Jasmine Cultivation: Species, Propagation, and Oil Extraction

Jasmine is one of the most beloved flowering plants in the world, prized for its intoxicating fragrance and wide range of uses – from garlands and religious offerings to high-end perfumery and cosmetics. In India alone, jasmine flower production is a multi-crore industry, with states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh leading cultivation. Whether you’re a floriculture student, an aspiring farmer, or someone who simply loves the scent of fresh jasmine, understanding how this crop is grown, propagated, and processed for oil is essential knowledge.

Major jasmine species used in commercial cultivation 🔗

The genus Jasminum belongs to the family Oleaceae and includes around 200 species found across tropical and subtropical regions. However, only three species dominate commercial cultivation in India: Jasminum sambac (Mogra or Arabian jasmine), Jasminum auriculatum (Jui or Mullai), and Jasminum grandiflorum (Chameli or Spanish jasmine).

Jasminum sambac (Mogra) 🔗

J. sambac is arguably the most popular jasmine species in India. It produces round, highly fragrant white flowers and is extensively used for making garlands, veni (flower strings), and religious offerings. Popular varieties include Gundumalli, which yields 7-8 tonnes per hectare, and Double Mogra, known for its rose-like fragrance. In China, the flowers of J. sambac are even used for flavouring tea.

Jasminum auriculatum (Jui) 🔗

J. auriculatum features small, star-shaped white flowers with a strong scent. It is widely used in traditional medicine and for ornamental purposes. Notable varieties include Parimullai, which is resistant to gall mite and yields about 8 tonnes per hectare, and CO 1, which has a long corolla tube that makes harvesting easier and yields around 9 tonnes per hectare.

Jasminum grandiflorum (Chameli) 🔗

J. grandiflorum is the primary species used for jasmine oil extraction in the global perfume industry. Varieties like CO-1 (Pitchi), released by TNAU Coimbatore, are suitable for both loose flower production and oil extraction, yielding about 10 tonnes of flowers per hectare with a concrete recovery of approximately 0.29%. Another popular variety, CO-2, produces bold pink buds and yields up to 12 tonnes per hectare.

Climate and soil requirements 🔗

Jasmine thrives in warm tropical and subtropical climates. The ideal conditions are warm summers, mild winters, and moderate rainfall. An annual rainfall of 800-1000 mm, well distributed throughout the year, is sufficient for healthy growth and flowering. The plants perform best at temperatures between 20°C and 30°C and can be grown up to an elevation of 1,200 metres.

When it comes to soil, jasmine prefers well-drained sandy loam or red loam soils with a pH range of 6.5-7.5. Clayey soils tend to promote excessive vegetative growth at the expense of flowering, so they should be avoided for commercial cultivation. Before planting, the soil should be enriched with compost and organic manure to ensure good nutrient availability, as recommended by India’s National Horticulture Board.

Propagation methods 🔗

Jasmine can be propagated through several methods – seeds, cuttings, layering, suckers, grafting, budding, and tissue culture. However, cuttings and layering remain the most commonly used commercial techniques.

Propagation by cuttings 🔗

This is the simplest and most widely adopted method. According to research published in the Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry, J. grandiflorum and J. sambac root best (up to 98% and 94% success, respectively) when propagated by apical cuttings, while J. auriculatum responds better to semi-hardwood cuttings with about 70% rooting success.

The process involves selecting healthy cuttings that are 22-25 cm long with 3-4 nodes. The basal portion is treated with growth regulators like IBA at 400 ppm or IAA at 1000 ppm to encourage root development. These cuttings are then planted in a rooting medium such as a sand-soil mixture, spaced about 7 cm apart. The best time for taking cuttings is during the monsoon months (June-September), and the rooted cuttings are ready for transplanting within 4-5 months.

Propagation by layering 🔗

Layering is done during June-July in North India and June-December in South India. Well-matured, one-year-old shoots are selected and buried 10-15 cm deep in the soil after making a shallow, slanting cut. Root formation typically takes 90-120 days. While effective, this method is more labour-intensive and limits the number of plants that can be produced from a single mother plant.

