Jasminum L.

Scientific Description

Family Oleaceae.

Habit and leaf form. Shrubs, or lianas; deciduous, or evergreen. Self supporting, or climbing (usually); stem twiners. Twining clockwise. Leaves opposite (usually), or alternate; petiolate; compound; unifoliolate, or ternate. Leaf blades dorsiventral; pinnately veined; cross-venulate. Leaves without stipules. Leaf blade margins entire, or serrate, or dentate. Vegetative buds scaly. Leaves without a persistent basal meristem. Domatia recorded, or not recorded. Leaf anatomy. Hairs present; complex hairs present. Complex hairs peltate. Stem anatomy. Nodes unilacunar. Secondary thickening developing from a conventional cambial ring.

Reproductive type, pollination. Fertile flowers hermaphrodite (usually). Unisexual flowers absent. Plants hermaphrodite (usually). Plants heterostylous.

Inflorescence and flower features. Flowers solitary, or aggregated in ‘inflorescences’; in cymes. The terminal inflorescence unit (when flowers aggregated) cymose. Inflorescences terminal, or axillary; the cymes often paniculate. Flowers pedicellate; bracteate, or ebracteate; fragrant; regular; 4–9 merous; tetracyclic. Free hypanthium absent. Hypogynous disk present (around the gynoecium), or absent; extrastaminal. Perianth with distinct calyx and corolla; 8–19; 2 -whorled; isomerous, or anisomerous (rarely). Calyx present; 4–9; 1 -whorled; gamosepalous; lobed; valvate; regular. Calyx lobes triangular to linear (filiform). Corolla present; (4–)5–9(–10); 1 -whorled; gamopetalous (tube cylindric); imbricate, or imbricate and contorted; regular; white, or cream, or yellow. Androecial members definite in number. Androecium 2. Androecial sequence not determinable. Androecial members adnate (to the corolla); free of one another; 1 -whorled. Androecium exclusively of fertile stamens. Stamens 2; remaining included; reduced in number relative to the adjacent perianth; oppositisepalous; all alternating with the corolla members. Anthers dorsifixed, or basifixed; dehiscing via longitudinal slits; introrse; appendaged, or unappendaged. The anther appendages when present, apical (small). Gynoecium 2 carpelled. The pistil 2 celled. Carpels reduced in number relative to the perianth. Gynoecium syncarpous; synstylovarious to eu-syncarpous; superior. Ovary plurilocular; 2 locular. Gynoecium median, or oblique, or transverse; stylate. Styles 1; 2-lobed at the apex; apical. Stigmas 2 - lobed; dry type; papillate, or non-papillate; Group II type. Placentation axile. Ovules 1 per locule; pendulous, or ascending; with dorsal raphe; collateral; non-arillate; anatropous, or amphitropous.

Fruit and seed features. Fruit fleshy; black, or purple; indehiscent; a berry (paired or one by abortion); 1–2 seeded. Seeds endospermic, or non-endospermic. Endosperm oily. Embryo rudimentary at the time of seed release, or weakly differentiated to well differentiated. Cotyledons 2. Embryo achlorophyllous; straight. Seedling. Germination phanerocotylar, or cryptocotylar.

Geography, cytology, number of species. Native of Australia. Not endemic to Australia. Australian states and territories: Western Australia, South Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and Australian Capital Territory. Northern Botanical Province and Eremaean Botanical Province.

Economic uses, etc. Cultivated shrubs.

Additional characters Corolla lobes spreading.