A Plumeria Thread

[barnercora]

SNC.....you said you keep yours in the laundry room in winter. Do you keep them in their pots, you must have a huge laundry room. I have about 13 plummies in their 3 gal. pots and i know they won't fit the laundry room even if i remove all the leaves.

Oh! i wish to see bloom in mine soon. Thanks for the advice.

Cora

[snc]

Yes they stay in the pots, a couple are on the floor and a few go into the mud sink and others on the shelves. A couple may go in the bathroom around the tub this year too if I can arrange the bananas and other plants so wife can still get in the tub. I don't have thirteen plumerias though...that would be tough.

The once a week watering withteh bloom buster really seems to help them push that flower stem out though.

[saltydad]

You just have to get used to the idea that your basement is for plants, not mundane things like laundry, furnaces, etc. Mu cuttings have remained in pots, and they're around 3 feet tall now. I'll probably take the bigger ones out and store them bare root on the floor in the basement. They'll be next to my bags of corms of cannas, elephant ears, bare root bananas, caladiums, philodendrons, etc. The living room, dining room, family room and unused bedrooms are always chock full of potted plants- everything from my patio plus those bananas that I dig up and pot like DC and zebrina, my bougainvilleas, desert roses, clerodendrons, nonhardy cactus and succulents, seemannias (formerly known as gloxinias), palms (butia, chaemerops humilis, and pygmy date palms), brugs, tropical hibiscus (7 varieties currently), orchids (8 varieties currently), tropical pond plants that need to be in water, and others I've forgotten in my delirium.

A greenhouse would be wonderful, but we don't really have the space or the money. We barely have the space for the two of us, and this is a 4 bedroom split level colonial.

[Want Them All]

Can I leave the plumies in pots, inside the house, for them to go dormant? Of course all the leaves will fall off, the indoor temp is usually around 70. Or is it better to leave them in the garage, temp may be around 55-60. I don't plan on taking them out of their pots. Last winter I put them all under grow lights, and they bloomed like crazy. Too much work, so I'm not gonna do that again.

Thanks,

[Bob]

I've left the plumeria in a big pot for years and just let it go dormant not watering it in it's pot. The leaves all fall off but in late February or so I always woke it up with some water and it started slowly growing. This past winter it was so large and the house was full of bananas so I took it out of the pot( it's 6 ft tall) and just left it in the basement , planting it out in May and it had the best year for blooms ever. They're al ot tougher than most people think and can handle just about anything once established.

[penJ.]

Hey guys... i need an advice what to do with my plumeria. She is going to be four years soon (from seed), the problem is that she gained almost 1m of stem and no sign of branching... i was thinking maybe i should cut it in 3-4 parts and root them or something, but idono when is the best time to do that and is it a smart thing to do. Any advice is welcome. Cheears

[palmtree]

Originally Posted by penJ.

Hey guys... i need an advice what to do with my plumeria. She is going to be four years soon (from seed), the problem is that she gained almost 1m of stem and no sign of branching... i was thinking maybe i should cut it in 3-4 parts and root them or something, but idono when is the best time to do that and is it a smart thing to do. Any advice is welcome. Cheears

So is it only 1 meter tall right now? My tallest was about a meter tall when it first flowered. Do you take it outside during the summer, and what are your summers like? For best flowering they should be warm, humid, and sunny. I wouldnt cut it back unless it is absolutely necessary since it will delay potential flowering for at least a year. If you have to cut it, I would wait until it goes outside in the spring.

[penJ.]

Yep, the stem is 1m tall. I put it outside in the spring, position on full sun where it's hot n humid. Summers here are very hot, often over 40deg.C by day and around 25d.C by night. This season leaves grew very big like A4 size paper.
It's not necessary to cut it, i was thinking of doing that bcoz it's not branching. So, i will leave it as it is now, only thing i will do is to repot it so it will develop roots for the season to come... and maybe i will get flower. ^^,

[Clare_CA]

Originally Posted by penJ.

Hey guys... i need an advice what to do with my plumeria. She is going to be four years soon (from seed), the problem is that she gained almost 1m of stem and no sign of branching... i was thinking maybe i should cut it in 3-4 parts and root them or something, but idono when is the best time to do that and is it a smart thing to do. Any advice is welcome. Cheears

Hi PenJ, I experimented with 40 plumeria seedlings about 8 years ago. I had five or so bloom for the first time at three years old, but about half of them bloomed at around five years old. The ones that hadn't bloomed by seven years old were used as root stock.

Seedlings do get quite large before they bloom because they have that nice tap root compared to plumeria trees that were started from rooted cuttings. They also routinely take five years to bloom from seed if you live anywhere other than tropical regions.

