Gardenias hard to grow? Learn 3 little tricks to solve yellow leaves and bud drop completely

Many people love gardenias for their pure white flowers and sweet fragrance, but they are not at all easy to grow, especially for gardeners in the north, where bud drop, yellow leaves and root rot are particularly common, so how do you prevent this?

1. Causes of bud drop in gardenias

Many gardeners bring home newly bought gardenias covered in buds, but before they can bloom the buds all drop off, and gardeners cannot figure out what is going on, but the reason is actually very simple

It is simply that the gardenia cannot adapt to the change of environment, because the gardenias gardeners buy and bring home are all grown in greenhouses, and greenhouses generally have very high temperatures and are fairly humid, which is exactly the environment gardenias like

Gardeners can do this

For a gardenia that has just come home, first place it in scattered light, water it thoroughly, and let it slowly adapt to the environment, then gradually move it to a location with plenty of light, and its growth will slowly recover.

2. Causes of yellow leaves

The main reasons a gardenia grows buds but does not open are insufficient light and watering and a lack of phosphorus and potassium fertilizer. You should immediately put the gardenia on a south-facing balcony with plenty of light to bask in the sun.

Lack of fertilizer

Insufficient watering

Insufficient light

You should immediately put the gardenia on a south-facing balcony with plenty of light to bask in the sun.

During the flowering period, phosphorus and potassium promote the growth and opening of buds. During the period when the gardenia forms buds and blooms, apply an organic liquid fertilizer based mainly on phosphorus, such as cake fertilizer water, 2 times a week.

Gardenias like acid, so if the water and soil are on the alkaline side, the leaves will definitely turn yellow. The solution is that you can buy special soil made for gardenias, and secondly, when watering, you can add a few drops of vinegar to the water to improve the alkaline water quality.

3. How to prune gardenias

During the growth process, gardenias will grow many small side shoots, which consume a large amount of nutrients, so they should be cut off in time during care. After the gardenia flowers fade, cut them off in time to promote the sprouting of new shoots, and when the new shoots grow to two or three nodes, you can pinch out the growing tips. While pinching out the tips, you can cut off some of the axillary buds to promote the growth of the main branches.