Drought Tolerant and Shrubby Jasmines for West Coast Gardens

There’s more to jasmine than delicate tendrils and sweet perfume. Explore these hardy forms which lend substance, structure, and colorful blossoms to West Coast gardens.

Common in the Pacific Northwest, winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) is a far cry from its summer-blooming fragrant kin. This spreading deciduous shrub adorns its bare green stems with yellow flowers beginning in mid-winter. Though scentless, they are a welcome beacon during the darkest days of the year.

Hardy to temperatures below zero, winter jasmine can be cultivated on both sides of the Cascades. A hard freeze will interrupt flowering, but new buds continue to emerge and open on mild days. Here in Oregon, winter jasmine is planted along the freeways in Portland where its arching and spreading stems root advantageously wherever they meet the ground and its sunny flowers decorate the roadside.

Winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) Photo: Josh McCullough, PhytoPhoto

Winter Jasmine is not fussy about soil but performs best with some irrigation in summer. It is adaptable to full sun to light shade and grows 3 feet tall by 7 feet wide ...