Take off the plastic for an hour and see if it wilts. If it does put it back on. Al

In the last two years, I have rooted hundreds of gardenia cuttings to give away, and have not lost even one. I use cuttings with three sets of leaves, usually about four inches long. I use a mix of 2 parts of top soil, 2 parts peat moss, and 1 part sand. I wet the peat moss ahead of time so that it absorbs water and stays damp.
I use clear soda bottles. I cut the bottles in half about three inches from the bottom, poke drain holes in the bottom ribs with an ice pick. Put about two inches of mix in the bottom part , insert the cutting with the bottom set of leaves stripped off, and a cut made just below the lowest node. Put the top of the bottle back on the bottom by gently squeezing the top of the bottom part. You now have a mini greenhouse. You can see when the roots have grown by looking thru the clear plastic. Put in abright spot, but don't let the sun shine on them, because it will bake the cutting. You might devise a way to hang them under a tree near the branches so the sun doesn't hit them. In about three weeks you will see roots, it helps if the weather is hot, in the ninties.

That sounds like so much fun, I'm going to have to switch from cans to plastic bottles. What a great idea! Thanks for sharing.

All good advice so far for propagating most plants - and it does work well for gardenias. However, there is a much easier way. WATER! I and many others have been doing it this way for years. Some will claim that water formed roots are too fragile and will not make the transition to soil, but this is definitely not true for gardenia. Just strip off the lower leafs of your cuttings and stick them in a vase in strong, indirect light. Top off the water daily and change it out about once a week to keep from becoming nasty. When roots get to be about an inch long, pot them up in a gallon container and water as often as you do the rest of your containers. It is that easy. Next year pot up to a 3 gallon container or put into the ground. I literally do hundreds of gardenia cuttings this way each summer and virtually all of them root and more importantly - grow and thrive. Good luck!

i'm trying my luck with propagating gardenia too. i took cuttings with two nodes, (don't know if the number of leaves on each node matter much) took off the leaves from the lower node and scratched near that. then dipped them in dip &grow rooting hormone diluted to 10 times. then (my original idea) stuck them in peat pellet then into a pot filled with regular potting soil (miracle grow potting soil). i thought that the peat pellet would protect the roots more while transplanting later. the funny thing is that the pot is actually a disposable aluminum tray with a plastic cover that is high enough for the length of the cutting. works pretty good as a green house. i punched holes at the bottom for drainage. i wanted to try the cola bottles but i didn't have any at the time. anyway, it's been close to 3 weeks and they are still green and holding(didn't check for root growth yet). a stupid mistake i did is that some of the cutting are old growth, so these will probably shed their leaves and i guess will lower the chance of rooting. i have some cutting with leaves turning yellow already. so i hope they will root, i'll check them in a month and see!!

Had anyone tried to take cuttings and propagate this specie?
I have a really big stock plant and would like to try to take some cuttings but I am not sure if it would be the same as any other gardenia. Any suggestions?

I am having some yellow leaves on my one big gardenia. Does that mean it is too wet?????

i've done hardy and kliem's hardy. takes two weeks- about two inches of roots this way

Here is a link that might be useful: kliems hardy

Quick Question: I have roots on my Gardenias (Cuttings were placed in water) - the roots are maybe 4 or so inches long. When is a good time to transplant the Gardenias??? Is it to hot in the Virginia area to do this now??? SHoudl I wait for the fall or Spring? In the interim, if I do not plant outside right now, assume I should plant at least in a container. Thanks - Rob

gardenias grow great under cfls as houseplants so keep your cuttings potted until larger size

I have sucessfully rooted 2 cuttings, they are very strong with a strong root system. They have been in soil for 4 months. But they are growing as a stem.... The were taken from a bush, How do I get them to branch out? Thank you for your help.

@tiffany, thank you!