Hello all,

First time gardenia grower here. Gardenia is in a location that gets morning to mid-afternoon sun. Planted it in January. It seemed happy for several months. About 1 month ago I noticed it grew several new buds and slowly a few lower leaves started to turn yellow. I assumed the plant was sucking resources from the lower leaves to fuel the new growth. I also wondered if I was going too long in between waterings (~10 days). A few days went by before I got to it and next thing I know, the yellowing was widespread. I know gardenias like acidic soil and my soil and water are very alkaline. I had treated the soil with sulfur and added an acid-loving fertilizer previously, but I wondered if my use of drip irrigation prevented the sulfur and fertilizer from being distributed around the whole root zone (by just irrigating where the drip nozzle was). I added more sulfur and applied some liquid fertilizer (Foliage Pro), and started to water more thoroughly with a hose. The plant is now blooming, but still does not look healthy at all. I know gardenias are notoriously finicky. I'd love to save this plant if possible. Any recommendations?