Probably the most important aspect of your Gardenia's recovery will be soil moisture. You might think that it's a good idea to continuously provide water to the soil to help it recover, but that may actually be the nail in the coffin for your Gardenia. Of course your plant will need water, but the soil needs to drain very well and the soil should not be completely soaked at all times. Plants' roots need oxygen to grow. Chances are your Gardenia's roots have had some die-back and are on the verge of growing once again. If you completely soak the soil at all times, the roots will rarely have access to oxygen to help them grow and recover. Your Gardenia would do best with deep soaking when you irrigate, but then you should definitely allow time for the soil to dry out just a bit before watering again. The time between waterings may have changed from before your Gardenia suffered the heat/water stress. Now that your Gardenia has lots some/all of its leaves it will not be pulling as much water from the soil as it was before. This means that the soil may stay wet for longer periods of time, and thus you should avoid watering again before it is time.

As for fertilizing, you should be fertilizing your Gardenia on a monthly basis when the plant is in its growing season. Your case is a bit different though. When you fertilize a plant, the plant needs storage for those newly absorbed nutrients. Your Gardenia has lost a lot of its storage (leaves and stems). On the other hand, if your Gardenia is still alive, it will need nutrients to build new leaves and stems. My recommendation would be to fertilize on a bimonthly schedule, but use a dilute solution of fertilizer. Also, you should be using a fertilizer that is meant for plants that thrive in acidic soils. Gardenias do best in soils that are acidic.

Hey Jac...I'm sorry to read this about your Gardenia. Right now your Gardenia is in a weakened state and you will have to be fairly careful to resuscitate it back to health. Assuming that it has not been completely killed off by the heat wave and drought, I'm sure you can help it come back to life. First off, I would not prune quite yet. I would wait a wee bit longer to see if any of the buds on the stems are still alive. The buds may come out of dormancy and produce new shoots. If that never happens, I would expect the base of the plant to be the last part that would have died off from the heat/water stress. If you don't see new leaves forming at the base of the stem, there is probably no hope for reviving your Gardenia.

Hey there...If I were you I would prune your roses in early spring right before bud break. If where you live you will likely not receive a frost until spring, you could probably go ahead and prune right now. Roses, for the most part, are tough plants. Granted, they can be rather fussy at times. Generally, roses can survive a pruning, even if it's at a bad time of year or it's not done completely right. I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any further questions. Cheers...Robby

Elizabeth, I love the enthusiasm. I too cannot wait until spring. I'm glad to hear the hubby did a good job this year for Christmas. Good luck and continue to post on these forums if you have any questions. Cheers...Robby

It is difficult to let an indoor potted plant completely drain while completely wetting the entire rootzone. I have this problem too. I want to completely wet the roots when I water, but I don't want to have the water drain out of the pot and onto my floor or countertop. What I have done in the past is have two trays at the ready. When the first tray fills with the leftover water, I perform the ol' switcheroo with the trays (replacing the filled tray with the dry tray, while emptying the filled tray). Another thing to remember is that in winter, Hoyas will need a little bit less water since they will grow less actively. I hope this information is helpful. Please let me know if you need any other horticultural advice as I am always happy to help a fellow gardener. Cheers...Robby

Second scenario: Hoyas do best with sharply drained soil. If Hoyas are standing in constantly wet soil or have wet feet (this is the term people will use if a plant is sitting in standing water), they will invariably suffer. Basically the roots suffocate due to lack of oxygen and will begin to die off. If a plant starts losing roots, it will be unable to absorb enough water to maintain the amount of leaves it has. As a result the leaves that can't get enough water will wilt and eventually die off. This is unfortunate because the symptoms of over-watering can resemble the symptoms of under-watering. Your mentioning of your Hoya sitting in a tray of ruddy water was the hint that makes me think this is the case.

First scenario: Hoyas do well with high humidity. Being inside for the winter, chances are your Hoya is experiencing some dry air. When we heat our homes, we artificially dry out the air. This could cause the leaves to dry out like you described, but I think the more likely explanation is the following...

Hey Aimee...I'm sorry to read this. I do think I may have an idea of what is going on. I am going give two scenarios of what I think may be the problem, but I think the second scenario is the more likely of the two cases.

I hope this is helpful. Definitely let me know if you have any further questions. Cheers...Robby