Please forgive me, I don't know a thing about Plumerias. What is inflo? How hard are these to grow? Where can I get seeds/plants? Do I need anything special to grow them (ie. hothouse, special soil, etc.)? I have tried to pick up on some of the info in here but I'm confused. I realize these are tropicals in my area, but I would like to try them out.
Robin
I'm Curious, new to forum
hi robin,
welcome to plumeria nuts anonymous! you'll know what i mean come next spring.
what exactly are you confused about regarding the plumeria information? clare had put together a treasure trove of info - http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/599185/.
inflo is short for inflorescence. it is the stalk that produces the flower buds.
personally, i think plumeria are easy to grow. there are only two things that can make them hard to grow - us and the climate in which we live. perhaps, someone in a similar zone will chime in.
check clare's sticky for places to get seeds and plants. once again, someone might chime in if they have anything available. it's probably cold where you are now and shipping this time of year might be out of the question for cuttings. i think seeds will do better. then again, i don't know what zone 6a is like.
i hope this helps some.
I went back and re-read the sticky, I think I just missed a couple of things the first time.
Our days are running between 50 and 70 and the nights have been getting down to about 35, sometimes warmer. sometimes cooler.
I think I'm a little confused on the temps that it can withstand, (cold) and would I have to cut them back for the winter months when I bring them indoors?
Hi Robyn, yes, these are tropical trees, and you would need to grow them in containers and bring them in for the winter and let them go dormant. Check out the link on overwintering that Dete gave you. Plumerias are hardy to Zone 10. They can survive in Zone 9b under conditions that create a warm microclimate. We had record cold here in Southern California this past winter, and many collectors lost many beautiful trees in Zone 10! Here is a link which shows what cold damage can do: http://www.mauiplumeriagardens.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=10074&hl=damage
Florida Colors Nursery is a wonderful plumeria nursery, but they won't ship this time of year as most reputable plumeria businesses won't due to the cold weather. Spring is the best time to order new trees.
After reading a few more things, I understand a lot more. During this time of year I never order any plants, even if they are hardy to the north pole. You can't trust the weather or the post office.
But thank you both for your help, I don't know if I want to have any plumerias .
whoa clare! talk about carnage. those few days are etched in my memory. it started out as something beautiful - snow in the desert. then ice fog and a day that just wouldn't warm up at all even with the sun shining. then two consecutive mornings of below 30-degree weather. that's what did it for plumies. only two of them were untouched by 20-degree weather. one was a graft from a tree in mesa. unfortunately, the mother tree was hit hard and it's as tall as the house it's next to. i will go take a look at it during thansgiving. i hope that it has recovered.
Robyn, don't be afraid of plumies. I was at first, but wanted to try one so badly I gave it a whirl. I was intimidated at first by everything I read, but after the first year I realized it was really easy. This second summer with them has been fun. There's a thread somewhere that maybe someone will remember that showed a picture of some plumies that someone plants in the ground all summer, then digs them up (easily when they're smaller) at the beginning of winter, shakes off the dirt, them stores them standing up in a shower stall in the garage all winter.......them plants again in the spring and so on! Once I saw that I said "I can do this"!
Last summer I had my first one and she didn't even bloom. Winter came (temps drop to below 50 at night) and I clipped the leaves to about 1"-2" long and put her in a closet in the house and only watered about 1/2 cup-3/4 cup water once a month (3 gal pot). Of course, the remainder pieces of the leaves fell of and I was left with a bare stick thinking for sure I had killed it. Then spring came and when the nighttime temps stayed up I put her outside on the concrete (for more warmth), started watering well so that the water drained and poof - she was back growing leaves and bloomed for me. The rest is history and I now have 2 yellows, 3 pinks and 4 whites! I rooted the pinks and the whites this summer (Clare sent me the whites) by following Clare's Plumerias 101 and it was a snap.
I used to get intimidated since all the pros are really pros and I'm just the one who want to have a few of these to enjoy -- doesn't matter to me the names, etc. So please don't be afraid.
I pay attention to what they say about the soil to use (course I rooted in 1/2 perlite and 1/2 potting soil and I can see the pros rolling their eyes now. LOL), kept them watered well and once they started sprouting leaves I started a little Miracle Gro on them. 2 of the pinks bloomed the first season and I'm sure the whites will next summer.
Now Clare and Dutchlady, don't yell at me for not being more diligent. I just hate to think someone would miss the opportunity of the rewards of growing a plumie by being afraid to "go for it" like I almost was. It was ladies like you that got me started.
Now that I understand more about them I will likely be more diligent in my care, but I'm so glad I took a chance.
Of course, it's totally your choice, but I just wanted to share my experience. You'll decide what's best for you.
