Gardenia care
The glossy dark green leaves and fragrant milky white flowers of the gardenia plant make it an irresistible plant to grow. Usually sold in bloom or bud, the intoxicating fragrance entices us to make it a must have plant but gardenia can be finicky and a challenge to grow in indoors. In fact, some treat it as a disposable plant and discard it after blooming.
Gardenia (Cape jasmine) requires loose well-drained, acidic (ph4.5-6.2) soil, bright indoor sun 6-8 hrs and dappled shade (morning sun) when outdoors in the summer. It prefers high humidity and moist but not soggy soil. Feed it with a 1/2 strength acid fertilizer every 2-4 weeks from March-October.
For winter care: Provide a cool bright location, humidity and keep away from heating vents. Do not fertilize and water less by allowing the top 1-2 inches to dry before watering again.
Blooming: Gardenias require an even temperature of 62-63 F and high humidity during bud formation. To increase humidity place plant in a water pebble tray or close to a humidifier. When the buds are formed, provide consistent cool nights (58-60F) and warm days (70-75F). A 10-15 degree temperature differential is needed to keep the buds from dropping off (bud blast). Opened flowers should last 3-8 days and bruise easily when touched.
Prune after the blooming cycle has ended, or when the plant is actively growing and needs a trim. Don’t prune during winter.
Propagation: Take 3-4 inch semi-woody tip cutting from a non-flowering shoot in early spring. Remove lower leaves, dip in rooting hormone and insert cutting in moist peat, vermiculite mix. It should root in 4-6 weeks.
Troubleshooting
Gardenias attract a number of insects: aphids, mealy bugs, scale, red spider mites and thrips. They are also susceptible to root rot, bud drop and yellow leaves.
In the south and west coastal areas (zone 7b), semi-tropical gardenias are grown outdoors as evergreen shrubs. Varieties can differ in size, growth habit and blooming season. ‘Mystery’ a California favorite gets up to 8′ tall and produces large double flowers.
No related posts.
Blooming requirements
HI-JUST FOUND YOUR SITE AND LOVE IT. I HAVE A GARDENIA PLANT IN FLORIDA, BUT IT ISN’T BLOOMING, ALTHOUGH IT IS LUSH GREEN AND HEALTHY. MY MOM HAS THE SAME PROBLEM WITH HERS IN MASSACHUSETTS. WHAT CAN WE DO TO PROMOTE BLOOMING IN OUR OTHERWISE HEALTHY LOOKING PLANTS?
Cut it back during the cool season and begin to feed it with a pinch of Muracid to a gallon of water every week. Do this for 4 months then do not feed it again for 8 months-just water. During feeding time it will set bud and become stronger. During the non feeding time it will rest. Gardenias need to rest to stay healthy and produce blooms.
I have a question not a comment. I planted 3 gardenia bushes around my bay window last yr. and I think they are almost dead due to the extremely cold weather we had this winter. Is there a way I can save my Gardenia’s? I haven’t even seen them bloom.
I have several gardenias which have lost their vivid greeness. I purchased granular Ironite, but the bag only tells me how many pounds to apply to 1000 sq. ft. I do not want to apply to a large area, only to the plants which are yellowing. How much can I safely apply to individual shrubs of approx. 3′? I live in Texas, zone 8. Thank you.
I live in Greece and have just bought my first gardenia. How often am i suppose to water it and should i give fertilizer now?
Black Leaves and stems
HI I HAVE A GARDENIA TREE IN FL LOOKED GREAT FLOWERED IN MAY -JUNE SINCE THEN THE LEAVES AND STEMS HAVE TURNED BLACK . CAN YOU HELP THANKS
YELLOW LEAVES
I have a problem with Yellow leaves. What should i do to help the plant?
I have a formal water fountain garden with about 18 white gem gardenias and 18 english boxwoods which were planted in June of this year. The gardenias are very full with lush green foliage and bloomed all summer. At this time the outer leaves are still growing and healthy green however deep in the bushes there are yellowing leaves but they are not falling off. Any suggestion of the problem or remedy or is this normal?
