Will this break off??

I am getting ready to try and move 2 of my plumeira's inside the GH for winter. This one is Aztec Gold. It has bloomed once early this year and now has a new inflo. I hate to let it go dormant now in the garage.

When I moved the plant next to it I see that this limb has grown way off to the side. I am afraid it is going to break off. Should I add a stake to it, or could I use that stretchy plant tie stuff and tie it up to the other branch?

I apprecieate any advice, I am still very new to this.

Nautical

ps. I will post 3 pics.

Another view.

Last one.

Hi Skip,

So far so good. It should be okay, but for symmetry of the plant, could be at some point you may want to trim that branch and induce additional branching. Since it is going to bloom soon, wait until it's done blooming, and decide whether you want to trim or let it be. You can always trim in the spring as well. Be sure when you trim, to trim into the brown growth, the green growth is too soft and most likely the stick won't make it if it's too green.

I would definitely prune it, but I would wait until early summer. You could cut it all the way back to the main trunk or cut it where it starts to bend. You won't have any trouble rooting hard wood or green wood once the weather is warm. Rooting cuttings in winter is tough though. If you want to cut it now and root it, then I highly recommend a heating pad for bottom heat and supplemental light. For now, you can bring it inside when the nights start to dip down into the 40's and put it next to a sunny window, and it should continue to bloom for you inside.

Thanks for the help, I will wait until next summer to cut it. Should I cut at A,B,
or C? Will it make a new branch where I cut it? I assume I should root the part I cut off just as I did the original cutting when I started.

I have it in GH now and will leave it there until summer unless it gets to big. Getting really crowded in there. :) I am sure I am not the only one with that problem!

Nautical

Just looked at the picture I posted, maybe between B & C?

Nautical, I didn't know you had a greenhouse. I thought you had said that you would be letting it go dormant in your garage. You should be able to root a cutting fairly easily in a warm greenhouse, especially if you have it on a heating pad. You can still wait for warm weather, if you like, as that is the ideal time.

You always want to leave two or three nodes on the piece that you want to leave so that it can grow new branches. The branches will come in below the cut that you make from a node. I would cut at the red lines that I made if it were mine, and I would root the cuttings for new trees. If you cut at the red lines, you will have two cuttings to root, but you could cut the long one to make it three cuttings (red lines and blue line) -- two tip cuttings and one center cut. The center cut, however, should be at least six inches long, or I wouldn't bother cutting it. You can straighten a bent cutting easily using a bamboo stake and green stretchy plastic ties. You can straighten it as it is rooting or after it has rooted.

This message was edited Oct 10, 2007 10:16 PM

Clare, Thank you so much for the detailed info. I will cut at the red lines as you have indicated.

Sorry about the confusion. I had originally planned on letting the plants go dormant in the garage over winter as they had just gotten too big for the GH. But then I noticed two of them had new inflos starting. One has never bloomed so I decided to squeeze them in the GH no matter what. This is my first GH, I built it in April of this year, so this will be my first winter. Already way to small. :-(

I just did not realize the plant had become so lopsided. I think I will go ahead and cut it now. I do have a heating mat, so I will root the cuttings as I did these, and keep them on the mat. I plan on keeping my GH at 60-65 min night time temps if that will keep them growing.

I have been afraid to try and straighten them as I thought they would break. Should I have been pulling them up during the summer while they were growing to prevent this?

Thanks again for all the help.

Nautical

Sure, Nautical. That greenhouse will be a nice cozy place for your plant to bloom this winter. If you can put your cuttings on your heat mat in your greenhouse, then they should root fairly quickly for you. I take it that the inflo's are on the other branches that you are not cutting. I wouldn't cut a branch with an inflo.

Aztec Gold can be a floppy grower, and it is hard to straighten branches while they are on the tree horizontally, but it is easy to straighten them while they are vertical. I'm not sure you can prevent this leggy, floppy growth except to prune it. I'm not sure why some Aztec Golds do this, but it might have something to do with light.

After you insert your cutting in the pot, insert a bamboo stake down the center, against the base bent cutting and tie at the base. The gently straighten the cutting against the stake until you feel tension. You may be able to straighten it all the way and tie it, but if you feel tension, don't force it and tie it tightly there at the top. The following week or so, you can tighten the top tie until the cutting is fully straight. After a few weeks, the stake won't be needed, and the cutting will be straight.

I have cut at the red lines as indicated. This is a picture of the "stub" I left on the original plant.

This is the first cutting. I dipped in rooting hormone and planted in a mix of MG cactus mix and Perlite. I watered it and removed about a third of the leaves.

This is the second cutting. It is really curved, so I think it will take awhile to get straight. I will check every few days to see if I can tighten the plant ties up. I also removed some leaves from this one.

If I have done this wrong and it is not too late to correct my error please advise. It seems like I remember reading somewhere that I was suppose to let the cut end "heal" or callous over before planting. If so, should I pull them back out and rinse them off and let them dry out for a few days?

I put about 4" of the stalk in the potting mix.

Nautical

Edited to add: I have both of the new cuttings on the south side of the GH. I still have lots of leaves on the trees outside, so direct sun is still only about 6 hours/day.

This message was edited Oct 13, 2007 3:55 PM

This is the inflo on the other branch that I did not cut. The plant is "Aztec Gold" I believe.

This is the inflo on the plant labeled "Kauai Rainbow".

Nautical

Hi Skip,

Looks good. I've had the best luck when I let the cutting harden in a shady well-ventilated area for a day or two. I also trim the leaves immediately from the cutting, it will help prevent transplant shock...And the stick can work on putting out roots instead of keeping those leaves green.

Nautical, the stump looks good, but you should let the cuttings heal and callous for about a week before you plant them. Also, remove all the leaves but the top ones. Leaves transpire water so you want them removed right away for the sake of the cutting. Yes, pull them out and remove the leaves and put them somewhere dry and cool for about a week before replanting them. You don't have to rinse them off, but I would redip in rooting hormone powder. Only 2 inches of the stalk should be beneath the soil. Your bent cutting looks well staked, but I think it probably can be straightened a little bit more. You'd be surprise and how well cuttings bend;-) When you plant them, put them either on a heating pad or on the hottest surface that you can find. Ideal rooting soil temperature is 80 degrees or higher. All of my cuttings just went on a heating pad starting today.

Thanks again for all the help.

I pulled them out and pulled all the leaves. I tied them to some stakes so maybe they would straighten some while waiting to be put back in the soil. I set them on a table in the garage.

I did not rinse them off, but did re-dipped them in rooting hormone. I assume I should dip again, just before putting them back in the pot.

I will remember to put them on the heating pad when I plant them.

Nautical

No need to re-dip in rooting hormone;-)