Madurai Jasmine Thekkampatti Flower Market Tamil Nadu

Madurai Malli (Madurai jasmine), the fragrant single-petalled jasmine (Jasminum sambac) cultivated in the red laterite villages surrounding Madurai city — particularly Thekkampatti, Kottampatti, and Vadipatti areas — is among the world most traded fresh flower commodities, with over 100 metric tonnes of fresh jasmine transacted daily at the Madurai Flower Market, supplied to temple garland makers, wedding decorators, and jasmine extract distillers across India and exported as jasmine absolute to perfume houses in France, Japan, and the UAE. The Madurai Malli jasmine plant is grown as a perennial shrub on one-to-two-acre plots by Nadar and Thevar community women farmers who harvest the flower buds at pre-dawn hours before the petals open, as the buds at the correct stage of development have the highest jasmine absolute content. Harvesting is entirely manual, with skilled pickers collecting up to 2 kilograms of buds per hour in the peak summer season. Madurai Malli holds GI status and commands a premium over ordinary jasmine due to the specific climate microzone and the pre-dawn harvesting practice that preserves the volatile aroma compounds.