SCALE
my plant leaves are shiny and wet with a sticky residue plant seems healthy and i cannot see alot of insect . ihave had mealy bug on my OLEANDER and have treated sucessfuly with malathion .should i use something different on my GARDENIA
Repot gardenia
i have had a indoor gardenia now for 2 years and am not sure when re potting is required the plant is about a foot tall and very healthy please advise
DRYING AND CURLLING LEAVES
A friend gave me a transplanted indoor gardenia plant with what looks like two plants in the one pot. It has been healthy looking for the past 4 months but recently one of the plant’s leaves have started drying and curling. Could one of the plants be root bound and should I pull it and try to replant it separately?
Leaf drop
I have a gardenia that was given to me, it was doing not so well because I was having a hard time watering it regularly. So once I started doing that, it leafed up pretty good and got really green. I didn’t change the watering cycle, but for some reason all the leaves wilted and started to curl, and then….. when I went to touch the leaf, it fell off! All the leaves fell off except for some new growth at the end. I thought it might be the pot, so I recently repotted it – it’s doing a bit better, but there are still no leaves on the branches, just the new growth at the ends. More new growth has started to sprout up at the bottom – but what I am wondering is should I prune off the branches that have no leaves on them? Even if there is new growth at the ends? It just looks so naked with no leaves! It hasn’t bloomed at all since I got it for christmas. Help?
Yellow buds
I HAVE A GARDENIA TREE FOR ABOUT A MONTH, FULL, OF BUDS. AT FIRST THE FLOWERS WERE BEAUTIFUL AND NOW THEY ARE NOT OPENING. THE BUDS ARE YELLOW AND NOT OPENING, IT’S OUTDOORS AND GETS THE MORNING SUN. WHAT I’M I DOING WRONG…… PLEASE HELP. IT’S MY FARVOTE FLOWER, AND I LOVE TO HAVE THEM ALL OVER THE HOUSE THANK YOU
Spider mites
I have an indoor gardenia. It has new leaves and buds forming. But old leaves are turning yellow and falling off. Also there’s some tiny insects which are forming a web (like spiders). How do I get rid of them? I’m in NJ area. Thanks
Michelle ( Shellny2@hotmail.com / ) (IP: 24.45.47.178 )
After seeing much of the same complaints I have about my gardenia plant, i checked under the leaves and found tiny dark specs that when touched came off and looked brownish red on my hand, almost like I smeared a bug. What is this?
Sara ( ego.sara@yahoo.com / ) (IP: 154.20.5.157 )
Thank you for your response. I have not found any sticky substance however I did find tiny tiny traces of web. Perhaps spider mites? All the leaves look really dirty which appears to be consistent with spider mites. Would you have any suggestions on how to control them. Thank you
I live in Mississippi where for the past 2 weeks it has been in the mid 70’s to lower 80’s. Today I got my yard landscaped and planted some dwarf gardenia’s. I just saw on the weather that we are under a freeze warning tonight. It looks like it might not get down all the way to 32 but really close. Should I cover the gardenia’s?
BUD DROP
how do i maintain the temperature differential required for the succeessful blooming of my gardenia indoors? it keeps getting buds which fall off, and it’s leaves aren’t lush green anymore. it had some tiny grey bugs on it which i’d been trying to control with some castille soap in water sprayed on it but it seems that the plant might be sensitive to it?
thanks
Hi,
I got this beautiful indoor Gardenia tree (not a plant) as a gift about a month ago. When I first got it, it had several flowers on it and looked pretty healthy…Now I’m seeing holes on even new leaves and the buds are falling. I have been watering it regularly and it’s in front of a window that gets full sunlight in the morning. I’m not experienced in growing plants so I have no idea what could be the problem. Anything that you can suggest will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Hi,
I have a beautiful gardenia bush that is taking over the space where I have it planted. When would be the best time to transplant the bush to another area. I am in Houston
Leaf drop
My green-thumbed mother has successfully nursed many gardenias through moving and other stressful times. Just recently her perfectly healthy and blooming (indoor) gardenia dropped all of its leaves – practically overnight. She had done nothing differently from any other time. Do you have any idea what would cause this to happen, and what she should do now? Thank you.
BUD DROP
I live in Albuquerque NM and bought to gardenia tree/shrubs from Costco and planted in pots on the east side of patio. They were blooming at first but now the leaves are yellowing, falling off and the buds are not opening. I see the posts regarding the humidity which we don’t have a lot of here. Am i fighting a losing battle trying to grow these in this climate?
