Question
I recently noticed several of my gardenia bushes drooping. It's not really the leaves that are drooping but rather that the brances are drooping as opposed to the plant being erect.  It is drooping from the middle of the plant.  The leaves are not yellowing, nor have I seen spider mites.  However, they have been through several changes the past few months.  Previously they had been semi-shaded by a very large pine tree.  However due to age and endangering our roof, we had to remove the pine tree, and now several gardenia bushes are in full sun about 7-8 hours a day. Another recent change was that I spread ( not quite decomposed)compost in their bed.  I was in a hurry to relocate the compost bin to make way for the tree removal hazard and just spread the compost in the gardenia bed.  I tested the pH to see if that had affected them, and found the sample to be abount 6.5-7.0. What do you thinK???

Answer
Hi Denise:

Difficult to say w/o seeing your plants "in person".  From your description, the changes made in the area are probably related to the reason for the wilt. I am assuming the plants have been in that spot for some time and thus are established.  I would suspect that the compost may be an issue.  Take a close look at the plant, especially near the base.  Look for any evidence of injury etc that may be obvious.  If the stems look OK, I would suggest that you contact your local county Extension office to arrange for a "house call".  Here in Arkansas, there is an office in each county that you can call.  If you have difficulty finding a telephone number, drop me an email with your county of residence and I can give you a number to call. You can use my work email--- [email protected]

Regards
Steve