Please help me with this! I got a Kentia Palm about two and a half months ago from Home Depot. It is about 6 feet tall and came in a 5 gallon bucket which it is still in. Every since I have had it, all of the smaller outer leaves have been slowly turning brown and drying up. I water it as soon as the soil gets dry, and it is in the middle of a room that has a bunch of windows but it is not in direct sunshine. How much water does it need? (oz's) Does it need any direct sunlight? Because it is so tall, the very top leaves are barely grazed by the air from the heating vent, but that doesn't seem to be significant enough to effect it in this way. All the browning leaves are at the bottom of the plant. The leaves are not browning from the tips, but more so overall just slowly turning brown-green then to completely brown. Attached are a couple of pictures. PLEASE HELP! I got this as a very special birthday present, it is a center piece in my living room, and I love this plant very much and want to have it healthy for a long time! Thank you very much :)

Thank you. Juju!! The ones that are planted in the ground are the ones that I found at the regular box store. They were in containers for years and I finally decided to plant them in the ground and see how they would do. They are small blooms and are fragrant too, but I do have a few trees that I dug up from my mothers house years ago. She never new the true name of them and always called the " Old Fashioned". You seem to know a lot about these beauties, so,I wanted to share a pic I took this morning of my tree from my mother. I have shared cuttings with many on the forum and they are doing well.. I know it's hard to tell and name a particular variety.. Any ideas? The leaves are huge as well and the blooms are about 5-6 inches . I can always take a pic of the leaves too, if that would help.... I usually don't try and ask names because I grow Plumeria and we are so hesitant to name just by a picture. If you have any idea, I would be most appreciative!!! Thanks again!! Laura

"I'm guessing the pot is so large that I've been overwatering the tree and also not flushing it when I water. Is this he reason the leaves are turning brown?" It sounds like the foliage that's in the process of being shed is part of the plant's drought response due to too much water in the soil. Too much water = not enough oxygen to drive the O2 dependent process of water uptake = not enough water getting to distal parts of the plant (leaves - particularly tips and margins) = shedding in response. The yellowing is a result of the lack of chlorophyll that is being salvaged (along with mobile nutrients and other bio compounds) by the plant from leaves being shed. "..... what should the dowel rod look like when it needs to be watered? Should it be completely dry at the bottom of the rod and not pick up any of the dirt?" When the dowel first comes out clean and dry, it's time to water. I'd work toward getting watering under control, then follow the instructions in the thread I left a link to above to turn the plant around. There are some things you can do to help avoid limitations associated with saturated media. You're sure to have other questions, so don't be shy about voicing them. We all want you to have the best growing experience you possibly can. Al

Linda, thank you) I hardly use tap water on those sensitive plants like that, never on my orchids unless I rinse all the roots off with rain water or distilled. I am not sure of your water but in my area my tap water is pretty bad and that combined with fertilizer stinks. You should see the top of my fish tank if I don't clean it for a month or the sides of my clay pots. horrible. Even with using the 5.1.1 mix which I find works better for my gardenia's than any 1.1.1 mix other than the one Al uses to the T. The Granite Grit for me always worked better than substitutes to keep the mix evenly moist from top to botttom. The bigger the particles you use, the more in tune you should be with the drying out process especially at the root zone. I have found that mine required high light especially in winter and a moving fan. Not so much humidity although they do love it. I also treat for spider mites whether I see them or not. Trust me, they are a lot of work to keep inside and happy in or out in a pot, but once they do like your attention, they will thrive. Tropic never dissappoints in advice and I woud do as suggestet. The humidity will help it recover better than without it and giving it more air to prevent disease and less condesation is a help. Val also said it would take time and that is not an understatement. Once the roots are dead, it can take a very long time to recover. As long as you can scratch green on those branches your gardenia should be ok. Are you certain you know how to water in the gritty mix? Because I have over watered many plants and under watered too. At any time you can not afford to let the roots of a gardenia go very dry while the roots start to occupy the fresh mix. I would use a wooden dowel and push it into the root zone and check for moisture. I never trusted my watering in it. Make sure you are keeping the top roots moist before they fill in that pot. As we know it's almost impossible to over water or fertilize in a 1.1.1 mix. If it were my gardenia I would give it a weak solutin of fertilizer with a capful of vinegar every time I water if it's getting that much light and warmth. That would help any of mine to recover faster. Too,as you can tell there is so much involved with growing a gardenia in a pot, that's why many bypass those, and it can be very frustrating along with nerve racking. Almost like ocd ing on it,lol. It's not easy loosing any plant you like. But do what you think is right with the support of all the good people here, sit back and relax, give your tree time and I am sure it will come back. Any more help needed, we are always here)