Beach Gardenia
Guettarda speciosa
- Habit
- Tree
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Puducherry & more
- Flowering
- March-October
How to identify Beach Gardenia
Identify Beach Gardenia by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a tree habit.
- Confirm leaf surface: Pubescent (softly hairy).
- Confirm flower colour: White.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: March-October.
- In India, compare location records such as Tamil Nadu, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Puducherry, Kerala.
- Confirm it sits within the Rubiaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Beach Gardenia.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Guettarda speciosa
- Genus
- Guettarda
- Family
- Rubiaceae
- Habit
- Tree
- Habitat
- Garden plant
- Habitat type
- Cultivated
- Distribution
- India, Sri Lanka, Malay Peninsula, Tropical shores of Old and New world
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Puducherry, Kerala
- Flowering & fruiting
- March-October
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf surface
- Pubescent (softly hairy)recorded
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Opposite
Characters marked “recorded” are for Beach Gardenia itself; the rest are typical of the Rubiaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Whiterecorded
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Cyme
- Fruit
- Berry
Characters marked “recorded” are for Beach Gardenia itself; the rest are typical of the Rubiaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Tamil
- பன்னீர் மரம்
- Telugu
- పన్నీరు పువ్వు
About Beach Gardenia
A member of the Rubiaceae family, Beach Gardenia (Guettarda speciosa) is a tree. In India it has been recorded in Tamil Nadu, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Puducherry and 1 other states. It grows in garden plant. Flowering and fruiting run from March to October.
Rubiaceae
Coffee/Madder family
Beach Gardenia belongs to the Rubiaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Rubiaceae familySnap it. Know it.
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Common plant problems
If you are starting from symptoms instead of a diagnosis, use the plant disease symptom checker to narrow the cause before treating.
All plant problem & care guides