completely investigated or proved yet.
Night blooming jasmine is an ornamental plant, that can make your garden smell heavenly, or not-so-nice depending on how you feel about strong scents.
Propagation can be from stem cuttings or from seeds.
