Anyone who’s had or has a garden knows how much of a pleasant hobby gardening can be. Whenever you feel like you could do with a time outside, and bond with nature, you can just step into your garden, look around, take a deep breath, smell the lovely fragrances, and then have your share of dirt digging the soil, planting, and fertilising.
Not only is it relaxing and helps reduce the stress levels, it’s also great for the overall well-being, since soil is full of the helpful Mycobacterium vaccae.
Getting to know the advantages of gardening, and reaping them, made me love this pastime activity all the more. I find happiness in surrounding myself with plants, and for years I’ve been in love with gardenias. Gardenias flower, and though they aren’t exactly the shrubs low on maintenance, their beautiful, glossy green leaves, and fragrant white or yellow flowers would make tending to their needs enjoyable. Since gardenias thrive in warm conditions, our climate is ideal for them. Though I love having them outside, I’ve also included them inside.
Just the thought they are some of the plants perfect for the bedroom that help you sleep was enough for me to welcome them as part of my bedroom interior, and I haven’t regretted it. Like every plant, they have their own needs, but gardenias can be more demanding.
If you want to see gardenias flower, and protect them from dying out, just get well informed on these specific needs of theirs. The primary factor important for flowering is the temperature. As long as the daily temperature ranges from 18 to 21 degrees, and 15 to 18 at night, you can expect to enjoy the beauty and fragrance of flowers.
My first mistake was not keeping them in a well-drained acidic soil at first, but I learned my lesson by nearly killing off one of my shrubs. Speaking of acidic soil, anything between 4.5 to 5.5 is good. Unlike indoor container gardenias that do well with high humidity and bright light, for outdoor gardenias, partial shade with moderate humidity is acceptable, but water staying on the glossy luscious leaves can create fungal problems.
Same thing with poor air flow, so avoid planting them too close to other plants. As soon as the flowering stops, it’s advisable to do a bit of pruning to remove the withered flowers and unnecessary branches. To ensure proper growth, fertilise every two to four weeks, during the growing season from March to October, but be careful not to overdo it, as it can lead to piling up of salts which could be detrimental for the plant. Give this shrub your love and care, and it would really reward you.
