Hello, I am hoping someone can help me with something. I have some autumn sentinel camellia and frost proof gardenia. I was wondering if you can tell me when/if they need to be covered? I live in zone 7a and I believe it got down to 28 last night. Thank you!

Willwork4shoes welcome. The freezing point is 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Yes both your plants should have been covered already.

Hi & welcome! If your Gardenia is some form of G. jasminoides, it can handle a cold snap with no problem. But not reliably hardy in Z7. Here's a pic of a shrub completely encased in ice, 8 yrs ago. The year before there was night with a low of 9°. It survived both of these things and is still alive and fine. I don't have any experience covering Gardenias so I can't give a comparison on that. If the ground doesn't freeze it will probably be OK.


Your Camellia:
Camellia (Camellia sasanqua 'Autumn Sentinel')
is a cultivar of this species, which is said to be hardy to Z6. In that case, you shouldn't need to worry about it at all.

Thank you Tiffany! Yes, it is Gardenia jasminoides. They are planted against the side of our garage near a corner (front porch). I am in Moseley, VA.

Do you not cover yours at all? I did last night as it got to low 30s and should be low 30s this week again. The landscaper had said not to worry about these two unless it gets into the low teens but they were newly planted in mid-October so I want to try to help them out while they're getting established.

I'm quite a bit south of you but that's correct, I've never sheltered Camellias or Gardenias in any way. Your landscaper should be very familiar with the local conditions. Were the plants suggested by them, or did you pick them? What did he/she say to do about low teens? Are those temps common at your location?

The camellia were suggested by the landscaper and that particular gardenia were picked by them though I had asked if we could have gardenia. He had said to cover in low teens but I wasn't sure if I should do so even at freezing.

I can definitely understand wanting new plants to succeed. It sounds to me like you have nothing to worry about. I hope it goes well. : )

In your zone, I would maintain 3-4" of mulch at all times, including winter and water deeply the night prior to very cold temperatures. Temperatures much below the freezing mark can kill or delay blooms from unopened flower buds. If the buds are brown, discard them. If you get hit by zone 6 weather, the plant may lose some foliage but live wood should leaf out again in spring.

Thanks Tiffany and Luis!

Luis, I have mulched and watered before it got cold. Thank you. If buds turn brown how do you remove them?

It depends on how quickly the peduncle decays (the string that attaches the bloom to the branch). The flower bud slowly turns brown and if you sometimes touch the bud, the bud fall. Other times, Lightly pulling does the trick.