Jungle geranium (Ixora coccinea)

Ixora coccinea, jungle geranium or vedchi, is the shrub with dense clusters of small scarlet flowers that fills South Indian temple gardens and compound hedges. It is native to southern India and Sri Lanka, and it is offered in Hindu worship. Its flowers are a favourite of butterflies and sunbirds.

Botanical name: Ixora coccinea L.
Family: Rubiaceae
Tamil: Vedchi
Hindi: Rangan
Parts used: Flowers (garland)
Habit: Temple ixora; jasmine is a shop word
Last updated: 2026-10-25

How to recognise Jungle geranium

It is a dense, evergreen shrub with stiff, glossy, leathery leaves in opposite pairs, often almost stalkless.

Flowers are small, with a long, slender tube and four spreading petals, packed into rounded clusters at the branch tips. The wild form is scarlet. Garden hybrids come in orange, pink, yellow and white.

The fruit is a small, round berry that turns purplish-black when ripe.

Indian pavetta, Pavetta indica, has white flowers with long, protruding styles and dark bacterial dots in its leaves.

Traditional use of Jungle geranium

Worship

The flowers are offered to deities in South Indian temples and homes.

South Indian temple practice

Siddha and Ayurveda

Flowers and roots appear in southern materia medica for digestive and skin complaints. Those uses have not been tested clinically.

South Indian materia medica

Modern notes on Jungle geranium

It is one of the most popular ornamental shrubs in tropical gardens, and breeders have produced many hybrids and dwarf forms.

Laboratory studies of extracts exist but have not led to any clinical use.

Jungle geranium safety

Grow it for the flowers. Children sometimes suck the nectar from the tube, but the plant is not a food.

Ecology and sourcing

It grows wild in scrub and forest edges of southern India and Sri Lanka.

It prefers slightly acidic soil. In alkaline soils its leaves turn yellow, a common complaint in Indian gardens.

Related plants

Also in Rubiaceae

Questions about Jungle geranium

Is Jungle geranium a geranium?

No. Jungle geranium is just a common name; it is in the coffee family.

Is Jungle geranium native to India?

Yes, to southern India and Sri Lanka.

Why are my ixora leaves yellow?

Usually the soil is too alkaline; it needs acidic conditions.

Sources

Educational page about a plant. It is not medical advice, not a diagnosis, and not an offer to sell. Traditional use is historical. If you need care, ask a licensed clinician. Questions: hello@meevamed.com.