Dolomite Lime takes about two weeks to work. So if you were "lucky" enough to only sprinkle it on the surface of the soil, you can probably still remove it and prevent it from taking hold.

I think you need to go invest in some pH measurement paper(s) that will cover you from pH of 4 through 8. That will let you start actually doing pH measurements on your container soils and stop guessing. To measure soil pH, put a small amount of the soil into a glass dish and add distilled water (which is neutral pH...do NOT use tap water!). Wait a few days and the water will acquire the pH of the soil. Use the pH paper to measure the water pH.

For the gardenia, I think you need to start over and plant it in good container soil. The soil that comes from a nursery is usually garbage. If you are motivated, then read through threads here on making the 5-1-1 soil mix. I would make 5-1-1 but I would not add dolomite lime. Then test the actual pH of the 5-1-1 mix. It will be somewhere between 4.5 and 5.5. If it is at 4.5 you might need to make a very small adjustment in pH with small amounts of dolomite lime. More likely it will be >5 and <6 and you will be okay.

Other people here are more expert than I am on 5-1-1 and on whether any dolomite lime would be required for gardenias. The standard 5-1-1 formula adds 1 tablespoon of lime for every gallon of soil, but that is to get the target pH over 6, which you do not want to do.

This article documents gardenia soil should have pH between 5 and 6. Since you are going to be an expert in measuring soil pH soon, you will be able to get your soil to the right place without guessing.

You could also stop asking people who work at Big Box stores for help with plants. They know nothing.

@westes Zone 9b California SF Bay i am not guessing at the PH, but have a PH/moisture reader, will this not work?

@Ran Schaffy I would not trust either function on one of those meters. I have had problems with them. The method I describe is simple and reliable.

The best method for testing water is to stick your finger five inches down into the soil. For deep planters with large plants, use a very long wood skewer and leave it in the pot for a few hours before removing.

What pH was the soil at when you received it from the nursery?

I am confused because the original post made it sound like you had no idea what the original pH was. You said that you read that "they like acidic soil" and started to randomly do things to make it more acidic. The right way to do this would be to read online what specific pH do they like to be in. Then measure your soil pH. Adjust only if necessary.

Rhododendrons "like acidic soil". But if the soil they are in is a pH of 4, that is too acidic. You do not make soil more acidic just because the plant likes acidic soil. You make the soil more acidic because you measure that it is too alkaline, and the plant needs a soil with a target pH lower than your soil measured at.

@westes Zone 9b California SF Bay i did not know the soul ph coming from the nursery, but I immoderately changed the soil when I brought it Home from the nursery. My mistake wasn’t thinking that line would make the soil more acidic, because I knew that it was already alkaline.

@westes Zone 9b California SF Bay and yes, I did read online what type of soil they liked and test the pH, my misunderstanding was in what changes the pH of the soil which way.

@westes Zone 9b California SF Bay if the soil is currently reading ph 5, but I just added the lime last night, what are the chances that it will stay at this pH level and not go further onto the alkaline side within the next week or two?

@Ran Schaffy The part of your original post that is very confusing is when you say "I read that they like acidic soil and to add nitrogen to the soil. They completely died within a week"

What exactly did you do at that point that killed the plants? The part with dolomite lime happens later when the plant is already dying. Be specific about what products you added to the soil, and in what quantities. How large were the pots?

Here is a photo for reference

This is what I added to them that I believed attributed to them dying

@westes Zone 9b California SF Bay so, I bought the trees - changed the soil to microcell from potting mix - leaves turned yellow - added the fertilizer with nitrogen showed above - plants died - I cut back all dying limbs - I added lime (yesterday)- cut back limbs more (yesterday) - today I am crying because I am completely confused and don’t know what to do.

according to the PH reader you told me not to use, the PH of one pot is 5.5- 7, (it varies all over the pot) and the other was reading 6 a few minutes ago but is now reading 8 all over the pot.

Here is the lime

Here is the soil

Here is the front of nitrogen fertilizer

@Ran Schaffy Each ph value is stronger by a factor of TEN. So pH=7 is 10 times more alkaline than pH=6. pH=8 is 10 times more alkaline than pH=7. Therefore, pH=8 is 100 times (!!) more alkaline than pH=6.

Remember I told you I had reliability problems with those pH meters? Your meter gave you results that were different by a factor of 100 in two different readings of the same soil. That has no value. Just go buy the pH paper and learn to use it. If you do not have good facts, you cannot make good decisions.

At this point, you have done so many things without really understanding that I would start from scratch. I think it would take a half a day to understand what you have done to your pot, and at this point chemically reversing the damage would take a soil scientist with a PhD to figure out. It is easier to just build a good structured soil from scratch using a formula that people know works.

Go read up about the 5-1-1 mix and ask questions here if you do not understand the instructions. You are going to need:

* redwood bark sized to about 1/8th to 1/4 inch, removing any fine sawdust from the mix

* peat moss

* perlite or pumice

There are lots of Youtube videos as well as articles here on 5-1-1 mix.