I live in Boise Idaho and just bought a gardenia bush for a gift and thought that I would look up info about gardenia’s care to print out an article to give with the plant. As I am looking into gardenia’s it seems that it is a very troublesome plant. Is this the case or is it like the news where we are only hearing the bad news and not very many good stories. Will this plant grow in our dry and hot conditions outdoors, or should it be a potted deck plant to be taken in for our cold winters? What do you recommend to have a healthy plant here in Boise, Idaho? Thank you for your time!
I AM CONFUSED ABOUT 6-8 HOURS OF SUN REQUIRED. I HAVE MINE UNDER A LATTICE PATIO COVER ON THE EAST SIDE. IT IS IN A LARGE POT. PH IS 5.0 IT NEEDS TO GET OVER THE IRON DEFICIENCY. SHOULD I MOVE IT TO FULL SUN? IT HAS BLOOMS, BUT LEAVES ARE LITE GREEN W/ DARKER VEINS. I SPRAYED IT THIS AM. W/ NEEM FOR SCALE ON LEAVES.
I just recieved a gardenia tree , at my husbands funeral. I would love to keep this tree alive, in memory of him. It is in a pot right now. I live in Northern Georgia. Can the tree be planted in the ground ? Does it need to be brought inside during winter months ? Or would it be better to just repot it and keep it in a pot and take it out on the porch during the summer, so to bring it back inside during cold months. If I plant it in the ground, will it need a partial shade or full sun ?
I had a gardenia that was doing pretty well inside and left a friend responsibility for watering it in my absence, for about 2 weeks. He says he did so, but on my return the tree was completely bLack, all branches were dry and dead. I pruned all the branches off leaving only the stem of the plant and am watering when the top soil is dry and have left it where it will only get sun in the morning. (I am in New York.) However after a week I can’t see any improvement, I am very worried that the entire plant is dead. The stem is blackish brown in colour and has light brown flaking. What do you recommend? I love this plant so dearly!
I’ve had a gardenia bush for about 15 years that is about 6-7 feet tall. It produces a lot of flowers each spring, but stopped having a scent. What does it need?
Thanks,
Ruth
I have an indoor gardenia that I have repotted 4 times. I repotted because the plant was root bound. Each time after repotting blooms reappeared. The gardenia is in a pot that weighs about 100 lbs and again and looks like it needs repotted although I can’t go any larger (pot). My question is: Is there a way to “split” the plant without harming it. I live in Pennsylvania so putting it outdoors is not a good idea. I don’t want to lose the plant.
APHIDS
Hello, I have an indoor Gardenia tree in Vancouver Canada. I bought it 3 months ago and it has done wonderfully up until now. My Gardenia is wilting and leaves are yellow but the flowers are also covered with white flakes. What are these white flakes?
WINTER CARE
Hi I live in North East CT I have an outdoor Gardenia tree that I bought in the beginning of the summer and it has been doing very well. I have been getting beautiful flowers but I have to bring it in soon, the nights have been getting colder. What does the temp have to be when its time to bring it in? And how do I winterize it? Do i need to change the soil completely? I dont want to loose it over the winter HELP
I have just purchased 5 medium sized Gardenia Bushes to place in my front landscape beds throughout yesterday and today. I live in the Upstate of South Carolina, so I do live in a hardier zone for Gardenia growth. My worry is that I have placed them in a location that gets full sun during the hottest parts of the day. I am not so worried about it during this lovely fall weather, but I fear for next summer. Will they completely die off next year? This summer we ahd several 90+ degree days. I think my best bet would have been to do a bit more research before snagging them up at the nursery. I really don’t have any other area to plant them, as Azaleas are filling up the side of my house. Any tips/ideas as to the best care for them?
