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Growing Gardenia
By Acotas Kaden | January 22, 2009
Belonging to the Madder family this genus includes about 200 evergreen shrubs and rarely small trees. Best known representatives are G. jasminoides, or cape jasmine, and G. Veitchii, the florists gardenia, with its waxy, fragrant white flowers and glossy foliage.
The old white freesia, F. alba, is still most desirable. It bears its snow white blooms on stems ten inches long; colored hybrids grow a few inches taller. Under proper conditions the plants remain in bloom for about two weeks, and through successive plantings made two weeks apart, a continuous supply of blooms may be obtained in the greenhouse or house.
During its blooming season, G. jasminoides must be kept thoroughly wet and not allowed to dry out, but in winter it is kept fairly dry. G. Veitchii is an ever blooming gardenia, the most popular hothouse or house plant variety.
Like ginseng, goldenseal must be grown in the shade of a wood land or a lath house. The soil should be well fertilized, preferably with decaying vegetable matter.
Gardenias do best indoors in a cool room. If this is not available, see that the temperature drops at night and keep the plants near a window where the temperature is normally lower than in the rest of the room.
Gardenias demand a very acid soil, with a pH of 4.5 to 5. This may be supplied by well-composted sawdust or oak leaves. Leaves that fall from the plant, as well as its own faded flowers, may be placed on top of the soil to form a self-mulch. If the foliage shows a tendency to turn yellow, a handful of rotted manure or cottonseed meal may be mixed with the top layer of soil.
Always keep the plants as close to the window as possible, but beware that they are not harmed by the frost during cold nights. The foliage must never be allowed to touch the glass of the window. A few thicknesses of paper placed between the plants and the glass during extra-cold nights will be an added protection. Water moderately, but never let the soil dry out. When the buds begin to open very weak liquid manure may be substituted for the water to encourage long flower spikes set with larger blooms, Support flower stem with four or five short, thin stakes stuck around the edge of the pot connected with thin twine. For cutting, remove each spray when the first two blooms have opened.
When the blooming season is over, gradually withhold water and dry off in a cool room. The process of ripening the corms required about a month or so. When perfectly dry, shake the soil from the corms and store in a dry place until next fall or early winter, when they may be replanted. Corms which started into growth during storage fail to bloom, in most cases.
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- Flawless Gardening With Appropriate Fertilizer Products
- Proofing Your Plants Against Extreme Winter Temperature
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