Gelsemium sempervirens
{{Short description|Species of plant}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Gelsemium sempervirens3.jpg
| image_caption =
| status = G5
| status_system = TNC
| genus = Gelsemium
| species = sempervirens
| authority = (L.) J.St.-Hil. 1805 not Pers. 1805 nor Ait. 1811[http://www.tropicos.org/NameSearch.aspx?name=Gelsemium+sempervirens&commonname= Tropicos, search for Gelsemium sempervirens ]
| synonyms_ref = [http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/record/kew-2818735 The Plant List, Gelsemium sempervirens (L.) J.St.-Hil. ]
| synonyms = *Bignonia sempervirens L. 1753
- Gelsemium lucidum Poir.
- Gelsemium nitidum Michx.
- Jeffersonia sempervirens (L.) Brickell
- Lisianthus sempervirens (L.) Mill. ex Steud.
- Lisianthius volubilis Salisb.
}}
Gelsemium sempervirens is a twining vine in the family Gelsemiaceae, native to subtropical and tropical America: Honduras, Guatemala, Belize, Mexico (Chiapas, Oaxaca, Veracruz, Puebla, Hidalgo),[https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/41431#page/7/mode/1up Ornduff, R. 1970. The systematics and breeding system of Gelsemium (Loganiceae). Journal of the Arnold Arboretum 51(1): 1–17] includes description, drawings, distribution map, etc. and southeastern and south-central United States (from Texas to Virginia).[http://bonap.net/MapGallery/County/Gelsemium%20sempervirens.png Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map] It has a number of common names including yellow jessamine or confederate jessamine or jasmine,{{cite web | url = http://www.plantatlas.usf.edu/main.asp?plantID=874 | title = Gelsemium sempervirens | access-date = 2008-02-12 | work = Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants | publisher = University of South Florida }}{{GRIN | access-date=2008-02-12}} Carolina jasmine or jessamine, evening trumpetflower,{{ cite web | url = http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=GESE | title = Gelsemium sempervirens (L.) W. T. Aiton | access-date = 2008-02-12 | work = Plants database | publisher = United States Department of Agriculture }} gelsemium and woodbine.
Yellow jessamine is the state flower of South Carolina.{{cite web|url=https://statesymbolsusa.org/symbol-official-item/south-carolina/state-flowers/yellow-jessamine|title=South Carolina State Flower {{!}} Yellow Jessamine|website=statesymbolsusa.org|date=November 2014 |access-date=2019-10-15}}
Despite its common name, the species is not a "true jasmine" and not of the genus Jasminum.
Growth
Gelsemium sempervirens can grow to {{convert|3|–|6|m|ft|abbr=on|0}} high when given suitable climbing support in trees, with thin stems. The plant is perennial.{{PLANTS|symbol=GESE|taxon=Gelsemium sempervirens|access-date=12 December 2022}} The leaves are evergreen, lanceolate, {{convert|5|–|10|cm|in|frac=2|abbr=on}} long and {{convert|1|-|1.5|cm|in|frac=8|abbr=on}} broad, and lustrous, dark green. The flowers are borne in clusters, the individual flowers yellow, sometimes with an orange center, trumpet-shaped, {{convert|3|cm|in|frac=4|abbr=on}} long and {{convert|2.5|–|3|cm|in|frac=4|abbr=on}} broad. Its flowers are strongly scented and produce nectar that attracts a range of pollinators.
History
Some 19th century sources identified Gelsemium sempervirens as a folk remedy for various medical conditions. William Bartram encountered this species (then referred to as Bignonia sempervirens) on his travels along the coasts of the Carolinas and Georgia in 1773.{{Citation needed|reason=Reliable, verifiable, up-to-date source needed for any medical information.|date=November 2019}}
Toxicity
All parts of this plant contain the toxic strychnine-related alkaloids gelsemine and gelseminine and should not be consumed.{{cite web |url=https://www.drugs.com/npp/gelsemium.html |work=Drug Information Online |title=Gelsemium sempervirens |publisher=Drugs.com }} The sap may cause skin irritation in sensitive individuals. Children, mistaking this flower for honeysuckle, have been poisoned by sucking the nectar from the flower.[https://books.google.com/books?id=3poMubkz0ooC&dq=Gelsemium+sempervirens+poisoning&pg=PT253 Anthony Knight and Richard Walter. 2001. A Guide to Plant Poisoning of Animals in North America.] The nectar is also toxic to honeybees,[http://stlucie.ifas.ufl.edu/pdfs/master_gardener/2011/Nectar%20Gardening%20for%20Bees%20Butterflies.pdf] "Nectar Gardening for Butterflies, Honey Bees and Native Bees", Retrieved 2012-08-02 which may cause brood death when gathered by the bees. The nectar may, however, be beneficial to bumblebees. It has been shown that bumblebees fed on gelsemine have a reduced load of Crithidia bombi in their fecal matter after 7 days, although this difference was not significant after 10 days. Reduced parasite load increases foraging efficiency, and pollinators may selectively collect otherwise toxic secondary metabolites as a means of self-medication.{{Cite web |url=http://labs.eeb.utoronto.ca/thomson/publications/Manson%20et%20al.%20nectar%20alkaloid%20reduces%20pathogen%20load%202009%20Oecologia.pdf |title=Manson, J.S., Otterstatter, M.C., Thomson, J.D. "Consumption of a nectar alkaloid reduces pathogen load in bumble bees". 27 August 2009: Oecologia 162:81-89. Retrieved 2013 |access-date=13 September 2013 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304023148/http://labs.eeb.utoronto.ca/thomson/publications/Manson%20et%20al.%20nectar%20alkaloid%20reduces%20pathogen%20load%202009%20Oecologia.pdf |url-status=dead }}
The plant can be lethal to livestock.{{cite book |last1=Niering |first1=William A. |author-link1=William Niering| last2=Olmstead |first2=Nancy C. |title=The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers, Eastern Region |year=1985 |orig-year=1979|publisher=Knopf |isbn=0-394-50432-1 |page=619}}
Cultivation
Despite the hazards, this is a popular garden plant in warmer areas, frequently being trained to grow over arbors or to cover walls. In the UK, it has won the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.{{cite web | url = https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/33397/Gelsemium-sempervirens/Details | title = Gelsemium sempervirens | website = www.rhs.org | publisher = Royal Horticultural Society | access-date = 9 July 2020}} It can be grown outdoors in mild and coastal areas of the UK (to a lower limit of {{convert|-5|C|F|abbr=on}}), but elsewhere must be grown under glass. It requires a sheltered position in full sun or light shade.
Gallery
File:Carolina jessamine shrub -- Gelsemium sempervirens.jpg|Shrub
File:Carolina jessamine -- Gelsemium sempervirens.jpg|Flower
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
Further reading
{{Commons}}
- {{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Gelsemium|volume=11|page=559}} This contains a detailed description of the then-common usage and dosage of the drug.
{{US state flowers}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q978130}}
Category:Flora of the Southeastern United States
Category:Flora of Central America
Category:Medicinal plants of Central America
Category:Medicinal plants of North America
Category:Plants described in 1753
Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus