Common Gardenia

Appearance

"Gardenia jasminoides" is a shrub that ranges from 30 cm to 3 m high in the wild, with cylindrical to flat branches that at first are covered with caducous hairs that fall early, leaving the branch smooth. The leaves are in opposite pairs or rarely in groups of three along the branches. They are either subsessile or on short 0.5–1 centimetre petioles. The leaves themselves are 3–25 cm long by 1.5–8 cm wide and can be oblong-lanceolate, obovate-oblong, obovate, oblanceolate, or elliptic in shape. Their upper surface is smooth and shiny, or slightly hairy along the primary veins, while the undersurface is sparsely hairy to smooth. Each leaf has 8 to 15 pairs of secondary veins. The flowers are solitary and terminal, arising from the ends of the stems.

The white flowers have a matte texture, in contrast to the glossy leaves. They gradually take on a creamy yellow color and a waxy surface. They can be quite large, up to 10 cm in diameter, loosely funnel-shaped, and there are double-flowered forms. Blooming in summer and autumn, they are among the most strongly fragrant of all flowers. They are followed by small and oval fruits.

Distribution

"Gardenia jasminoides" is native to parts of south-east Asia, including Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, East Himalaya, Hainan, Japan, Laos, Nansei-shoto, 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. Within China, the species is found in Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shandong, Sichuan, Taiwan, Yunnan and Zhejiang provinces. 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.