I live in Michigan zone 5 and am not sure, the tag says I can but its from
Walmart so I want to be sure.

A pipe gives a wise man time to think and a dumb man something to stick in his
mouth.

I live in Michigan zone 5

No, gardenia is a greenhouse plant. It is difficult to grow even indoors.
Iris,
Central NY, Zone 5a, Sunset Zone 40
"If we see light at the end of the tunnel, It's the light of the oncoming
train."
Robert Lowell (1917-1977)

"Iris Cohen" wrote in message
...
I live in Michigan zone 5

No, gardenia is a greenhouse plant. It is difficult to grow even indoors.
Iris,

I agree. Tried one, but it perished overwinter (that was in zone 8). The
wind appeared to do the most damage.

In article , "waters" wrote:
"Iris Cohen" wrote in message
...
I live in Michigan zone 5

No, gardenia is a greenhouse plant. It is difficult to grow even indoors.
Iris,

I agree. Tried one, but it perished overwinter (that was in zone 8). The
wind appeared to do the most damage.

According to the Sunset Western Gardening book, G. jasminoides (G.
augusta) is hardy to 20 degrees F. They don't like neglect and do
appreciate TLC.

They seem quite happy outdoors in the East Bay (San Francisco) area,
which does get frost, but mainly in sheltered locations, like right next
to the house and under overhanging eaves or trees.

cheers,

Marj

* * *
Marj Tiefert: http://www.mindspring.com/~mtiefert/
Marj's Mini Mall: http://stores.tiefert.com/
Coleridge shop: http://www.cafeshops.com/coleridgestore
Marjorie's Morning Star: http://newsletter.tiefert.com/
science editing services: http://science.tiefert.com/

Gardenias are hardy here in zone 8b (near 8a) where they grow into 8-10'
bushes and you can smell them 1/4 miles away. But some varieties are not so
hardy. The hardiest are the large variety called 'Mystery' and the dwarf
radicans. But I know people in zone7 who have variable luck with these. I've
never heard of anyone growing them outdoors in zones 6 or less (I may be
wrong but I've never heard of it). They are notoriously suceptible to bark
split from freezing and thawing. Enjoy it indoors in the sunniest place
you've got.

"SBHCOM" wrote in message
...
I live in Michigan zone 5 and am not sure, the tag says I can but its from
Walmart so I want to be sure.

A pipe gives a wise man time to think and a dumb man something to stick in
his
mouth.

On 13 May 2003 14:30:31 GMT, (SBHCOM) wrote:

I live in Michigan zone 5 and am not sure, the tag says I can but its from
Walmart so I want to be sure.

Not in zone 5. I have an 8' tall bush (restricting access to the
outdoor part of my A/C) against a west-facing brick wall in zone 8. In
one particularly harsh winter, it died down to the ground and came
back over the next couple of years, so it's marginal here. I know when
it's blooming by the scent wafting in the back door. If only the
wretched thing would space out its bloom time. Two blossoms a week all
summer would satisfy me, but nooo. It's gotta put out 200 in a 3-week
festival of bloom, and then retire to be a big, shiny-leaved bush 'til
next year.

I've no experience with this, but might it be possible to keep one in
a pot, put outdoors for the summer, and over-winter indoors?

I've had luck with Gardenias (yes, they are an inside plant) only when they
have been in cool, bright light. That can be a tricky combination --
usually light = heat. I have an air-conditioned sunroom, where they thrive.
It's cool there in the winter, too. They need to have night time temps
under-65 F to set buds -- but they don't like to be below 45 F or so at any
time. That's a narrow range.

--
-- pelirojaroja
"dangerous redhead"
"waters" wrote in message
...
"Iris Cohen" wrote in message
...
I live in Michigan zone 5

No, gardenia is a greenhouse plant. It is difficult to grow even
indoors.
Iris,

I agree. Tried one, but it perished overwinter (that was in zone 8). The
wind appeared to do the most damage.

