Hi Angie,

Here's some sites with info on gardenias.

http://www.thegardenhelper.com/gardenia.htm
http://www.nybg.org/plants/plants/gardenia.html
http://www.nybg.org/plants1/factsheets/cultural.html

If I understand you, you can see the roots of one of the plants at the soil surface. That doesn't sound good to me. Check to see if they need to be repotted. You may want to put some soil on top of the exposed roots. Not much, just enough to cover that will stay put when watering.

Newt

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When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If it comes out of the ground easily, it is a valuable plant.