Gelsemium
(from Gelsemino, an Italian name of the Jessamine). SYNS. Leptopteris and Medicia. ORD. Loganiaceae. A genus comprising three species of twining glabrous shrubs, one from North America, another from Sumatra, and the third from China. Flowers yellow, showy; corolla infundibuliform; tube sub-cylindrical; throat dilated. Leaves opposite, membranaceous. G. sempervirens, the only species yet known to cultivation, is a half-hardy shrub. It thrives in a rich loamy soil, and may be propagated by cuttings, placed under a hand glass.
G. nitidum (shining). A synonym of G. sempervirens.
G. sempervirens (evergreen). fl. fragrant; corolla deep yellow, over 1in. long; peduncles very short, axillary; stigmas of one form and anthers of the other protruding. Spring. l. evergreen, thincoriaceous, shining, oblong or ovate-lanceolate, 1 1/2in. to 2in. long. Stem slender. Southern United States, 1840. SYN. G. nitidum.