SBHCOM wrote:

I live in Michigan zone 5 and am not sure, the tag says I can but its from
Walmart so I want to be sure.

A pipe gives a wise man time to think and a dumb man something to stick in his
mouth.

There are a number of cultivars of Gardenia jasminoides that are hardy outdoor
shrubs well into zone 7 - 'Chuck Hayes' is reported to be the hardiest, possibly
to 6b. They grow here in the PNW with ease in a full sun location. Regardless,
none will fare well in a zone 5 Michigan winter so ignore what the Walmart tag
says :-)) You can grow a gardenia as an outdoor plant in a container during the
summer months and bring it in to enjoy as a houseplant for the winter. Contrary to
other posts, they are not hard to grow as a houseplant, provided you give them
proper conditions. They like bright light, high humidity and acidic soil. Keep the
soil evenly moist but do not overwater (in other words - do not let the soil dry
out completely). Humidity can be achieved by daily misting, which will also reduce
the likelihood of spider mite infestations. Fertilize during the growing season
(May-Sept) weekly with an acid-based fertilizer and enjoy the fragrance!

pam - gardengal

Yea, so much for asking the teenagers at Walmart for advise

A pipe gives a wise man time to think and a dumb man something to stick in his
mouth.

When the ancient war dogs did battle on Wed, 14 May 2003 08:22:03
-0400, "pelirojaroja" did speak the following bit
of wisdom:

I've had luck with Gardenias (yes, they are an inside plant) only when they
have been in cool, bright light. That can be a tricky combination --
usually light = heat. I have an air-conditioned sunroom, where they thrive.
It's cool there in the winter, too. They need to have night time temps
under-65 F to set buds -- but they don't like to be below 45 F or so at any
time. That's a narrow range.

OTOH... It is my belief that some people just have the knack with them
and others do not. My mother and I are among those who do. We grow our
plants under vastly different situations even though we only live a
couple of blocks away from each other.

My mom grows hers inside her heated sun porch and the plants *never*
go outside... ever! She keeps the porch heated to about 60 degrees at
night during the winter; on sunny winter days, the temperatures in the
porch can get up into the mid-to-high 70s. During one of our muggy,
"CT coastline" summer heat wave days, the temperatures can be
unbearably hot and sticky, even with window fans going constantly. She
waters and feeds her plants the same way all summer and winter long
and the plants are constantly, evenly moist. She also grows an orchid
or two and a few other plants (tropical hibiscus, orchid cactus,
stephanotis, schefflera and various other things) right next to the
gardenias. All get similar treatment and identical growing conditions.

I grow my gardenias strictly outside in full sunlight on the patio or
deck, all summer long. They should be going out by the end of the
month (or the first week of June at the latest) and they won't come
back inside until mid-to-late October. When they're outside, I treat
them just like any other garden plant. They get as much water as they
want and I use Miracid to feed them with. I'll throw a handful of
"cocka-doodle-doo" (dried chicken poop pellets) or worm castings at
them once at the beginning of the summer (if I remember). Otherwise,
they are on their own -- absolutely no pampering allowed! I don't have
the luxury of owning a nice sun porch like my mom, so during the
winter, mine get stored in the garage or basement (wherever they
happen to fit best that year -- considering what else I'm
overwintering) with one or two regular "shoplight" tubes set to burn
for about 16 hours a day hanging above them, plus the ambient light
from the garage door or basement windows. I water them whenever I
remember... which is often, well... not very often! If they're in the
basement, they'll often sit in the dark for a couple of days at a time
if my hubby goes downstairs and flicks off the lights and forgets to
tell me about it.

Both my mom and I count on clouds of fragrant flowers all summer long
and into the fall! Gardenias just *love* us; I'm convinced of it.
They're like weeds around both our houses; we can't pay them to die!

* * * * *
Karen C.
Southern CT / USDA Zone 6
Spammers be damned! I can't be emailed from this account...

"Gardeners know all the best dirt!"