mine love muracid! i also use a bloom boost. i live in s. florida 10b. its hot and humid but they still require lots of attention even down here. high sun, lots of well drained water, muracid, cypress mulch, bloom boost, and ortho systemic insect killer. i must admit i stopped using insecticides a long time ago, but the gardenia is the one plant i still use a pesticide on. but... becuase its systemic it is only applied to the roots. so it doesnt hurt the lady bugs! that ortho systemic does wonders at keeping the scale/bugs off the gardenias.