I live in central Connecticut. This past May I bought a corsage gardenia “tree” (about 4 feet tall. When I began to have bud drop and yellowing leaves drop, I fed it a liquid chelated iron mixture about mid August. It responded beautifully and has lots of buds once again. However, the leaves have begun to yellow again and now I’m afraid I will lose the buds. How often can I feed it with the chelated iron? It was on my deck until last week when I brought it indoors. It has plenty of light and I’ve fed it with miracid twice in the past month. It’s my absolute favorite flower and I’d hate to lose it. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
I just purchased a gardenia veitchii yesterday, an impulse buy. I know nothing about growing gardenias. The only thing I’ve grown is roses. This gardenia is going in a pot, how big a pot does it need? I have one that is about a 10 gal that I was thinking of putting it in, but would that be to big to start? It’s probably a little less than 12″ tall and wide right now. Also how deep does it need to be planted? Does it need anything other than potting soil, I use moisture control miracle gro. I do have a soilless rose planting mix that has a lot of different compost type things in it (composted bat guano, chicken manure, alfalfa meal, worm casings and lots of other stuff too, organics), would it hurt it to add some of that in? I live in the Bay Area of CA and the temp here is fairly cool about this time of year. It averages highs in the mid 60’s lows in the mid 40’s. Is this temp okay for it to be outside now? It does get hot in the summer for highs, 90-100’s. Will it do okay in morning shade and direct afternoon sun? It can be moved to get more shade if needed, especially in the summer months. Can it be pruned down to keep it fairly small if needed or will that hurt it? Thanks for any info you can give!
I live in Houston, Texas. I have Gardenia planted in front of my house. They have lots of flowers, but the leaves look like the have a layer of black powder on it. From earlier comment, I think it might be aphids. What can I use to treat aphids?
Enjoyed reading all the questions and comments! I have an outside gardenia that lives in a pot facing the east morning sun. When temps get below freezing, I move it to the garage until the temps come back up. Here it is late November, temps in 40’s & 50’s day, low 30’s and 20’s nights – my gardenia is full of huge buds! Why?
I live in California, my gardenia plant is in a pot out on my porch, the leaves are beautifully green, however they are droopy. I have watered it, but it just stays droopy, no flowers yet. What is wrong?
Thanks
Transplanting gardenia
Hi! I got a gardenia from Home Depot a few days ago (I live in South Florida) and I planted it in a place that gets a half a day of sun, mulch, water, and the right fertilizer, but a few of its leaves have turned yellow and it’s buds aren’t opening. Also, it starts to wilt and then regains it strength again every few hours or so! I read somewhere else that because it’s from Home Depot, it might already have a ton of fertilizer in it. Is there any truth to that? I stopped watering it a couple of days ago just in case, because I thought I may have watered it too much.
I am a Master Gardener and a friend brought me something I’ve never seen. The 10 year old dwarf gardenias in his yard are covered with what looks like red buls. On closer inspection, it looks like the base of the bloom never separated from the plant and has produced a seed pot. Is this possible?
I have a gardenia tree, it was doing pretty well outside, since I got it inside I noticed something everyday, my latest problem was white skins on the buds & leaves was shinyy & sticky. I cut the bud & took the nursery ( the spray they gave didn’t work), my second visit he told me to clean the leafs with alcohol ( and that I think killing my plant now), I still have those white skins (not like before but still some) and now most of the leafs dried & turned dark brown. Any suggestions? what can I do about white skins? and what can I do about dry brown leafs? (it doesn’t turn yellow, just dark dry brown). Thank any info you can give me.
Leaf drop
I lost most of the leafs of my gardenia tree & I trimmed some ( everyday I have dry brown leaves) even green leaves are just dry, I don’t know what’s going on, still living for now but not much leaves left & I still have that aphids ( gonna look for pyrethrin spray). thank you, any ideas about dry leaves ( not yellow) just dry (some are dark brown or black) and some green ( but dry).
Thanks for your quick respond, my gardenia tree is front of the window & next to the heating vent ( even I closed the vent) it might be to dry & too cold ( for being right front of the window). I am going to move the plant from there to another place tomorrow morning. I have one more question though, I want to buy a humidifier ( for the gardenia, for the increase the humidity), which one should I get? warm or cool moisture humidifier? Thank you very much.
I have a gardenia bush that I planted last spring and it has grown beautifully outside. I’m concerned about it now since winter has started. I live in zone 7 and it has gotten down into the 20s some nights. I’ve noticed the bush has turned very brown even though I’ve been covering it with a sheet on the coldest nights. Will it get new growth in the spring and will it bloom? Do I need to prune the old growth back in early spring? Do gardenias usually survive winter in zone 7? I would appreciate some advice on this. It was doing so well before I would hate to see it die. Thanks!
