Gardenia is one of the most attractive flowers for its heavenly fragrance, snow-white petals, and ability to bear Southern heat.
Although it’s rewarding to watch Gardenias blooming not only once but twice annually, be careful because they’re not the easiest to cultivate.
Tag along to find the optimal conditions for growing and taking care of your gardenias like a pro.
What Are The Gardenia Light Requirements?
The Gardenia bush requires acidic soil rich in organic matter and fertilizers. Direct sunlight and high temperature are no-brainers for a Southern plant like ours. Finally, consistent watering of at least one inch a week is essential.
4 Optimal Conditions for Growing Gardenias
Gardenias demand specific measures while growing to last for more than one season and bloom twice. These heat-loving plants require slightly acidic, organically rich, and well-drained soil.
As they’re southern plants, they thrive in full sun to get direct exposure.
Here are the requirements you need to check before growing a Gardenia flower:
Sunlight
Sunlight is the most important factor when it comes to growing Gardenias.
So how much sun do gardenias need?
These Southern flowers are full sun hardy, which means they can handle and even thrive in direct sunlight. That’s why we recommend that you expose your Gardenia like August Beauty to full sun.
However, you need to protect the plant’s leaves from burning in the sun months, aka June, July, and August. You can do so by exposing the plan to morning and afternoon sun only and putting it in the shade when it’s full midday sun.
Soil
Gardenias thrive in slightly acidic soil, typically from 5 to 6.5 pH. Making sure that your soil is within the range is crucial for the well-being of the Gardenia. Use a soil test found at a nearby home improvement center, online, or from your extension service.
Optimally, your soil should be organically-rich with good water retention. If you have particularly heavy clay soil that won’t allow the roots to breathe properly, mix with the right amount of compost.
As opposed to heavy soil that causes waterlogged soil, sandy soil dries out quickly and doesn’t retain water. Both cases aren’t healthy for the Gardenia Sun.
Zone
The Gardenia Sun is a subtropical plant and grows best in high humidity and temperature areas. Although most Gardenias are hardy in zones 8–9, a few are hardy in zones 10 and 11. Also, zone 7 hardy Gardenias are rare but certainly not lacking.
Watering
Consistent moisture is essential for Gardenias as they aren’t drought-tolerant. To get the optimal amount of moisture for the gardenias, you need to consider three factors:
Watering
As a rule of thumb, ensure the Gardenias have access to at least 1 inch of water per week. If your growing area isn’t usually exposed to rainwater, make sure to water the plants deeply once a week.
Well-drained Soil
Check twice that your soil will absorb the water without suffocating the plant.
Fertilizers
Organic matter and fertilizers help in keeping the water level up at an appropriate altitude to the shrubs. Use a slow-release Gardenia fertilizer designed for acidic plants to keep the soil rich and the roots well-irrigated.
What to Avoid When Growing Gardenia In Sun
Other than the condition mentioned, there are some things you need to avoid while cultivating Gardenia Suns:
Gardenia Bud Drop
If you notice that Gardenia buds dropping off before their blooming season, they’re weak. It could be because they do not have enough water or sunlight.
Make sure you water your Gardenia continually in Summer as the hot sun can cause the water to dry quickly. Another potential cause for the buds falling is the flea infestation.
Mold
Finding the leaves soot-covered and moldy is never a good sign; it might be because of a whitefly or aphid infestation. To make sure your Gardenia stays healthy, consistently remove the mold with insecticidal soap.
Gardenia Sun Disorders
Be careful about the disorders that can harm your Gardenia, such as iron deficiency. The symptom of this disorder is the gradual yellowing and decaying of the usually snow-white leaves.
Luckily, you can quickly treat this condition by retesting the soil’s acidity and adding iron-rich suppliers, such as a foliar feed of chelated iron for plants.
Another disorder would be the lack of evolving buds, which results from exposing the Gardenia to little sun or only exposing it to shade.
If your plant suffers from this case, keep in mind that Gardenia is essentially a sun-loving southern plant. Therefore, it needs direct sunlight to thrive.