I have a Gardenia jasminoides ‘Kleim’s Hardy’, that I planted last fall. I live in zone 7a. Can someone tell me what I am supposed to do with all the brown crunchy leaves on it now? It's not dead, and you can see some green, I am not sure if I should be removing these leaves.
Thanks so much!
Cynthia
If your area is not expected to get any more frost then you can begin to remove the parts that froze.
Look at the stems. Where they are still green and healthy, this is good (even if the leaves look bad).
Where the stems are totally frozen, this part needs to be removed.
It is in between that is a bit tricky. I would be cautious, just remove the parts you know are frozen.
When it starts to grow again, then you can trim it back a bit more to keep just the new growth, and remove anything beyond that where it is not growing.
Does where ever you bought it from offer a plant warranty? If so, I'd yank it out and take it back for a refund.
If no warranty is offered I would do one of three options. The first would be to do as Diana suggested with the expectation this could easily happen again. Next option is to rip it out and plant a hardier plant in that location. Even because it says it's hardy to zone 7 doesn't mean it will survive in your zone 7 climate. Zone 7 is 0-10 degrees, which means this plant could be hardy at 0, 10, or anywhere in between. Each specimen of the same plant (unless cutting grown) can have slight variations in hardiness. Lastly, you could dig the plant this fall, post assumed recovery, and transplant to a warmer location in your yard.
Good luck, but that thing looks pretty fried to me.
"Even because it says it's hardy to zone 7 doesn't mean it will survive in your zone 7 climate. Zone 7 is 0-10 degrees, which means this plant could be hardy at 0, 10, or anywhere in between."
A newly planted plant is often not hardy in a zone where it is listed as safe. Often they need protection though their first winter or two.
Also, you may have had an unusually cold winter, perhaps no snow cover to insulate the plants, and a cold wind blasted them.
Zone 7 is shown as the limit for Kleim's Hardy, do I would do as Sequoiadendron suggests, perhaps a slightly warmer location in your yard, and be prepared to protect it most winters.
