Stephanotis

Stephanotis floribunda ‘Variegata’. http://www.logees.com

Its June, and like clockwork, Stephanotis is going crazy in greenhouses and on patios everywhere. If it weren’t for Jasmine, Stephanotis would have to be my favorite tropical vining plant for its appearance and scent! Called the Madagascar Jasmine, and Bridal Veil flower, this Madagascar native has an affinity for impressing with its dark green leaves and picture-perfect white, waxy summer flowers. Its arguably the most famous member of the Milkweed family, and has a fragrance that is only fitting for such a beautiful plant.

This is a tall vine, attaining twenty feet or more, with perfect green leaves six inches long. The white flowers are held in large clusters, and have an interesting trumpet form with five attaches petals. Inside the waxy tubes are long white hairs, meant to trap pollinating insects, ensuring pollination. The flowers are so perfect, they are often used in wedding bouquets, matching a wonderful bride in white! To top it all off, they have a wonderful scent that is not just reminiscent of cherry cobbler, it would fool the best of noses with its redolence! Its a syrupy sweetness that is liberal when the vine is absolutely bedecked with flowers, sending its fruity sweetness across the patio for all noses to behold with joy. Even when not liberal with the scent, the flowers are just begging to be sniffed! They also can produce large green seedpods with many dandelion-like seeds inside.

Stephanotis makes for a great houseplant as well, but there are terms and conditions with being the owner of one. First, they must have sun inside to bloom in spring- give it a good bright window and let it summer outside! Actually, when grown in the right environment with much light, they can bloom year round; but this is hard to accomplish outside the tropics. Second, don’t over water, they do not like wet feet. Also don’t underwater in summer, these plants don’t recover well from stress, they can stand winter dryness as long as its cool, but above 40 Fahrenheit. Third, it absolutely needs a trellis, and will need to be cut back periodically- prune in July or after the main flowering period is over.

Stephanotis is one of my favorite, and is likely to be yours if you take good care of it! I’ve not kept one over the winter just because I prefer keeping them as annuals, and I don’t have the space, but they are lovely in any case.