Thank you for answering my question above. I thought of one more thing to ask about my gardenia. If it does show signs of growth in the spring, can I transplant it into a large pot so I can move it inside during the next winter? I just wondered if moving it from the ground into a pot would kill it even more or would be ok to do. Thanks.
I have a gardenia for 30 years. Now after bringing indoors for 1 month from outside, the leaves are starting to dry and turn brown to black. It’s like the plant is not getting water to its leaves. I had a problem with aphids this summer but successfully treated it and had the tree bloom during the summer. Some branches are also dry and when you break them they snap. Others are still elastic. Is the environment not humid enough? Is it possible their are aphids in the root not showing up on the leaves or branches? I also had a couple of other small gardenias which died in a similar fashion during this month after bringing indoor. Thanks
I have a Gardenia that is wilting, has some brown spotted leaves, and some leaves are crips and almost dead. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
HI,
I live in Alabama and bought a Gardenia Tree. It did very well till I brought it in to save it from our severe cold weather. I think it dried out way too much and my gas heat is not allowing for enough humidity. Here is my problem all my leaves except for the very tips have fallen off, I think due to lack of water and moving it into my house. I popped all the buds off at the ends because I am more concerned with surviving then it trying to bloom. It always is trying to bloom but leave production is very mild. I want it to look like a bush tree and now it looks like a naked tree does in the fall. The very end tips are green and have 2 leaves each on about 20 limbs but that’s it. Can I prune it back and make it start budding leaves again? If not when do I prune it and How? Most of the limbs are a v shaped with the middle limb cut off from when I bought it.
I am “babysitting” my daughter’s Gardenia tree. About a month ago I noticed some of the leaves had a sticky substance on them. The floor around it also had the sticky substance. The back of the leaves had black specks. Whey rub of and look dark green when in my hand.
I have tried handwashing all the leaves. I then put the plant in the bathtub and gave it a shower.
I noticed the stickyness and black specks are back.
Is there something else I should do?
Are the specks are rounded bumps on the leaf or stem surface that can be scraped off then you have scale. They are hard to get rid of and will need several treatments.
Chlorosis on gardenia
I live in South Florida and have a gardenia planted next to my east facing patio. Admittedly, I have not taken the best care of it over the years. Despite my neglect, it has somehow thrived, until recently. Over the past several months the leaves have started to turn yellow with the veins remaining green. I have tried fertilizing regularly with Miracid, but the problem persists and may even be worsening. I recently read that using distilled water, rather than tap water, may be better for gardenias. I have not yet tried that, but wanted to know if there is something else I should be doing.
Hi Elena
I’m assuming that your gardenia is planted in the ground. I would suggest that you test the soil ph, to make sure it is low enough(acid) to make iron available to the plant.
Here are some other ideas, gardenias that are growing under cold conditions (below 60F) for extended periods can also become chlorotic (iron)because the cold temperatures reduce nutrient absorption. They don’t take up as much iron causing chlorosis. Chlorosis is prevalent on the new growth. It can also be a sign of root disease caused by keeping the soil too wet.
For a quick fix add chelated iron to the soil or spray it on the leaves. If you don’t see any results in 2 weeks, try again. Another option is to apply ammonium sulfate or iron sulfate around the dripline of the soil. Follow the manufactureres label and avoid spraying any concrete, stucco etc as it will stain the surface. If that doesn’t work then there may be a problem with the roots being unable to absorb the iron and you may have to improve the soil the gardenia is growing in.
I am at my mothers in Naples, Florida where her gardenia has a covering of black “soot” underneath leaves, on top of the leaves as well as on some of the branches. I was told to use detergent soapy water and “clean off” each leaf. Is there anything else I can do? We have not seen any aphids or bug activity.
I received a potted gardenia in bloom with many buds for Valentina’s. I put it in bathroom by large glass block window in large shower. Temp normal, cooler at night. I live in Melbourne, FL. It continues to bloom however the flowers turn yellow within a day or two. Leaves are green and shiny. I water when dry. I don’t take a shower in that particular bathroom often What am I doing wrong and why do flowers turn yellow in such a short time. It’s my favorite flower. My mom use to pin a flower on our slip strap as young girls for our perfume.
