We had some bad wind last night and broke a big limb off one of my Plumies. Should I try to root the entire thing or would it be better to cut into pieces? There are two branches plus a big bloom branch.The broken piece is about 3 feet long.
I have a greenhouse and heat mats if that will help.
The part of the trunk where the limb broke off is now very unbalanced. Should I leave it until next summer or should I go ahead and trim off the two remaining branches and try to root them? They are both several feet long and heavy with flower buds and leaves.
This is where the limb broke off. I tied it close to the stake to try to support the rest of the branches.
I so appreciate your help
Betty
This is how the plumies looked a few days ago before the wind damage.
Hi Betty! I'm so sorry about your wind damage. Plumies are very resiliant though so I'm sure your parent plant will be fine. You can cut off the branch at the base which is making the whole branch unbalanced now, and the remaining limb will grow branches from the top for a fuller looking tree. Or you can cut the whole limb at the base, and chop up the branch into foot-long pieces or longer and root them as cuttings. For the branch that broke off, you can easily root the cutting as one, two, or three pieces. If you chop the branch up into three pieces, the center cut piece will grow new branches at the top where the cut is.
It's really a beautiful looking tree. I would just trim off the part that is now unbalanced and root that one along with the branch that broke off. I forgot to mention, in case you don't know all ready, that all the leaves should be removed and the ends should be healed before you root the cuttings. If you put them in one-gallon containers in potting soil on a heat mat, they should root fairly quickly for you. Do you normally dig yours up every year, or do you leave it in the ground? I can't tell what zone you are in.
Clare, Thank you for the information...I am in Zone 7. I usually dig them by the 15th of October. There are three growing there. I have always potted them and put in the greenhouse, or in the basement where I would just let it go dormant. They are getting so big it is almost a good thing that this happened. (Well maybe not) It is getting harder each year to make space to winter them.
I tried a couple of years ago to root a cutting that I broke off, and had no luck. Since joining D G I have learned so much and think that just maybe I can do it this time.
Wow! That's a gorgeous flower!
If you find that they are getting too big for your needs, you can certainly chop them back a bit and root the cuttings. You are right that it is tough to root cuttings in the fall and winter, but if you keep the soil fairly dry and warm, you should not have any problems. You can root the smaller cuttings in a one-gallon container, but often the bigger cuttings need a two-gallon or three-gallon container. I have heard that the bigger cuttings can actually root faster in some cases. Heat and lots of it is the most important thing for rooting cuttings. Light is second to heat in my opinion.
Here's a picture that belongs to Paula. She stores her's for the winter too.
If I trim off the tree to balance it, it looks like I will have 8 or 9, 12" to 24" cuttings. I have a table in the greenhouse that will be good for letting them root. Plenty of light and heat.
I haven't stripped the leaves off before, when I brought them into the basement, just let them fall off on their own. The one in the greenhouse will usually bloom after I move it in.
A couple of people have requested cuttings from me in the past. I would be glad to send you one. I sure don't need them all.
Betty
Betty, I would strip off all the leaves off of the cuttings except the very teeny tiny ones at the top. The cuttings need to focus energy on rooting, and if the leaves are still attached, energy will be directed to keeping the leaves, and precious water will be escaping from them. It's okay to leave them on and let them fall off naturally when allowing them to go dormant, but when you want them to root, the leaves should come off before this happens. Here's a link: http://www.plumeria101.com/cuttings101.html Check out this link also, which has some good articles including Winter Preparation and Storage and Making and Rooting Plumeria Cuttings: http://botanictreasures.com/psa/PCB.pdf/plumeriacare_bulls.pdf Here's another good link on rooting cuttings: http://www.mauiplumeriagardens.com/about_cuttings.php That is really sweet of you to offer me a cutting. I would love one. I'll send you a d-mail. If you want to experiment a little and want less cuttings, you could make your cuttings about three feet tall and root those for yourself for next summer.
I would love a cuttings or 2 as well.would be gald to send postage
So Sorry, They went quick.
Betty
