Extraordinary Margarita Carolina Jessamine (Jasmine) Vine!! Early blooming and Evergreen! Gelsemium sempervirens 3.5" Deep Pot

PLEASE SEE WESTERN STATE SHIPPING RESTRICTIONS BELOW DESCRIPTION PRIOR TO ORDERING!

One of my first native plant purchases was the Carolina Jessamine vine. That was almost 30 years ago and it has never failed to impress me! It's evergreen, trouble free, and its early spring blooms are a welcome delight for the senses following the cold, bleak days of winter. The blooms are said to have a sweet fragrance but to me it's more spicy. The bees and other early pollinator's appreciate the food source when little else is yet available. Carolina Jessamine, sometimes called jasmine, is long-blooming over several weeks as well as sporadic blooms throughout the season. The foliage is rather small individually but remain a lovely mass of green throughout the year, however, it can be semi-evergreen in the coldest parts of its range.

This variety (cultivar), Margarita, is reported to be the most cold-hardy of all Gelsemium USDA Zone 6a-9b), and with a slightly larger flower. Margarita is new to me but I'm looking forward to its show in the coming years. I'm going to plant it on a south-facing slope of exposed limestone to scramble down the hill at a friend's farm as a trial. You don't always need a trellis or arbor to grow a vine! And as far as vines are concerned, Carolina jessamine is very well-behaved, typically only growing to 8-12'.

'Margarita' is a superior seedling selected by Don Jacobs of Eco Gardens in Decatur, Georgia. With its much larger, more prominent flowers, it was superior in every way to common seedlings, so Jacobs named it for his wife. He had no idea that it would survive winters to minus 25 F! 'Margarita' has flourished and flowered as a semi-evergreen in Landenberg, Pennsylvania since 2009 with 100% survival. No wonder it won the Gold Medal Award from the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society!

Finally, Gelsemium is deer resistant (but a hungry deer might eat anything!), insect and disease resistant, loves the heat and humidity, and once established is drought tolerant!. If you're in the warmer part of the country you need to grow this outstanding plant!

This offer is for one (1) Gelsemium sempervirens 'Margarita' vine in a 3.5" deep pot.

WE CANNOT SHIP POTTED PLANTS TO THE FOLLOWING STATES DUE TO SHIPPING RESTRICTIONS: CALIFORNIA, OREGON, WASHINGTON, WYOMING, ARIZONA, ALASKA, HAWAII, IDAHO, NEVADA, UTAH, COLORADO, & NEW MEXICO.

Some items may be available to these areas during dormant season when we can ship items bare root. Please message me if you have questions.