ouch...i am very sorry to hear of a passing in your plumeria family....i too ,live in the north pole region and think we need a different care system..
good luck with future plummies...

Oh, Im so sorry to hear that!
I mist my plants everyday hopeing that will hold them over
till warm weather, but most of mine are cuttings right now.
Best wishes,
Karen

Hi Mike,
am so sorry to hear of your favorite plumie passing..breaks my heart for you.. hope spring comes soon.
Karen B

Mike, sorry to hear that. We northern growers are sort of 'on our own' to figure all this out. What works for growers in Fla, Tx and Cali won't necessarily work for us. Temps, humidity, growing season, sun angle, storage space issues, dormancy period, potting mix, watering, all come into play.

I have plumerias all over the house and in the garage. All in different environments and I'm trying to determine which are the best.

My garage is sort of half-insulated. I have two electric heaters going during this cold spell. I was barely able to keep the temp to the mid-40s last night (we hit 0ºF outside!), so we'll see how they do. There are flourescents in there and a fan to circulate the air. My largest plants are kept in there, since they don't fit in the house anymore. Largest is about 8 feet. At least the larger the plant, the more robust it is. I have been watering them as the top inch or two of soil dries. Not a lot a of water, but some. Leaves are still hanging on. Hopefully we'll see a warmup over the next few days and my heaters won't have to work so hard. I have a thermometer placed near the floor to check the temp as well. The fan prevents stagnant cold pockets near the floor (roots).

Then I have maybe a dozen smaller plants in the basement under timed flourescents too. These are tending to get mites, so I have to really watch them. I've been forcefully spraying the tips with water, since that's where the mites can do the most damage IMO. It seems to be helping. I'm getting healthy new green growth on some. Lights are on for 15 hours, so plants think it's summer, I guess.

And I have 7 plants in my office. These get some light from two west windows. They are not growing at all, since day lengths are short. About half of them still have leaves, but leaves don't look great. But I figure as long as they have their leaves, they are drawing up moisture from the soil and the tips stay green and healthy. I start to worry a bit when the leaves all drop, and the tip claws turn black. That's when you have to watch them for black tip.

I seem to have better luck with them keeping them all in a state of 'near dormancy' rather than complete dormancy. This also allows you to bring them into growth much quicker in the Spring -- and we know how long that can take!

Don't give up! Keep trying things and report back.

Oh mike- I'm so sorry!
I'm trying to root up some cuttings, and after I read your post (my cuttings are kind of shriveling too) I made sure to water. Looks like I may be joining you in your despair if things don't go well.
Stay warm!

Jeelli, OK , youre up north, but let me give you a little hint that may help with your cuttings (since it's off season). I found this on another site and it works. First, I would take the hardend off cutting(s) and soak them overnite in water and superthrive (might help with the shriveling, as long as theyre not green cuttings). Then, take each cutting, dip it in rooting hormone (I cover it really well) and put it in a plastic baggie (cut in half) and I add a little more RH in the baggie, tie it off with a rubber band and let it sit somewhere warm (inside the house). I've had about 15 cuttings root recently this way. You can SEE the roots and may have to loosen the baggie. It will take much longer this time of year, but it should keep the cutting healthy during the dormant season. If you end up seeing roots, I wouldnt actually plant it until it warms up. Even if you dont see roots, it will keep the cutting ready for spring. Just an interesting tid bit that I find helps with cuttings.