The potting mix you bought is not acidic. It is also not a good container soil. 5-1-1 mix will give you an acidic soil if you do not apply the dolomite lime correction. 5-1-1 mix uses structured components and will drain well.

Your fertilizer is the wrong type for an acid-loving plant. Miracle-Gro makes a synthetic fertilizer for containers that is for azaleas, camellias, and rhododendrons, and that should probably work. Someone else here may have better information on fertilizer. I would not fertilize the plant until it is established, but others may have better insight for gardenias.

Your lime is also (probably) the less optimal form. You want "dolomite lime" not pelletized lime (which is probably calcitic lime). You probably will not need the lime, but if you do then use the right form.

First, gardenias are not the easiest plant to grow in the ground. Unless you are a very experienced container gardener, I would not recommend you try these in containers or as houseplants. The success rate is not high, even with those that know what they are doing.

The MG potting soil is okay. Get rid of the rest of the stuff or only use it outside on inground plantings. Commercial potting soil is pH adjusted....you do not need to add lime or anything else. If you are attempting to grow acid loving plants in a container, you can acidify their irrigation water to lower pH and then you supply a fertilizer that also addresses their needs.

A organic fertilizer like the one above will not work well in a container. There is a very compelling scientific reason for this that we don't need to go into at the moment but just accept that dry organics don't work. You need to use a fully water soluble or liquid synthetic fertilizer. The Miracle Gro blue powders - properly diluted - work fine for this and they make one for acid lovers if you need that. But read the potting soil label....it already contains a slow release fertilizer that works for 6 months. You should not need to use any additional fertilizers during this period!!

ETA: westes' advice is good. But that is a far more complicated approach than I think you can handle at this point in your gardening career :-)) The Miracle Gro soil will work perfectly well as long as you closely monitor the watering. It is not a great potting soil but many container gardeners do use it with success. Just stop throwing a bunch of other stuff into the mix or at the plants without understanding precisely what you are doing!!

@gardengal48 The problem is he took the potting soil and applied already the wrong fertilizer and dolomite lime. God knows what quantities he put in. Now he does not even know if the pH is 6 or 8. So even if he follows your advice, he should start from scratch. Repairing what he has already done to the soil is probably not a good use of anyone's time at this point.

At a minimum, he could spend $15 and get some pH paper that would let him measure pH reliably. If he has a pH that is out of the target range, then he could come here with the numbers and ask for advice on adjusting it.

i think you loved them to death.. heaping stress.. upon stress.. upon stress ...

next time.. one stress at a time ... bring them home.. let them relax ... then repot them.. then give them some time to recover.. then fert them ... give them time ... then soil amend .... etc ...

things just dont happen all that fast with trees and shrubs ... if the repotting was the initial stress.. and that stress was high.. then by the time it showed that stress ... you were on the third stress ... and soon after.. third remedy ...

try to be more patient.. if and when you try again ...

ken

Well, the gardenias are toast anyway :-) So yes, those get tossed. And unless the OP develops some significant skills overnight, he/she should avoid growing gardenias.

You can't repair what's already happened, which is why I suggested getting rid of all the ferts and other additions and starting over with just the potting soil. Don't try to alter it at all.

Westes: you said "* redwood bark sized to about 1/8th to 1/4 inch, removing any fine sawdust from the mix" for the 511 mix. But Al's original 511 mix calls for bark from dust to 3/8 inch. 1/8 to 1/4 is for the gritty mix.

Too much attention is paid to Ph of 511. It is a bit acidic to start with that can be brought closer to neutral and that is about it. Ina season or two even 511 without lime will come close to neutral. I have azaleas and rhododendrons in pots with standard 511 with lime and it does pretty well.

I agree with the above. The pH of container soil is not all that critical, even for acid loving plants. The need for frequent fertilization - and with a fert for acid lovers if necessary - will take care of any nutrient requirements. I'd be more concerned about the pH of the irrigation water. That can have a much bigger impact on the plants than does the soil mix.

Recommendations on which of these liquid fertilizers to use?

@gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) @westes Zone 9b California SF Bay @tropicofcancer (6b SW-PA)

"Recommended actions on which of these liquid fertilizers to use?"

What liquid fertilizers? You didn't list any.

@tropicofcancer thanks for the correction on 5-1-1 bark sizing. I guess we both know he was going to include the fines anyway, so the revised formula is a good thing for his case.

@gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) i was asking for a recommendation....everyone is going on about the ph of the water but no one is suggesting what to use

If you have alkaline tap water, you can acidify it by adding table vinegar - 2 tablespoons to a gallon of water.

Any any liquid fertilizer can work although I prefer those that offer a full range of both macro and micronutrients. Dyna Gro 9-3-6 (Foliage Pro) is very popular but the Miracle Gro blue powders work very well also. And they have one for acid loving plants as well.