Hello, I am considering purchasing a few dwarf gardenias, but have some concerns about size. Is it true that the dwarf versions only get to be about 2 ft. tall?
Ilive in Cleveland Oh, and have 4 potted Gardenias the largest being 5′ tall x 3′dia in a 28″ pot +100# of soil( est.25yrs old). The smallest one is about 2′ tall,they are placed outside every summer and brought back into sun porch each fall.I have always expererinced leaf drop each fall,and sprayed them with Insecticidal soap to kill white fly and spider mites.
But this year I had to bring them in the house due to remolding and for the 1st time I put a systemic in the soil “Bonite” House Plant insect control.In the past month I have lost all the leaves (still green)and buds turned black,from two of the smaller ones. The large one starting to do the same, HELP
I purchased a beautiful dwarf variegated Gardenia with double flowers, from ‘X’ nursery. True to its word, the Gardenia hasn’t exceeded 2′.
It’s Gardenia ‘radicans’ variegata. A gorgeous plant.
Gardenias prefer being potbound. Tight roots promote flowering, but also, the smaller the pot, the smaller the plant. I’m not saying to keep a plant confined indefinately, but smaller areas slows growth.
Less fertilizer is another option. Althuogh, fertilizing gardinas with an acidic fertlizer is required, use half-strenght, once a month, during growing season. Halt in fall and winter.
Someone asked why buds drop prematurely. Overwatering is the number 1 reason this happens.
Less water and cool temps should do the trick..the problem is, the average household isn’t kept chilly. Although a few of my friends turn the heat way down at night, even in our cold area. If a person can deal with eight hours at 60-65F degrees, and soil is left to dry, buds should open, turning into beautiful blooms.
Thanks for the info.
I live in Columbus, Ohio. I have a large Gardenia tree. They are placed outside every summer and I bring them in in the fall. It was doing well and all of a sudden I noticed that is was sticky and was covered with sap. It is even starting to drip off of it. Why is it doing this and what can I do to correct it? It is too cold to take it outside. Thanks
Hi Diane
Sticky honeydew- most likely candidate is scale. They love gardenias. Look for bumps on the stem and leaves.
My wife has 2 Gardenia Bushes and she would like to cut some of the blooms to put in the house. How do you do this without hurting the plant?
My husband gave me his late Mother’s gardenia tree about 3 years ago. I planted it at my home and it was doing great. About 7-8 months ago after our wedding we moved it to our new home. We were careful about having it in the “same sun” at the new location. Since moving it the leaves have become yellow and it’s rather sick looking. Of course this has a lot of sentimental value and I don’t want to lose this tree. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Help, please!
Thanks.
Its Missy again with another question… Its now starting to get warmer here in Northeast Conn. I have been putting my tree out when its 50 degrees and warmer to get some sun. Although now all my leaves have dried up and fell off!! It looked like there were new green buds for new leaves but they seem to have been drying up too. The soil is very moist and I try to spritz it down often. How do I make it come back? Do I trim it, do a half soil change? The stems of the tree are still alive and have green in them… help!!
Insect Problem
Hi,
I bought an indoor gardenia last year. It has started blooming again this March.
I have seen small bugs in the pot, sticky residue on the leaves, spider web like webs on some of the leaves, and some of the new leaves look like they have been chewed.
Please help me save this beautiful plant. Thanks.
Dried leaves and drop
Hello again, Its spring here and I have put my gardenia tree outside on those nice warm days but I am sure to not give it too much sun. Since I have brought it out from the winter all of its leaves have dried up and fell off. In the beginning of the winter I treated it for spider mites with Ivory soap and water and that seemed to do the trick. The stems have green to them I have fed it a week and a half ago and still no new growth. Is this a result from the mites? Any hints? or what should I do??
Just got gifted with lush gardenia plant for Mothers Day. Tag says “Grown in Canada”. There are no blooms on it. Can I plant it outside in this 9A grow zone or is it strickly an indoor variety? I’ve got a couple spots in mind that are sunny til noonish then house shades it. Also have screened porch on same side, but I’m not to good about remembering to water stuff regularly. Thanks for your help.