Barbara
Yeah, Dete. That was a brutal week for me too. I still have tips that are so deformed and twisted and that are having a hard time growing. They were subjected to just 32 degrees. I had most of mine covered for the two hours that it went down to 28. I put blankets and a tarp over them and put a space heater underneath for a couple of freezing nights. It is hard to protect 500 or so. I know a lot of collectors had it far worse than I did, and big trees were lost. Larry and Dewaine and Jack lost big trees at 27 that rotted down to the roots. Let's hope this winter is more mild.
Barbara, it sounds like you did good, and I would never scold you. I don't ever want to intimidate you or anyone, and I'm certainly not a professional grower, but I thank you for the compliment. I think it is just good to be armed with knowledge, and growing plumerias in the colder zones can be very challenging. These are trees, after all, that get to be 30 feet tall eventually in ideal conditions.
That thread that you mentioned is Paula's thread, and she's the vice president of the Plumeria Society of America, and believe me, she has help digging up and hauling in her collection to store in her garage. That thread is located in the FAQ's Sticky Thread, but here is her web site, which has the pictures of her plumie storage in her garage: http://www.plumerialady.net/dyncat.cfm?catid=3186 You are right though that plumerias can be fairly easy to manage when they are started from cuttings for the first couple of years until they start demanding bigger and bigger containers. Of course, that can be controlled too with root pruning and yearly top pruning. As I see it, the dwarves are really the most manageable for people not wanting to raise a tree and do yearly repotting, and more and more dwarves will be coming out in the future.
Clare, thanks for reposting Paula's website with the pictures. I've now bookmarked it so I won't miss it again. It's always fun to go back and look at and I'm sure others will see it this time.
Barbara
Sure;-) It is a very helpful demonstration of what is necessary to do in climates which are not tropical or subtropical. It takes tremendous work, and my hat is off to people who do it every year. That's dedication in my book. They do it for the love of plumeria.
I live in missouri and have had a terrible time trying to grow a plumeria, but a guy who just lives west of me who grows lots of tropicals has a giant one he over winters in his basement. The only time mine even acted like it wanted to grow was when it was on my concrete driveway in a black pot and it was 100 degrees, out popped a leaf. Now I have moved it inside to my solar room and the leaf has fallen off...LOL. Having said all of that mine had rotted so many times all I had left is just a nub. I purchased mine at the garden show in KC in March not knowing it needs warm temps. My understanding if you use a heat mat it will do better. I am not giving up tho! They are beautiful and worth the effort but I would wait until summer.
Joyce
that's the spirit joyce!
Always want what you can't have...LOL. Tropicals in a zone that has summers in 100's+ and winters that can be -10 degrees I don't see a problem...LOL
Joyce
I guess I have alot to think about, at least it's a few months til spring. Maybe then I will take the next step, unless I decide to go with starting seeds. Ya never know!
Besides by then I may not have to worry about it. I won't have a house to live in. The family will kick me if I get more plants.
Thanks for all you help.
Robin
just get one robin. stick with an easy grower for a year and something that blooms reliably. it's much easier to sneak one in the house. clare would surely get booted out of the house if she tried to bring her armada inside. LOL
I went back to sticky and tried to find which plummie is the easiest and I really didn't find one. Can you recommend one?
my first plumie was California Sally. and it is putting out its first inflo right now. i have had it for 2 yrs. now i have brad's white from Clare, and a seedling from ardesia
Robyn, I have found that most plumeria are very easy to grow as long as you start out with a well rooted cutting or grafted plant, in well draining soil. Just let it grow, and don't over do it. Most plants that die, do so from too much attention as compared to not enough. So find a flower or type you like and buy one that is already rooted or grafted.
Davie
i would try a grafted abigail from florida colors nursery. i bought one for a friend of mine 4+ years ago. her and her husband lived at the observatory at an altitude of 7000'. abigail flowered consistently every summer. during the winter she had to bring abigail inside because of the cold winter. she was only out a short time during the summer but boy did she put on a show. they now live in northern arizona and get colder weather. abigail will be inside until probably may. they sit her by a window. the nice thing is that she is a dwarf and still is no taller than my friend. i highly recommend abigail.
That sounds like the one I should try. I am starting to get excited about them. I think a dwarf would be my best bet, since it will be me carrying her in and out. Thanks so much for the help everyone.
robin,
here is a pic of abigail that i took 9/30/06 while visiting my friends in the white mtns. she was already coming in at night because of the cold. they would push her back outside during the day. their summertime lows are on the cool side but days can be close to toasty. it was either 2002 or 2003 that i bought abigail for my friend. she was just a single-tip grafted plumie when i gave her to my friend. she bloomed that same year! i think that it was 2002. you can see that she was a nice size after four years.
she is nice! I think I could handle that one. I bet they smell wonderful.
sweet!