Their first attempt at blooming does create branching, but often puts out a "nub" rather than an infloresence. Seedlings can actually do this many times before blooming for the first time. When the seedling does finally bloom, it can look like anything, and it could even be what is considered an inferior bloom that should be destroyed. I finally gave up working with seedlings because they take up too much room and require too much water, fertilizer, and transplanting. They also require lots and lots of patience, and sometimes the bloom turns out to be ugly or not ideal to say the least.

There are hybridizers sowing thousands of plumeria seedlings on acres and acres of land in Thailand, and they choose the best of the best and destroy the rest. This is where the best cultivars come from, and Thailand has the land and the rain and the warm weather to bring plumeria seedlings to flower rather quickly.

I would recommend that anyone waiting for a plumeria seedling to bloom to buy a grafted plumeria with an inflo from Florida Colors Nursery. Luc and Carol have made many trips to Thailand and brought back some beauties to the United States. I've gotten many of my plumerias from them, and then you can be sure to enjoy blooms now while you are waiting a very long time for that seedling to bloom.

Since you and Sanatic1234 and others have seedlings that you are trying to bring to flower, the best thing that you can do is make sure your seedling has full sun outside between to the two frost dates, give the seedling plenty of water and fertilizer on a regular basis, and repot frequently to a bigger pot at least once per season. A 25-gallon pot is appropriate for a seedling that is four years old. If the seedling is kept in a pot that is smaller than this, it will likely be stunted in its growth and not flower as readily. If you keep the seedling growing with grow lights and heat inside a greenhouse for the winter, it is also more likely to flower sooner. Of course, if you live in an area that doesn't freeze, a seedling will do best when planted in the ground.

[snc]

NIce looking plumerias. For rooting I just cut them, let callous over for about a week, dip in rooting hormone and insert in soil about 1 1/2 -2 ". Water, let dry out and repeat. have had 100% success this way.
I also use miracle grow bloom buster to promote flowering. One of mine bloomed and had flowers for 11 months on same flower stalk. Would be interested in trading a cutting or two this spring if you are interested. Would love to have a white one.

Originally Posted by palmtree

Anybody got any tips on rooting plumerias?? When I got this variegated plumeria it was a rooted plant, but a poorly rooted one and it rotted on the bottom. So I cut the stem above the rot and placed it in some soil. Its growing some small leaves, but I dont think its rooted yet. Its been maybe 2 months now and I do occasionally water it (its been extremely hot and there has been very little rain until recently).

[Clare_CA]

Here's an article that I wrote a few years ago, which talks about the rooting process and about fertilizer: Creating A Plumeria Collection

It actually takes three months for a root ball to form. If you have the start of leaves coming in, then you more than likely have the start of roots coming in. I would water when the soil looks dry and keep on a warm surface.

Also, in the winter, growth slows down dramatically and even comes to a stop (dormancy) if not given warm conditions and supplemental light. You can give your one that is rooting a bright window with extra light in the form of a desk lamp inside your house to help the rooting process continue. I wouldn't recommend anyone try rooting cuttings in the winter, however, unless you have a heating mat and a greenhouse. It is tough to root cuttings this time of year otherwise.

[saltydad]

As mentioned in prior posts, I leave my plumeria in the basement over the winter. Some are in pots still; the ones that were planted in the ground are bare root. I never have had any growth over the winter as they go dormant. In the very early spring they start to show red on the growing tip and wake up. This winter, however, the potted plumies are still growing- putting out new leaves and even showing inflorescences! No water, light from one high window only. Weird.

[Abnshrek]

I have my plumeria out and 2 of 3 have blooms developing.. Today I will get some of Richards Plumeria Fert, so we'll see how well that works versus just using MiracleGrow Bloom Buster.. :^)

[2woodensticks]

i only lost two grafted tips over winter..even my seedlings from last year came out ok..it did not get realy cold here,i still like to let them rest..both of my pods are now open,three years to see if my cross came out..aztec gold x key west cranberry..on aztec this year 18 out of 22 tips showing flower buds{this one in inground and about 10 yeas old}most of my other are in pots..am trying a few of my seedlings in really small pots,trying a bonsai project..you never know right..just wait for the smell of the plumies to fill the air..aztec gold smells like angles should smell..ok now i am rambling

[Abnshrek]

I think I have a flower developing on one of mine.. will take pic when it gets bigger.. :^)

[Abnshrek]

Flower head that's just developing..

One that's getting close to bloom.. :^)

[Abnshrek]

Making headway compared to the pic in older post.. Fixing to open shortly.. :^)

[Abnshrek]

Triple growth points all the way around.. Flower head is developing.. The one from pic below is fixing to open.. :^)

[sunfish]

Originally Posted by Abnshrek

Triple growth points all the way around.. Flower head is developing.. The one from pic below is fixing to open.. :^)

Wow

[Abnshrek]

Originally Posted by sunfish

Wow

Wow indeed.. :^)