Hi,
I live in a very hot country (Dubai, uae) and recently(4 months back) got a gardenia plant which was blossoming in February.
Now that the weather is turning hot the gardenia’s leaves are curled down and some of it turning brown and it’s not blossoming at all. Today, I moved it indoors hoping that the room temperature will help. Shall I move it back outdoors?
Any advice how to revive it?
Thanks
We purchased and had a professional landscaper install 20 gardenia radicans in October 2008 going up our front steps in raised planter beds with a drip system. Are are in the SF Pensinsula and blessed with beautiful weather practically year round – no predictable/expects extremes hot or cold however occassionally a hot or cold spell which typically passes after a few days. They are planted in a Western exposure, get 6-8 hours of sun a day starting around 11am and there is occassional afternoon wind. It does not appears the plants have grown much even though we have seen alot of new bud growth. However the new bud growth turns brown (looks like they dry out)and fall off. We have seen only 10 flowers open on 20 plants. We called a specialist Nursery with certified landscaping experts and they told us to be sure the plants are not planted too deep (like azealeas) and they get plenty of water. So we increased the water (drip 10 minutes 3 times a week and now the leaves are turning yellow). We noticed that the additional water didn’t help as the buds are still dying. It appears the plant is health becuase we keep getting the new bud growth but they all dry out and fall off. Any suggestions you can offer is much appreciated – would the larger gardenias do better in their environment and can we keep them trimmed to 2 feet? We just love the gardenia and hope to have this wonderful plant welcome/dazzle all who come to the house with their beauty and scent.
Hardiness issue
Hi, I bought a gardenia tree and I planted it outside.I was told that it was an outside plant and now I find out that it might not survive the winter outside in Canada.When I purchased this plant I was looking for something thatwould come back th following year without any problems.
I am very upset it is a beautifull flower and would hate to lose it… help please…
I just received a gardenia plant as a gift. I bought a ceramic pot and transplanted it and added some Miracle Grow moisture control potting soil. I also added some Miracle Grow “stick” fertilizer. I have the plant in partial sun most of the day. I had it in full sun and noticed some of the leaves were turning yellow so I moved it to partial sun and the leaves look great. My only problem is “mold” growing on the top of the soil?? What is going on?? I did removed a “layer” of mold last night but it came back today. What should I do??
I bought new gardenia few weeks ago with no experience in gardening and newely developed hobby.I am not sure what that yellow powder is on leaves.it is flowering and has new leaves.
i live north of Ocala, fla. my gardenia is about 6 ft. tall and roughly 6 ft. diameter. it is blooming nicely. do i need to pull off old flowers as they turn yellow or let them stay on plant? if i need to pull them, do i take flower and pod or just the flower. thanks.
Pinch off flowers
I have an outside gardenia bush and this year it is full of beautiful blooms. When the blooms begins to turn brown, do I pinch them off from the stem or do I prune them similar to roses.
I started one from a cutting 21 years ago and it still looks and does very well. I don’t have any special secrets but this seems to work for me: I live in New jersey.
I put it outside on my front porch from May 1st to October 1st and only feed it during that time. My porch gets afternoon sun.I feed it every 4-6 days with a pinch of Muracid to a gallon of water and let it run through.
Before i bring it in for the winter I spray it with an all purpose bug spray and cover it with a cleaner bag for the night. Then I trim it.
Once inside I put it in the brightest room in the house-my diningroom and water it less often and do not feed it. It sets bud over the winter and blooms on the porch over the summer. I get about 50-60 blooms.
I repot it in the spring every few years when roots are coming out of the bottom.
After reading the many informative posts on your website, I now see that my outdoor gardenia plant, which I planted in full sun, needs to be moved where it can be in partial sun. I live in Seattle, in Zone 8b. However, I see that you strongly recommend not disturbing their roots. Is there a good time to move a gardenia? It is now July, and I planted it about six weeks ago.
