WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Cestrum nocturnum, WUCOLS IV

How often to water night jessamine in California

In July in the Central Valley, established night jessamine in loam needs a deep watering about every 8 days: about 8.8 gallons each time for a plant 4 feet across, about 7.6 gallons a week. Night jessamine, also called night-blooming jasmine, is a bushy evergreen shrub up to about 13 feet with long, arching stems. Clusters of greenish cream, tubular flowers release a sweet, musky perfume after dark, followed by small white berries that are quite toxic. It wants well-drained soil, regular water in the warm months and shelter from frost.

ShrubRated for 5 of 6 zones

How often to water night jessamine, month by month

Your city
Plant width
4 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for night jessamine and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area the plant covers, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure plant width

A shrub with its width marked from one side to the other and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the plant, from the tips of the leaves on one side to the tips on the other.

Water the whole area the plant covers, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that area.

A wider plant means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While it is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Soil dry 2 to 3 inches down at the base of the shrub signals that night jessamine needs a soak
  • Leaves drooping and arching stems going limp in summer heat can indicate a dry root zone
  • Yellowing leaves over soil that stays soggy can indicate poor drainage around the roots
  • Blackened shoot tips after a freeze reflect cold damage, since this shrub does not survive being frozen
  • Small white berries after bloom are normal, but they are toxic and worth removing near children and pets

How to water it

  • Water at the base of night jessamine with drip or a slow hose, wetting the root area rather than the stems
  • Run each watering long enough to wet the roots a foot down, and hold off until the surface has dried a little
  • Plant in well-drained soil in a sheltered, sunny spot, such as beside a warm wall
  • Mulch the root area through summer, keeping it clear of the main stems
  • Widen the watered area as the shrub fills out and its stems lengthen

Through the seasons

A newly planted night jessamine needs steady moisture through its first summer while its roots settle in. Once established, it takes regular deep watering through the warm months. Cut back sharply in winter, keeping the root zone just moist. Because it cannot survive a hard freeze, cover it or move it to shelter during cold snaps. WUCOLS rates night jessamine moderate water on the north-central coast and in the Central Valley. The south coast, South Inland and the low desert carry that same moderate water rating. WUCOLS marks it as not suited to the high desert.

In pots

Night jessamine grows well in a large container, which lets you move it near a patio for the evening scent and under cover in frost. Use a loam-based mix and a pot with drainage holes. In summer, water freely whenever the top inch or two is dry, letting excess drain away. Empty the saucer after watering. Give it full light but shade from the hottest afternoon sun. In winter, keep the mix just moist, never wet.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
2.67gal per sq ft in JulyModerate water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
17.11 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.711.42.12.90.4JAN0.65FEB1.09MAR1.52APR2.08MAY2.48JUN2.67JUL2.39AUG1.8SEP1.18OCT0.56NOV0.34DEC0.711.42.12.90.4JFM1.52AMJ2.67JAS1.18OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 2.67 in Jul, 17.11 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Night Jessamine: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.370.40.780.78–0.78
Feb0.530.650.810.87–0.93
Mar0.871.091.151.3–1.52
Apr1.181.521.41.61–1.95
May1.462.081.611.95–2.45
Jun1.612.481.742.29–2.79
Jul1.612.671.982.51–2.85
Aug1.492.391.862.33–2.6
Sep1.241.81.491.86–2.08
Oct0.871.181.151.33–1.49
Nov0.470.560.840.9–0.96
Dec0.310.340.650.68–0.68
Year1217.1115.518.41–21.08

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated moderate water in the Central Valley, like night jessamine. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

RosesRosa hybrids..bushmoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyAzaleasRhododendron spp. (CA native and non-native spp.)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyCamelliasCamellia japonica (SHADE IN DESERT)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyGardeniasGardenia spp. & cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyBird of ParadiseStrelitzia reginae (shade in desert)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyHibiscusHibiscus rosa-sinensismoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulySago PalmCycas revolutamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyStar JasmineTrachelospermum jasminoides and cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyArborvitaeThuja occidentalis ssp. & cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyBambooBambusa spp.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyLilacsSyringa hybrids (including Descanso hybrids)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulySpireaSpiraea spp. (CA native and non native spp.)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyButterfly BushBuddleja davidii and hybridsmoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulySageSalvia officinalis and cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyRed BuckeyeAesculus paviamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyWestern ServiceberryAmelanchier alnifoliamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in July

Similar plants that need less water 16

Rated lower than night jessamine in the Central Valley. Worth a look for a new bed or a lawn replacement.

LavenderLavandula spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRosemaryRosmarinus officinalislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBougainvilleaBougainvillea & spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyOlive TreesOlea europaea ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCrape MyrtleLagerstroemia spp., hybrids & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyLantanaLantana camara ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySalviaSalvia greggii ssp., cvs. & hybridslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyAloeAloe spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySucculentsEcheveria spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyJunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRussian SagePerovskia spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySagebrushArtemisia spp. (shrubby)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyWild PrivetLigustrum vulgarelow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCoralberrySymphoricarpos orbiculatus (SHADE)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySydney Golden WattleAcacia longifolialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBlue Leaf WattleAcacia salignalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes night jessamine, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water night jessamine in summer?

In July, established night jessamine in loam needs a deep watering about every 8 days in the Central Valley, about every 11 days on the south coast and about every 9 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does night jessamine need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established night jessamine needs about 1.1 gallons a day for a plant 4 feet across and about 4.3 gallons a day for a plant 8 feet across. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for night jessamine change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates night jessamine separately for each of the six California climate zones: moderate water in the North-Central Coastal zone, moderate water in the Central Valley zone, moderate water in the South Coastal zone, moderate water in the South Inland zone, not suited to this region in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, moderate water in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

Is night jessamine a true jasmine?

No. Despite the name, it belongs to a different plant family from the true jasmines. Its tubular flowers are small and greenish cream, but their perfume after dark is intense.

Is night jessamine poisonous?

Yes. It is harmful if eaten, and the white berries that follow the flowers are quite toxic. Wear gloves when pruning, and plant it away from where children and dogs play.

Why can't I smell my night jessamine during the day?

Its flowers release their sweet, musky perfume at night. Plant it near a patio, window or path you use in the evening.

Can night jessamine survive frost?

It tolerates cool weather, but a hard freeze kills it. Grow it beside a sunny, sheltered wall, or in a container that can come indoors on frosty nights. Keep the soil just moist through winter.

Can you overwater night jessamine?

Yes. It needs well-drained soil, and roots kept soggy decline. Water freely in summer but let the surface dry between soakings.

More plant watering guides

Oyama MagnoliaSaucer MagnoliaWestern CrabappleCrabappleAppleTree LavateraOstrich FernLemon Balm

Sources