I have had succes in growing Gardenias in my yard. I usually by them at (HD)Home Depot. I have purchased all of them in the spring when the 1 gallon pots are cheapest and most plentiful. The variety they usually carry is called:
"August Beauty" for about $7
Here's a 5 year old plant I bought from HD. Pic taken last year. It's more full than this right now. Thanks
rebecca30
Wow is this an old thread!
Want some good advice? DO NOT BABY THEM! I totally ignore mine new and old and they do fabulous for me! This means, I never fertilize (ever) nor water my established plants--even thru the Georgia droughts. If you need convincing...I thought I'd tease with this glow-in-the-dark photo from June, K? Anyone want to guess it's size? I cannot tell the age since I transplanted it the 80's.
(Sorry, I really don't mean to be cruel!)
Vi
Vi - you are so funny with your Gardenia on steroids (teasin' w/you)!!! I treat mine the same as the rest in the yard...if I think about fertilizing so be it...watering gets done when the potted plants get that "I'm melllllting look to them" - everyone gets a drink at the same time. ^_^ My 'Shooting Star' from FSG (last year) as a baby in a 3" pot - is now just about 3 ft high if not a bit taller...love it's sweet little heart!!
Oh, I can't believe I only found this thread now! Chantell, the "suicidal gardenia" thread is such a classic. I always go back to it, hehehe...
I've always had SO MUCH trouble to keep my 2 gardenias alive, I had even given up on blooms. Then.....somebody told me they needed variation in temps from day to night. Well, I had the two pots in the patio, under a trellis, in front of the house. NOt much variation there! Then I moved both pots out in the garden, where they get a cool breeze at night. I got a first bloom this week! I am THRILLED!!!
Roberta
You GO girl....doin' the happy plant dance for ya on the east coast!!
haha! thanks dear! I'm soooo happy!
Just found this thread. My Kleim's hardy gardenia is doing great. After 3 years in the
ground I had to dig it up and I put it in a large pot this March. Didn't miss a beat.
It even has a few flowers on it right now. Also the variety Belmont seems to be the
one everyone has here in this town. Really large leaves and large flowers in mid
spring. Doesn't rebloom unfortunately. I really like "Four Seasons" for container
growing. I am afraid to put it in the ground after losing my varigated gardenia last year
at 24 degrees F. They all seem to be so different as to cold tolerance.
I can say that both 'Shooting Star' and 'Chuck Hayes' have made it through all 4 seasons here in VA - we did have a mild winter though. I'll know about the 'Frost Proof,' 'Kleims,' & 'Mystery' next year at this time.
Hey Chantell, guess what I found today. A huge "Shooting Star" at Home Depot for $15--it was big enough to divide into 4 plants, my friend bought it and gave me one, my "piece" is 1 1/2' tall and over 2' wide!
Didn't hear of anyone having the "Daisy" Gardenia, it looks like Kleims and does well for me here.
My Daisy
OMG - good for YOU!!! I'd not seen 'Shooting Star' any where since getting her from Glen. You'll enjoy her!
Glad Daisy does well for you - poor thing died in my care...sad, but true
I've had Daisy for 3 years now, planted in filtered shade, never fertilized never watered.
Home Depot had 1 gal Daisy, Radicans & August Beauty for $7--it was hard not to get more, lol!!
Yepper it was THOSE 3 that died...course 2 I had in what I "thought" was filtered sun...not so evidently....ugh!!! Radicans I did place in filtered shade this year when I tried again with it - "tried" being the key word here. Not sure what I'm doing wrong with it.
I bought a klehms hardy 2 years ago. As soon as I got it I took two cuttings and stuck them in potting soil in a water bottle with the top on.
Both cuttings made it.
The mother plant was planted in the garden in miserable soil. It froze to the ground the first syear but came back.
I gave pne of the rooted cuttings to my sister who as far as I know killed it.
The other I planted last summer. Both plants in the garden thrived. Last winter I covered both plants with mulch about the first of January when we got our first really hard freezes here. Both are now thriving.
I think gardenias are just wonderful plants.
Wonderful and tricky! : )
yes rob they are and I must say I envy you your climate for them.
It's been so long since this thread was active I just couldn't resist seeing how everyones gardenias are doing?
I attached a picture of the 'First Love' I picked up at HD today. I could not believe how big it! I had back luck with a smaller one I found at Lowe's last year. Planted it into a pot that was too large, it stayed very wet, the roots rotted out :/
My august beauty is doing just fine now, It seems to want to grow out more than up though. It was the host of a personal science project I did after taking a plant physiology course and was treated with GA3 and almost immediately all the branches extended a foot or more and it has failed to grow up since. For those who may not be familiar, GA3 is a plant hormone that promotes, among other things, stem elongation. Anyway, its about 40 feet wide and only about 1 to 1 1/2 feet tall :p
Back to my picture though, I tend to have good luck with potting gardenias, rather than planting them out around the yard because our soil has a pH around 7-7.5 which just won't do for gardenias. The august beauty was my first exception to that rule around here because I dug a hole that was probably twice as big as the pot and used a half and half mix of sphagnum peat moss and MG garden soil. The big difference most likely being the peat moss which will keep the pH down for a good while (I used a lot)
Any suggestions? I prefer the sphagnum approach so I don't have to deal with soil acidifier chemicals or mixes.
Oh btw, MG 'quick start' is excellent for transplanting any and everything. Water it once or twice with that and I never see transplant shock anymore. Super Thrive is a new favorite of mine as well, and I see people claim it doesn't work all the time but after studying plants in college for years now I can say that it does. I have done my own experiments to show what a change it can make. It does actually have plant hormones in it as well, so I can say without a doubt that it does work!
WOW sorry for the long post, plants always get me excited :)
