Problems with my indoor Gardenia - Ask Extension
I bought this gardenia a month & a half ago. When i saw it outside Trader Joe’s, other plants had webbings on it and I picked one that I thought...
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Problems with my indoor Gardenia #901116
Asked May 12, 2025, 12:36 PM EDT
I bought this gardenia a month & a half ago. When i saw it outside Trader Joe’s, other plants had webbings on it and I picked one that I thought was clear - it wasn’t. I waited to repot it a week later. Over time I also noticed webbing around the buds and stems and I sprayed under the leaves with water and occasionally with a 1:4 diluted alcohol spray. (I saw it on the internet). It seemed to work in decreasing the webbings (I think were spider mites); I haven’t seen them in a while. Now my problem is that when I bought it it was full and green, some bugs looked ready to bloom but they never did. They would fall off still in a bud form, & I would see the bud stem brown and shriveled (like it’s been dried out). The volunteers said it might be under stress but not sure from what.
Anne Arundel County Maryland
Expert Response
I forgot to include that the soil I used is a citrus potting mix and mixed in some perlite. The site is in my bedroom, and it gets indirect sunlight. When the bud was whitening, I saw it brown & thought the sun was too bright & burned the flower. I don’t water it often and it stays in a my bedroom with a humidifier.
You were correct in suspecting spider mites on your Gardenia. The spotty/dotty-looking leaves is a classic sign of the feeding of spider mites, which are tiny sucking insects. If you look really closely, you can sometimes see them moving along webbing, or if you shake a branch hard over a piece of white paper, you can watch for tiny dots moving across the page.
While you can't repair the older affected leaves, your newer ones look much better, and the plant will continue to push out new foliage. We see newly forming buds as well.
You can regularly give the plant a 'bath' in the sink or shower, aiming water at all parts, but especially under the leaves and leaf axils. (Feel free to run your hands all over the plant to dislodge as many as possible.) We wouldn't necessarily spray with alcohol, as it could be drying.
Here is our Houseplant pest page - if you click on spider mites, you can learn more about them:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/diagnose-indoor-plant-problems/ If they continue to be a problem, you could use an insecticide labeled for houseplants. Look for one containing the active ingredient Spinosad, a low-impact, low-toxicity biopesticide and following directions.
If you can put it outdoors for the summer, they benefit from the warmth and humidity (spider mites are more of a problem in our dry, forced-heated home in winter), as well as rain and beneficial insects abounding.
Gardenias are notorious for bud blast if they are stressed by environmental conditions (temperature swings, low humidity, lack of light, moving them from one place to another.)
We don't think that too much sun is a problem- they like a bright position in part sun outdoors.
You can use a fertilizer made for acid-loving plants during the active growing season of spring, summer and early fall, but most houseplants rest a bit in the winter and don't need as much water or feeding. If you can put it outdoors, you can keep it there until night temperatures drop into the 50's- which can actually encourage the setting of buds.
Christine
While you can't repair the older affected leaves, your newer ones look much better, and the plant will continue to push out new foliage. We see newly forming buds as well.
You can regularly give the plant a 'bath' in the sink or shower, aiming water at all parts, but especially under the leaves and leaf axils. (Feel free to run your hands all over the plant to dislodge as many as possible.) We wouldn't necessarily spray with alcohol, as it could be drying.
Here is our Houseplant pest page - if you click on spider mites, you can learn more about them:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/diagnose-indoor-plant-problems/ If they continue to be a problem, you could use an insecticide labeled for houseplants. Look for one containing the active ingredient Spinosad, a low-impact, low-toxicity biopesticide and following directions.
If you can put it outdoors for the summer, they benefit from the warmth and humidity (spider mites are more of a problem in our dry, forced-heated home in winter), as well as rain and beneficial insects abounding.
Gardenias are notorious for bud blast if they are stressed by environmental conditions (temperature swings, low humidity, lack of light, moving them from one place to another.)
We don't think that too much sun is a problem- they like a bright position in part sun outdoors.
You can use a fertilizer made for acid-loving plants during the active growing season of spring, summer and early fall, but most houseplants rest a bit in the winter and don't need as much water or feeding. If you can put it outdoors, you can keep it there until night temperatures drop into the 50's- which can actually encourage the setting of buds.
Christine
