Pruning Gardenias

Question

Hi, I need to prune my gardenia fairly severely to get it back to a reasonable size. If I prune it back to the point that there are no leaves, will this kill or damage the bush. Thank you, Bob

Answer 1

Yes, it could kill it. With these plants, it is best not to take more than 1/3 of the plant per year. Any more than that can kill the bush. You can remove 1/3 this year, then next year take another 1/3 and so on until it is back to a manageable size.