This store requires javascript to be enabled for some features to work correctly.
Pink star jasmine for anyone tired of hearing “it only comes in white” 😏
Family: Apocynaceae · Pot diameter: 17 cm · Height: 75 cm
Trachelospermum ‘Pink Air’ keeps all the charm of fragrant evergreen star jasmine while replacing the expected white with a soft, clear pink. Its small flowers open like spinning pinwheels against dark glossy foliage, creating a contrast that looks refined from a distance and even lovelier up close. Fragrance becomes part of the experience at an entrance or beside a seating area, while the foliage stays useful and elegant long after flowering ends.
Trained along slender wires, it forms a continuous vertical green surface with a calm, contemporary character. On an arch or small pergola, the pink flower clusters come closer to eye level, while in a large pot with a trellis it can serve as a fragrant screen for a sheltered terrace.
This selection stands out for its unusual pink flowers while retaining the evergreen texture and twining growth that make star jasmine so useful.
The five lobes of each small tubular flower lean in the same direction, creating a characteristic rotating form. The pink shows clearly against the dark leaves.
Small flower clusters release a sweet scent during the warm season. Near a door, window or seating area, the plant offers a sensory pleasure as well as a visual one.
The opposite, leathery, glossy leaves remain on the woody stems in a sheltered climate, so the trellis keeps its structure after the flowers have finished.
Why you will love it: fragrance, pink colour and evergreen privacy share the same vertical footprint — a rare alternative to the familiar white image of star jasmine.
Give it a warm, bright, sheltered wall, arch or trellis near an entrance or seating area. The stems twine but need wires and initial ties. For spatial planning, allow for a trained height of about 3–4 m and lateral cover of 1–2 m, with yearly shaping to keep it within the desired framework.
Arrange lower plants in clear blue, violet stems and airy white. All favour sun to light partial shade and free-draining soil; star jasmine appreciates slightly more consistent summer moisture, while companions sit in the outer, drier zone.
Sun or light partial shade. Abundant light encourages flowering, while a little afternoon shade helps in a very hot, reflective courtyard.
Water deeply when the top layer dries. Do not let the root zone dry out while it establishes, but avoid permanently wet soil in winter.
Suited to a mild climate in a sheltered position. Young plants, potted roots and foliage exposed to cold dry wind need additional winter protection.
The milky sap from a cut stem can irritate skin and eyes. Wear gloves, wash your hands and do not ingest any part.
Fix horizontal wires or a trellis a few centimetres in front of the wall. Guide two or three main stems and tie the first branches loosely; later, their flexible tips twine around the slender elements.
Choose an east-, south- or west-facing position with light and protection from cold winds. In a scorching reflective spot, light shade late in the afternoon reduces dehydration.
Plant in spring at the same depth as the root ball in its pot, in fertile, free-draining soil. Water well, set it away from the dry base of the wall and add an organic mulch without touching the woody stem.
The 17 cm diameter is the current size. For long-term growing, move it gradually into a heavy pot 40 cm across or larger, with a rich free-draining mix and an independent trellis that will not topple in the wind.
During the first year, water as soon as the surface begins to dry. An established plant in the ground needs deep watering through long dry periods, while a pot requires more frequent checks. Reduce the amount in winter, especially in cold weather.
In good garden soil, organic matter in spring is enough. In a pot, add balanced feed during active growth, always at the dose stated on the pack. Too much nitrogen causes long soft growth and less controlled cover.
In early spring, remove dry or frost-damaged stems and tidy growth that has moved beyond the framework. After flowering, lightly shorten the tips, avoiding a severe clip that removes all the natural branching.
Protect the base with organic material and the evergreen foliage with breathable fabric when severe frost or dry wind is forecast. Move a pot to a bright, sheltered place, without overwatering as growth slows.
At first, growth may look restrained while the root system establishes. Direct the longest tips towards different wires so a balanced framework begins early.
The twining stems become woody and lateral branches fill the gaps with opposite glossy leaves. The surface grows denser without turning into a rigid clipped rectangle.
In a suitable position and with training, it can cover around 3–4 m in height and 1–2 m in width in 5–10 years. Pink flower clusters appear on warm-season lateral shoots.
Horizontal wires allow slender stems to weave in different directions, creating an evergreen surface 3–4 m × 1–2 m with pink flowers scattered across the lateral branches.
‘Pink Air’ is an evergreen climber in a mild, sheltered climate. Cold and dry wind can darken or damage the foliage; this is not a second flowering season.
What to expect after planting: the first priority is establishment and finding the wires. The evergreen surface gains body through lateral branching, while pink flowering becomes richer as the stems mature in a bright, sheltered position.
‘Pink Air’ entered European cultivation as a pink-flowered selection of star jasmine, replacing the genus’s familiar cream or white palette with a soft, clear tone. Trade records usually place it under Trachelospermum asiaticum, and the selection’s name travelled with young plants trained for walls, arches and terraces.
Trachelospermum asiaticum has an unusually broad native home, from northern India to China, Korea, Japan and Borneo. Across this great Asian arc it evolved as an evergreen subtropical climber: stems twine to reach the light, leathery leaves persist and small fragrant flowers gather at the tips of lateral shoots.
The originator’s name and the year in which ‘Pink Air’ was selected have not been widely published. What has travelled consistently from European nurseries into gardens is the reason it earns its place: fragrant five-lobed flowers like pink pinwheels above glossy evergreen foliage — a colour feature that refreshed the familiar image of star jasmine.
In Trachelospermum, the five corolla lobes overlap in the same direction while the flower is closed. As they unfold, they retain this asymmetry and create the characteristic rotating silhouette — not five simple spokes around a centre.
The milky sap is not scattered at random through the wood. It is produced and stored in specialised elongated secretory cells called laticifers, which form a network through the tissues and empty when a stem or leaf is cut.
If fertilisation succeeds, the genus usually forms a pair of long, slender follicles. When they open, they release linear seeds tipped with long hairs, a “coma” that increases air resistance and slows their fall.
What you need to know about its pink colour, fragrance, support, pot growing, winter care and correct pruning.
Yes, pink flowering is the defining feature of ‘Pink Air’. The intensity may look slightly different with the opening stage, light and temperature, but this is not the classic white star jasmine.
The pink flowers are fragrant, with the scent becoming more noticeable when many clusters open together and the air is warm. Its precise intensity changes naturally through the day and with the number of open flowers.
No. It has neither adhesive pads nor clinging aerial roots. Its flexible tips wrap around slender wires or a trellis and need a few loose ties at first to take the right direction.
Yes, provided the pot is heavy and large enough, with good drainage and its own stable trellis. Roots in a pot heat, dry and cool more quickly, so they need more frequent checking and better winter protection.
Place the plant in a sheltered position and protect the roots and evergreen foliage when severe frost is forecast. In a colder region, a movable pot allows overwintering in a bright, cool place. Do not combine low temperatures with constantly wet soil.
Carry out the main clean-up in early spring, removing dry or frost-damaged parts. After the main flowering flush, shorten only the tips that have moved beyond the framework. Wear gloves, as cuts release milky sap.
