How to Kill a Yellow Jasmine
Yellow jessamine (Gelsemium sempervirens) is mistakenly called yellow jasmine or Carolina jasmine, but it is not a member of the jasminum family. This rampant-growing, fragrant flowering vine is beautiful, but deadly. It can be a danger to livestock and small children have been killed by mistaking it for honeysuckle and drinking the nectar from a single flower. Since it is tolerant of a wide range of growing conditions, it hardly ever dies from neglect, but it can be killed by other means. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Protective clothing
- Loppers
- Shovel
- Saw
- Nitrogen fertilizer
- Paint brush
- Brush killer
Instructions
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Cut back yellow jessamine vine severely and dig the roots from the ground. Remove any pieces of stem that have rooted into the ground. This is the best way to kill the vine, but not necessarily the easiest if you have a vine that has grown wild for some time.
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Fertilize heavily and often with a nitrogen-based fertilizer, such as a 23-0-0 made for lawns. The fertilizer will burn the roots and kill the plant eventually. This method works best with younger vines.
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Cut the vine back severely in the spring and paint all cut parts with full-strength brush killer. Spray new growth with brush killer as soon as it appears. This works well on vines with large trunks that would be difficult to remove by digging.
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Tips & Warnings
Wear protective clothing when dealing with this plant, because all parts are poisonous and may cause skin irritation. Do not put any part of this plant into a compost pile. Do not burn the clippings, because the fumes contain alkaloids that can burn your lungs if inhaled.
Do not use the fertilizer method if your vine is growing in a lawn or near desirable plants, as the fertilizer may damage them.
References
- University of Florida: Yellow Jessamine -- Gelsemium Sempervirens
- Texas A&M University: Carolina Jessamine, Yellow Jessamine, Jasmine, Carolina Wild Woodbine, Evening Trumpet Flower
- Clemson University Cooperative Extension; Carolina Jessamine; Karen Russ; March 1999
- Washington University in St. Louis; Poisonous Plants - Extension Goat Handbook; D.L. Ace; et al.
- Arizona State University: Gelsemium Sempervirens