Tissue culture and other methods 🔗

In recent years, in-vitro propagation has emerged as a promising technique for producing genetically uniform, disease-free planting material at scale. It overcomes the seasonal limitations and potential varietal degeneration associated with long-term use of cuttings or layers. Other methods like sucker division, grafting, and budding are also practiced, though less commonly.

Planting and cultivation practices 🔗

Planting is typically done during the monsoon season, from June to November. Rooted layers or cuttings are planted in pits measuring 30 cm × 30 cm × 30 cm. The spacing varies by species:

J. auriculatum: 1.8 m × 1.8 m; J. grandiflorum: 2.0 m × 1.5 m; J. sambac: 2.0 m × 1.0 m (or 1.2 m × 1.2 m for smaller varieties).

Manuring and nutrition 🔗

Jasmine is a heavy feeder and requires regular nutrition for sustained flowering. A common recommendation from agricultural extension services is to apply 10 kg of FYM per plant along with 60-120 g each of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium per plant. Fertilisers are applied in split doses – the first after pruning (January) and the second during the onset of monsoon (June-July). Foliar sprays of zinc (0.25%) and magnesium (0.5%) help improve flower yield, while iron sulphate at 5 g per litre at monthly intervals prevents iron deficiency.

Pruning 🔗

Annual pruning is critical for jasmine. Bushes are pruned to about 45 cm from ground level during the last week of January. Pruning stimulates fresh vegetative growth and promotes profuse flowering in the following season. Without pruning, plants become leggy and produce fewer flowers.

Harvesting 🔗

Jasmine flowering extends from May to November, depending on the species and region. Fully developed, unopened flower buds are picked early in the morning when their fragrance is at its peak. In J. grandiflorum, flowers are harvested when they are still in the bud stage, as the petals open quickly after picking. Commercial yields can reach 5,000-10,000 kg of flowers per hectare per year, depending on the species and management practices.

Pest management in jasmine 🔗

Jasmine is vulnerable to several insect and mite pests that can significantly reduce flower yield and quality. The most damaging pests include budworm, blossom midge, leaf webworm, gallery worm, eriophyid mite, and whitefly.

Budworm (Hendecasis duplifascialis) 🔗

The budworm is considered the most devastating pest of jasmine. The larvae bore into unopened buds, feed on the inner petals, and create silk-lined tunnels within flower clusters. Infested buds turn pink, fail to open, and eventually drop. According to research conducted in Karnataka, India, budworm can cause 40-50% damage to flower buds and 30-70% yield loss. Effective chemical control includes spraying Emamectin Benzoate (5% SG) at 0.25 g per litre or Chlorantraniliprole (18.5% SC) at 0.2 ml per litre.

Blossom midge and eriophyid mite 🔗

Blossom midge larvae feed inside the flower buds, causing them to become discoloured and undersized. The eriophyid mite, too small to see with the naked eye, infests leaves, tender stems, and buds, producing velvet-like hairy outgrowths and stunting plant growth. Neem oil sprays, sulphur-based acaricides, and maintaining good garden sanitation help manage these pests. Biological control using Beauveria bassiana combined with releases of Trichogramma chilonis has shown 50-86% reduction in bud borer damage in field trials.

Leaf webworm and other foliage pests 🔗

The leaf webworm (Nausinoe geometralis) is a defoliator that webs leaves together and feeds on them, often reducing foliage to mere veins. Leaf rollers and gallery worms also cause significant foliar damage. Sucking pests like whitefly, aphids, thrips, and scale insects drain plant sap and can transmit diseases. An integrated approach – combining cultural practices (pruning, sanitation), biological agents, and targeted chemical sprays – is the most effective management strategy.

Disease management 🔗

Jasmine is also affected by certain fungal and bacterial diseases. Leaf blight appears as red-brown patches on the upper leaf surface and spreads rapidly during the rainy season. Rust and leaf spot diseases can also reduce plant vigour. Proper drainage, avoiding overhead irrigation, and timely application of fungicides like mancozeb or copper oxychloride help keep diseases in check. Removing and destroying infected plant parts prevents further spread.

