As a jasmine plant, my very existence and ability to thrive indoors is a delicate dance with the sun. I am not a low-light creature; I am a sun-worshipper by nature, and providing me with the right light is the single most important factor in ensuring I reward you with vigorous growth and my famously fragrant blossoms. To understand my needs, you must see the world from my photosynthetic perspective.
My ideal is a location bathed in generous, bright, but filtered light for the majority of the day. Think of the dappled sunlight I would receive under the canopy of taller trees in my native habitat. A south or west-facing window is perfect, but with a sheer curtain acting as my "tree canopy" to diffuse the strongest, most direct rays, especially during the peak hours of summer sun. This intense, unfiltered direct sunlight can be too harsh, potentially scorching my delicate leaves and causing them to turn yellow or brown and crisp at the edges.
You desire my perfume, and for that, I require an abundance of light. The process of flowering is incredibly energy-intensive for me. I use the photons from light as the energy source to convert carbon dioxide and water into sugars—a process you know as photosynthesis. These sugars are the building blocks and the fuel required to produce my precious flower buds. Without several hours of strong light daily, I simply cannot muster the energy to create blossoms. A lack of adequate light is the primary reason I may grow long, leggy vines (as I stretch desperately towards any light source) but refuse to flower.
My relationship with light changes with the seasons, and your care should reflect this. During the spring and summer, my active growing season, I crave as much bright, indirect light as you can provide. This fuels my growth spurt and initiates bud formation. However, in the late fall and winter, the sun's angle changes, and its intensity diminishes. While I enter a period of rest, I still require the brightest spot possible. A south-facing window without a curtain in winter is ideal, as the sun is less intense. This light sustains me through my dormancy and prepares me for the next growth cycle.
I communicate my light satisfaction or distress clearly through my foliage. Please learn to read my signals. If my leaves are a deep, lush green and I am producing new growth and flowers, you have found my perfect spot. If my leaves are small, pale, or yellowish-green, and the space between leaves on my stems is long, I am etiolated—starving for more light. Conversely, if the leaves facing the window develop brown, scorched patches or bleach to a whitish-yellow, the light is too direct and intense for me, and I need to be moved back from the window or given some protection.
