Life Span
Annual
Perennial
Type
Shrub
Bulb or Corm or Tuber
Origin
Southern Africa
Southern Africa, South Africa
Types
Carissa bispinosa, Carissa carandas
Ornithogalum thyrsoides
Number of Varieties
2025
0
40000
👆🏻
Habitat
Coastal Regions, Tropical regions
marshes, Sandy flats, Slopes
USDA Hardiness Zone
9-117-10
0
99
👆🏻
AHS Heat Zone
12-9
10-7
Sunset Zone
H2, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24
21,22
Habit
Cushion/Mound-forming
Clump-Forming
Plant Size
Minimum Height
90.00 cm20.30 cm
0
3900
👆🏻
Minimum Width
60.00 cm15.20 cm
0
6350
👆🏻
Plant Color
Flower Color
White
Orange, Gold
Flower Color Modifier
-
Bicolor
Fruit Color
Light Red
-
Leaf Color in Spring
Dark Green
Green, Blue Green, Yellow green
Leaf Color in Summer
Dark Green
Light Green
Leaf Color in Fall
Dark Green
Several shades of Green
Leaf Color in Winter
Dark Green
Light Green
Shape
Leaf Shape
Elliptic and Ovate
Succulent
Thorns
✔
✘
✔
✘
Plant Season
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter
Spring, Winter
Growing Conditions
Sunlight
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Full Sun, Partial Sun, Partial shade
Growth Rate
Slow
-
Type of Soil
Loam, Sand
Clay, Loam, Sand
The pH of Soil
Acidic, Neutral
Acidic, Neutral, Alkaline
Soil Drainage
Well drained
Well drained
Bloom Time
Indeterminate
Early Spring, Spring, Winter, Late Winter
Repeat Bloomer
✔
✘
✔
✘
Tolerances
Shade areas
Drought
Where to Plant?
Ground, Pot
Container, Ground
How to Plant?
Seedlings, Stem Planting, Vegetative Reproduction
Bulbs, Seedlings
Plant Maintenance
Low
Medium
Watering Plants
Watering Requirements
Average Water Needs, Do Not over Water, Never Over-water, Requires regular watering, Water daily during growing season, Water when top layer of soil becomes dry
Keep ground moist, Reduce watering in winter, Water three times weekly in summer
In Summer
Lots of watering
Lots of watering
In Spring
Moderate
Moderate
In Winter
Average Water
Average Water
Soil
Soil pH
Acidic, Neutral
Acidic, Neutral, Alkaline
Soil Type
Loam, Sand
Clay, Loam, Sand
Soil Drainage Capacity
Well drained
Well drained
Sun Exposure
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Full Sun, Partial Sun, Partial shade
Pruning
Prune if you want to improve plant shape, Prune to control growth, Remove damaged leaves, Remove dead leaves, Remove dead or diseased plant parts
Prune to control growth, prune to control shape, Prune to stimulate growth
Fertilizers
fertilize in growing season, Nitrogen, Phosphorous, Potassium
All-Purpose Liquid Fertilizer
Pests and Diseases
Insects, Red blotch, Scale, Spider mites, Thripes, Whiteflies
-
Plant Tolerance
Shade areas
Drought
Flowers
Showy
Showy
Flower Petal Number
Single
Single
Fruits
Showy Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Edible Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrance
Fragrant Flower
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Fruit
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Leaf
✔
✘
✔
✘
Fragrant Bark/Stem
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Foliage
✔
✘
✔
✘
Showy Bark
✔
✘
✔
✘
Foliage Texture
Medium
Medium
Foliage Sheen
Glossy
Glossy
Evergreen
✔
✘
✔
✘
Invasive
✔
✘
✔
✘
Self-Sowing
✔
✘
✔
✘
Attracts
Birds
Butterflies, Insects, pollinators
Allergy
Toxic
Skin irritation, Skin rash, Toxic
Uses
Aesthetic Uses
Beautification, Bonsai, Cottage Garden, Landscape Designing, Showy Purposes
Beautification, Cut Flowers, Showy Purposes, Used as an interior landscaping species, Used for decorating walls, fences, gates, hedges, etc.
Beauty Benefits
-
-
Edible Uses
✔
✘
✔
✘
Environmental Uses
Air purification, Food for insects, Prevent Soil Erosion
Air purification
Plant Benefits
Medicinal Uses
-
-
Part of Plant Used
Flowers, Fruits
Flowers
Other Uses
Decoration Purposes, Showy Purposes, Used as Ornamental plant, Used for its medicinal properties
Beneficial species for attracting pollinators, Showy Purposes, Used as Ornamental plant, Used for Landscaping
Used As Indoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Used As Outdoor Plant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Garden Design
Bedding Plant, Container, Edging, Edible, Foundation, Groundcover, Hedges, Topiary, Bonsai, Espalier, Tropical
Container, Cutflower, Mixed Border, Rock Garden / Wall
Botanical Name
CARISSA macrocarpa
Ornithogalum thyrsoides
Common Name
Carissia
Chincherinchee, Wonder-flower, Star-of-Bethlehem
In Hindi
Carissa
Chincherinchee
In German
carissa
Kap-Milchstern
In French
carissa
Chincherinchee
In Spanish
carissa
Chincherinchee
In Greek
carissa
Ornithogalum thyrsoides
In Portuguese
carissa
Chinkerinchee
In Polish
carissa
Chincherinchee,
In Latin
carissa
Chincherinchee
Kingdom
Plantae
Plantae
Phylum
Magnoliophyta
Magnoliophyta
Class
Magnoliopsida
Liliopsida
Order
Gentianales
Asparagales
Family
Apocynaceae
Asparagaceae
Genus
Carissa
Ornithogalum
Clade
Angiosperms, Asterids, Eudicots
Angiosperms, Monocots
Tribe
Carisseae
Ornithogaleae
Subfamily
Rauvolfioideae
Scilloideae
Number of Species
100180
1
27800
👆🏻