Jasmine oil extraction 🔗

Jasmine oil is one of the most valuable aromatic materials in perfumery. It forms a key ingredient in iconic fragrances and is extensively used in cosmetics, soaps, and aromatherapy products. However, extracting jasmine oil is a complex and costly process because the delicate flowers cannot withstand the high temperatures of conventional steam distillation.

Solvent extraction (the primary commercial method) 🔗

The dominant method used today is solvent extraction. Fresh jasmine blossoms, hand-picked early in the morning, are treated with a chemical solvent – typically hexane. The solvent dissolves the aromatic compounds along with plant waxes and pigments. After the hexane is removed through vacuum distillation, a thick, waxy substance called a concrete remains. One tonne of jasmine blossoms yields roughly 2.5-3 kg of concrete.

The concrete is then washed with ethanol, which dissolves the aromatic oils while leaving the waxes behind. After chilling (to precipitate remaining waxes), filtering, and removing the ethanol by vacuum distillation, the final product – the absolute – is obtained. The absolute is the most concentrated form of jasmine fragrance and is highly valued in fine perfumery. Ethanol extraction of the concrete yields about 60% absolute by weight.

Enfleurage (the traditional method) 🔗

Before solvent extraction became standard, jasmine oil was extracted through enfleurage – an ancient technique perfected in southern France. In this process, freshly picked flowers are placed on glass plates spread with odourless fat. The fat gradually absorbs the aromatic compounds over 12-72 hours, after which the spent flowers are replaced with fresh ones. This process repeats until the fat – now called pomade – is fully saturated. The pomade is then washed with ethanol to separate the essential oil, and the alcohol is evaporated to yield the absolute. As described by Eden Botanicals, enfleurage produces oil that is exceptionally true to the scent of the living flower, but the method is extremely time-consuming and costly, which is why it has been largely replaced by solvent extraction.

Supercritical CO₂ extraction 🔗

A more modern approach uses supercritical carbon dioxide as the solvent. Under high pressure, CO₂ enters a supercritical state that allows it to dissolve aromatic compounds effectively at relatively low temperatures. Once the pressure is released, the CO₂ returns to a gaseous state and dissipates completely, leaving behind a clean extract free of solvent residues. This method preserves the volatile top notes and heat-sensitive compounds better than other techniques, though the equipment required involves significant capital investment.

Economic significance of jasmine 🔗

Jasmine cultivation is a significant livelihood source for thousands of small and marginal farmers across India. The annual production and sale of jasmine flowers in India exceeds ₹20 crores, with substantial export of both fresh flowers and essential oil products to the Gulf countries and other international markets. The worldwide production of jasmine concrete and absolute is estimated at less than 10 tonnes annually, which underscores its rarity and high value. Benzyl acetate is the main volatile component in jasmine oil, but minor compounds like indole, cis-jasmone, and methyl jasmonate give it the distinctive floral character that makes it irreplaceable in fine fragrance work.

With the growing global demand for natural fragrances, organic cosmetics, and aromatherapy products, jasmine farming presents a strong economic opportunity – especially when farmers combine quality flower production with value-added oil extraction.

What do you think? If you were starting a floriculture venture, would you focus on fresh flower sales or invest in oil extraction for higher margins? And with newer techniques like tissue culture and CO₂ extraction gaining ground, how do you see the future of jasmine farming evolving?

References

1. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/398560613_Jasmine_Cultivation
2. https://afakhry.com/portfolio-item/jasmine/
3. https://nhb.gov.in/pdf/flowers/jasmine/jas010.pdf
4. https://www.phytojournal.com/archives/2019/vol8issue1/PartJ/7-6-393-983.pdf
5. https://www.apnikheti.com/en/pn/agriculture/horticulture/flowers/jasmine
6. https://www.thepharmajournal.com/archives/2022/vol11issue10/PartQ/11-10-133-372.pdf
7. https://informaticsjournals.co.in/index.php/jbc/article/view/23180
8. https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/flowers/jasmine/jasmine-pest-control.htm
9. https://www.chemicalbook.com/ChemicalProductProperty_EN_CB6122122.htm
10. https://www.edenbotanicals.com/extraction-methods