Flower of the Day - August 17, 2021
Gardenia Jasminoides 栀子花 Zhī zi huā From Wikipedia: Gardenia Jasminoides , commonly known as Gardenia , is an evergreen flowering plant of the coffee family Rubiaceae. It originated in Asia and is most commonly found growing wild in Vietnam, Southern China, Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Myanmar, India and Bangladesh. Wild plants range from 30 cm to 3 m high and have a rounded habit with very dense branches with opposite leaves, lanceolate-oblong, leathery or gathered in groups on the same node and by a dark green, shiny and slightly waxy surface and prominent veins. With its shiny green leaves and heavily fragrant white summer flowers, it is widely used in gardens in warm temperate and subtropical climates, and as a houseplant in temperate regions. It has been in cultivation in China for at least a thousand years, and was introduced to English gardens in the mid-18th century. Many varieties have been bred for horticulture, with low-growing, and large, and long-flowering forms.