Cestrum diurnum

Day-blooming Jasmine, Day Jessamine

Message of the Flower

Light

The Mother’s Comment

Light and airy, it radiates.

Spiritual Message by the Mother/ Quotes by Sri Aurobindo

Light is not knowledge but the illumination that comes from above and liberates the being from obscurity and darkness.

Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - III: Light

Light is primarily a spiritual manifestation of the Divine Reality illuminative and creative; material light is a subsequent representation or conversion of it into Matter for the purposes of the material Energy.

Sri Aurobindo, The Life Divine - II: The Ascent towards Supermind

Our sense by its incapacity has invented darkness. In truth there is nothing but Light, only it is a power of light either above or below our poor human vision's limited range.

For do not imagine that light is created by the Suns. The Suns are only physical concentrations of Light, but the splendour they concentrate for us is self-born and everywhere.

God is everywhere and wherever God is, there is Light.

Sri Aurobindo, Essays Divine and Human: God: The One Reality

Colour

White

Family

Solanaceae

Person who named the flower

Carl Linnaeus

Flower Size

About 1 inch long

Flower Texture

Smooth

Number of Petals

5, fused into a tube

Floral Symmetry

Bilateral

Fragrance of Flower

Sweetly fragrant during the day

Leaf Texture

Smooth, slightly glossy

Leaf Arrangement

Alternate

Leaf Color

Green

Structural Variation (Shrub or Tree)

Shrub

Life Cycle

Perennial

Blooming Period

Spring and summer; in tropical climates, it may bloom year-round

Climate

Tropical to subtropical

Water Requirements

Tropical to subtropical.

Soil Type

Prefers well-drained, fertile soil

Temperature Ranges

Above freezing; not frost-tolerant

Sun or Shade

Full sun to partial shade

Susceptibility to Insects and Diseases

Susceptible to mealybugs, spider mites, and whiteflies

Pollinators

Attracted to bees and butterflies

Habitat

Native to the West Indies and parts of South America; cultivated in tropical and subtropical gardens worldwide

Role in the Ecosystem

Provides nectar for pollinators.

Ornamental

Widely grown for its beauty and fragrance in suitable climates

Uses in Other Aspects of Life

Primarily ornamental

Endangered Status

Not listed as endangered; widely cultivated