Hello,
In late spring I purchased 4 dwarf gardenia bushes. They are planted on the border of a bed that has a small tree in the center and gets about 6 hours of sun. I was encouraged by the tag which said the plant (with its relatively tiny leaves) is hardy through zone 7 (I live in Maryland, between Baltimore and Washington D.C.) and took great care to plant them with plenty of topsoil, compost and peatmoss and fertilized them with osmicote.
We had a very wet spring and early summer and I have been watering them (at the roots) 2-3 times a week since our weather turned hot and dry. They bloomed beautifully but in the last couple of weeks, 3 of the 4 have developed yellow leaves with brown spots. The healthy one was purchased a few days after the original 3, from a different store but the same chain. The healthy one had been trimmed back at the time of purchase and was more compact than the other 3, if that has any bearing.
I will try the iron and miracid that you suggested and see if it helps the yellowing. However, after reading some of the comments about wintering, I’m concerned that the plants will not last through our cold season, when our temps are generally in the mid 30’s but at times can get down into the teens.
These plants have a warranty of a year, but I’m wondering if I shouldn’t return them now. Even if they last until spring, it sounds as though each year would be a roll of the dice as to their survival. If I do keep them, should I keep them blanketed for the whole winter, removing the protection only when the days are unusually mild?
I will appreciate your comments about the yellow leaves and chances for survival. Thank you and take good care.
We have a large indoor plant and we have noticed a white type of mold on the branches and leaves .It is sticky when we touch it and the leaves of the plant on the inside have turn brown /black what can we do about this?
I have a couple month old gardenia which got infested with spider mites.So, I sprayed it with bayer.The bugs are gone.It has new leaves and setting new buds.But the new buds have green outercovering when opens up but nothing inside i.e. no petals.Please, tell me what to do
My gardenia is setting buds.It has green outercvering that is lot longer than appearing tiny buds.Could someone please tell me how the buds look like when they are forming.
Rosy
i live in northern va and have just bought a gardenia jasminoides ‘aimee’. It is about 3 feet tall and is potted. As adviced by the nursery i fed it Miracid, however its leaves started getting yellow. i would like to know how to take care of this beautiful plant. The zone of this area is 7b.
Drying and curling leaves
Hi. I live in Atlanta. I replanted my gardenia last spring. but after i did. the green color of the leaves seems to fadded, it is not losong the green color, very dry leaves and curling at the end. what to do?
One more variation on the endless yellowing leaves issue: This spring, I planted some Radicans dwarf gardenias in a relatively low-lying bed that has tended to stay damp. Recognizing that, I planted them fairly high, did the best I could to prepare the hole for good drainage (underlying soil is clay), and tried not to irrigate too heavily. Half of the plants seem to be doing well, while the others are thin and have many yellow leaves. Contrary to what I would have expected, the plants doing better are in the section of the bed I think is the dampest. How likely is it the the yellow leaves on the others are due to being UNDER watered? The surface of the soil does dry out between waterings. Any other thoughts? We’ve had our soil tested and it is acidic. Site is mostly sunny, zone 8. Thanks.
Hi,
I live in Toronto Canada and I have an indoor gardenia facing North which is the brighest room in my home. My gardenia had a mealybug problem which I think is now controlled, however I have no leaves or buds on my plant but the plant still looks like its alive. Any idea of what I should be doing now. Thank you for this wonderful and informative site. I would love to be able to succeed with my gardenia as I have not had many good results before.
Thank you
Hello- We bought a gardenia bush this spring and planted it in a pot–We live in VA and I know it won’t make it for the winter. I also know that bringing it indoors might be a problem due to temp’s in the house and dry air. Could I wrap the plant in burlap and put it under the deck or in the garage? or make a tent for it with plastic sheeting?
Winterover gardenia indoors
I purchased a blooming gardenia in April, repotted it and put it in a sunny spot outside. I live in Missouri. It’s grown considerably! I only had one bud on it, then we had a rain storm and the bud knocked off (no more buds). Now day temps are only in the mid 60’s with nights in the 40’s. I have doubts that it will survive the winter indoors because windows are east/west exposure. Do you think I could just put it in the basement and let it go dormant for the winter and revive again in the spring? I’ve never had success with indoor gardenias over the winter. H E L P please?
Leaf drop
I brought my gardenia inside for the winter…and it was fine at first, but now ALL of the leaves are dropping off. What does that mean?