Tabernaemontana divaricata (Crepe Jasmine)


  • TropPlant Accession Number (TPAN): 0081
  • Botanical Name: Tabernaemontana divaricate
  • Common Name: Crepe Jasmine, Crepe Jasmine, East India Rose Bay, Nero's Crown, Coffee Rose, Flower of Love, Phut Son
  • Cultivar: 'Flore Pleno'
  • Family: Apocynaceae
  • Native To: India, Southern China, Northern Thailand
Tabernaemontana divaricata after a rain
Photo by Matthew Gaston

Landscaping Information

    • Plant Type: Shrub, Treelet
    • Texture: Medium
    • Form: Mound to Round-Headed
    • Height (on average, in landscape use): 2'- 15'
    • Height to Spread Ratio: The ratio of height at maturity to the width (spread) at maturity.
    • Growth Rate: Fast
    • Landscape Values: Accent, Background, Border, Edging, Facer, Filler, Foundation, Framing, Hedge, Patio, Quick Effect, Screen, Specimen
    • Outstanding Quality: Flowers, Fragrance

    Botanical Descriptions

    • Flowers: Sweet Fragrance, green sepals, white petals, 0.5"-1.1" long. Double flower cultivar called 'Flore Pleno' has twice as many petals. 
    Tabernaemontana divaricata after a rain
    Photo by Matthew Gaston

    • Fruits: Orange fruits with seeds possessing an orange-red aril. 'Flore Pleno' does not set fruit or seed.
    • Foliage Color: Young/immature: Yellow Green. Mature: Bright Medium Green to Dark Green
    • Foliage Tip: Subobtuse
    • Foliage Base: Acute
    • Petiole:0.1"-0.4" 
    • Stipules: N/A
    • Margins: Undulate
    • Leaf Arrangement: Opposite
    • Leaf Shape: Elliptic 
    • Leaf Type: Simple
    • Leaf Texture: Smooth, glossy, slightly waxy.
    • Leaf Special Notes: A handsome leaf similar to that of Stemmadenia, but with less prominent underside veins. The leaves look similar to the coffee leaf, hence the common name Coffee Rose.
    Tabernaemontana divaricate 
    Photo by Matthew Gaston

    Tabernaemontana divaricate abaxial leaf surface exposed
    Photo by Matthew Gaston

    • Bark and Trunk: Light brown, smooth, bark. Used as incense and for perfume-making. 

    Horticultural Information

      • Light Preference:  Full Sun, Semi-Sun
      • Light Tolerances: Shade
      • Soil Preferences: Organic, Moist
      • Tolerances: Humidity, Regular Watering 
      • Water Requirements: Requires consistent and moderate watering.
      • Notes on Maintenance: Fertilized every three months with 10-30-10 when in the ground. Every four months with 14-14-14 if a container plant. 
      • Propagation: Seeds (for none double flowered variety), short woody cutting, air layering.
      • Minimum USDA Hardiness Zone: 9a
      • Weed Risk Assessment Score (WRA): -1, Low Risk

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