by Jennifer Poindexter
Imagine walking through your home or yard and having a sweet smell serenade you with every step. Doesn’t this sound amazing? If so, you need to consider growing sampaguita in or around your home.
This sweet, white flower is a great way to add a little charm around your home while still keeping things simple. If you’re interested in growing sampaguita, take a few moments to learn more about caring for this plant.
Here’s what you should know when growing sampaguita:
Growing Conditions for Sampaguita
The sampaguita flower is a unique, perennial plant. It’s a member of the jasmine family and is native to Southern Asia.
It’s considered an Arabian jasmine and produces fragrant, star-shaped blooms. What makes this plant so unique is the one-inch blooms produced. They change colors as they age.
The flowers begin as white, fade to a shade of pink, and end their bloom cycle as a light yellow or even brown color.
In most cases, the blooms will open at night and be gone by the evening of the following day.
However, this plant is evergreen, and it should bloom throughout the year in certain planting zones. Also, there are different varieties of sampaguita.
Some will produce fragrances during the day and others will only produce a fresh scent at night.
Now that you know where this plant is native, it makes sense that it does best when grown in planting zones nine through eleven.
However, you may still grow this flower in other zones. It will need to be grown as a container plant, though.
Whether planting in the ground or in a container, be sure sampaguita is grown in well-draining soil.
The soil should also be high in nutrients. Sampaguita should also be placed where it will receive full to partial sunlight.
Take these few necessities into consideration when choosing a growing location for this flower. It could make all the difference in your growing experience.
How to Plant Sampaguita
There are a few different ways to plant sampaguita. The first method is to plant a seedling in the ground.
You’ll only use this method if growing the plant in a warmer climate that doesn’t deal with freezing temperatures on a regular basis.
To plant sampaguita in the ground, begin by tilling up the soil in a place with all the growing conditions mentioned above.
You should also amend the soil prior to planting. Dig a hole deep enough to support the root system of the plant, remove the plant from the growing container, and place it in the hole.
Be sure to spread out the roots once in the ground and cover them with the soil previously removed. Press firmly around the base of the plant.
Once in the ground, pour water at the base of the plant until it’s standing. You’ll only need to water the plant consistently while the roots are becoming established.
After this, the plant can handle a more sporadic watering schedule.
The next method to planting sampaguita is in a container. If you live in an area that frequently has freezing temperatures during certain times of the year, this will be the method for you.
Start by choosing a container that drains properly. Fill the pot halfway with well-draining soil. Fill the rest of the container with compost.
Dig a hole in the pot, place the plant inside the hole, spread out the roots, and backfill the hole with soil.
Water the plant until it’s running out of the bottom of the container.
The last method to grow sampaguita is from a cutting. Begin by removing a six-inch cutting from the plant.
Be sure to remove the cutting right beneath a leaf. Remove any leaves from the bottom of the cutting, dip the cut end into rooting hormone, and place it in a container filled with damp sand.
Keep the sand moist for approximately 30 days. During this time, the plant should form roots and be ready to transplant into a permanent location once the root system is fully formed.
You now have three different ways to go about growing sampaguita. Pick the option which works best for your situation to begin growing this flower around your home or garden.
Caring for Sampaguita
The sampaguita plant is relatively low-maintenance. There are a few things you’ll need to do to care for this plant properly.
To begin, you must water this flower. In the beginning, you want the ground to stay consistently damp to help the roots become established.
As the plant becomes comfortable in its growing location, you can transition over to deep watering. This allows you to water fewer days of the week but for longer periods of time.
Apply water to your plants until the roots are thoroughly saturated or water is running from the bottom of the container.
Check the soil on a regular basis by inserting your finger into the ground next to the plant. If the soil is dry to your first knuckle, it’s time to water the plant deeply. If not, you can wait a day or so before testing the soil again.
Once your plant has water, it’s time to discuss fertilizer. Sampaguita should be fertilized in the spring and halfway through the growing season.
This plant prefers acidic soil, so use a fertilizer meant for plants in this setting. The next things to consider are support and pruning.
Sampaguita need support because they can climb (or sprawl) up to five feet. If you choose for your plant to climb, be sure to gently weave some of the plant through a trellis to encourage it to grow up instead of out.
Another way to control the spread is by pruning. Wait until after flowering has occurred. After this point, begin trimming the ends of the plant to encourage it to become bushier and to keep it under control.
You should also consider how to overwinter sampaguita if you’re growing it outside of planting zones nine through eleven.
Plants that are being overwintered should be grown in containers. Bring the plants indoors before frost arrives.
Ensure you keep the plant out of the way of drafts or extreme heat. It’s wise to place it in naturally humid rooms of your home such as the bathroom or kitchen.
You should also spritz the plant with a spray bottle of water each day to keep the humidity up around it.
Finally, ensure sampaguita is provided with approximately six hours of sunlight while inside your home. Use artificial lighting if your home doesn’t have a sunny location to meet this need.
If you’d like to keep a healthy and thriving sampaguita plant, be sure to practice these tips when caring for it.
Garden Pests and Diseases Which Impact Sampaguita
Most plants have enemies whether grown indoors or out. Sampaguita is no exception to this rule.
Let’s begin by discussing the diseases which impact this plant. Sampaguita is most commonly impacted by fusarium wilt, mosaic virus, rust, and other fungal issues.
If you come across fusarium wilt with sampaguita the only way to protect your other plants is to dispose of the impacted plant. There is no tried and true cure.
Therefore, it’s best to cut your losses and avoid spreading this disease any further. This disease is recognized by the discoloration of foliage and stunted growth in the plants.
Mosaic virus is another disease that once it impacts your plants, there is no cure. You will recognize this disease by discoloration in the foliage of the plant and stunted or curled leaves.
Rust gets its name because it literally looks like rust is forming on the foliage of this plant. It can be treated with a fungicide.
If you notice any other fungal issues, it’s best to treat the disease with a fungicide immediately. You can avoid many fungal issues by planting in well-draining soil and ensuring the plant receives enough sunlight.
This will provide heat while reducing the amount of moisture kept around your plant. Wet, cold areas are where fungal diseases grow. Keep these areas to a minimum, and you should be able to reduce fungal diseases as well.
The next thing we must discuss is the pests which impact sampaguita. This plant is most commonly plagued by aphids, scales, mites, leafrollers, caterpillars, thrips, and budworms.
All of these pests can be treated using an insecticide. Read the product to ensure it treats the pest your plant is plagued by.
If you’re looking for a more natural treatment for some of the pests, you’ll be glad to know that scales can be treated by wiping a plant down with rubbing alcohol.
Aphids and mites can be removed from your plant by spraying the foliage forcefully with soapy water. Whiteflies, thrips, and caterpillars may be treated by applying neem oil to the plant.
Hopefully, these tips will help you stay on top of any pests or diseases which threaten your sampaguita flowers.
This concludes our discussion on growing and caring for sampaguita. These tips should help you protect and overwinter this plant no matter which planting zone you’re growing in.
By providing adequate care, the blooms should fill the area around your home with a delightful scent while adding simple charm.
More About Sampaguita
https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/shops/plant/arabian-jasmine/
https://www.public.asu.edu/~camartin/plants/Plant%20html%20files/jasminumsambac.html
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