Thanks all....
Would you believe to this day, it is still bothering me to loose that baby. I babied that thing along with all my others, and saw how beautiful it was all summer...Dang I hate winter. Especially this one...
I think Dave and I are going to be new BEST plumeria friends because of the same struggles in our enviroment up here in the north, and the same desire to make it right for our plumies, along with all my other close frineds here struggling to keep theirs alive, no matter where we live and those who are doing a fine job at growing them!
We are all in this together, and we will suceed in keeping our plumies happy and strong despite all the trials,the loss of a few babies, adverse conditions, different enviroments, and all the diverse ways of caring for them.
Thanks to all for all the kindness you show me and in helping me suceed no matter where we are in this world, and yet I will say that I am happy to have you all in my world!!!...:-)

Im sorry your plant went roots up. It's hard to lose them, but you have learned a valuable lesson in the process. I just lost a newly rooted "stick" I got in Hawaii last Feb due to DEHYDRATION !! It was inside, and I didn't take my own advise about light watering. Most likely it got missed when it was time for a tiny drink. I'm not having a problem with any of the other "inside babes" It was hollow all the way down to an inch of the soil. It didn't change colors, and it looked perfectly normal. Wish I could have captured my expression when I gave it a squeeze. I was in total shock, so much so that I had to squeeze it again !! Hollow, the outside "skin" was somehow holding its shape. Poor thing. I'm generally good about the tiny drinks over the winter months. That one had to have gotten "missed" more than 1 time I rationed. :(

One thing that the hobbyist in all states have in common... the need of a quick draining soil. That fact alone will set you ahead come spring with your shorter northern growing season.

Cali

Cali, that's happened to many of us! Once the plants get some size to them -- like over two feet or so, they tend to be less temperamental to waterings it seems to me. So if you can nurse them along for couple seasons, you're usually out of the woods.

Dave, you may have something there about the maturity of the plant. Of the cuttings I brought back from Hawaii, I've lost this pink and an orange. Got em at the Farmer's Market at the Aloha Bowl... they took FOREVER to root, thanks to some advise from Jack I got em rooted in like 2 wks. (I'd been working on them for almost 3 months !!) I've managed to kill every "orange" I've gotten... don't ask me how, but I've managed. I WANT ORANGE !!

Cali

Wow!!
What a place to come to, where everyone here knows your pain, and understands!
Cali, you put into words perfectly what happened to my little one. I still havn't got the heart to throw it out. It is still sitting on my window sill, hollowed out, held up, supported from the outer hard shelled skin for some weird reason. It never got mushy!
I wish it had a chance to grow up. It would of made beautiful flowers! Now I know what to watch for and how to avoid the same mistake again..
Thanks again everyone. Thanks!

Mike this place reminds me of "Cheers" !! Yup where everyone knows your pain. Been there done that sort of forum .. a learning place, I hope it remains like this.
If you pulled your hollow babe out of the soil, you'd see what roots you did have are gone, the inside of the stem gooshy,slimey, had a little odor not pungent but an odor. I dumped my soil from the pot into my flower bed outside, won't be re-using it for plumeria.

And then we start again... lessons learned the hard way, are lessons not soon forgotten. I still have a vivid recollection of the 1st one I lost... I over watered & it rotted. That was 5 years ago, & I'm still learning from the school of hard knocks !! The information is staggering, but it's getting easier. We will never know all there is to know !! Keep working !!

Cali

Aw thanks alot!!!
And as for reminding of you of "Cheers".
I did have a few drinks over that one...Well one...Lol
Thanks for the uplift, and hope in doing well the next time.!!
I still have several doing ok so far...I hope they make it another few months!

Cali...

If I ever have a cutting/plant of any kind die on me---I never re-use the soil; not even out in the garden bed. Too many things can be transferred through that soil...it's a sure way of transferring a 'naked to the eye' bug infestation or fungal disease.

Just a thought to ponder...

~Mary Jane

Thanks Mary Jane good thought to ponder !

Cali

Please, can anyone tell me what kind of a plant should I put on top of my plant grave? lol

Angels Trumpet (brugmansia...)))

Here's a picture of a fitting angels trumpet (Snowbank):

The scent will send you to the moon!!!!

I 'used to' live in zone 5 28 years ago--I will never go back to the bone chilling weather to live!!! My blood has thinned out now...

So sorry about your plumie...I have battling the should I/shouldn't I water--I've lost a couple newly rooted cuttings myself. But the cuttings (from Hawaii) were 'old wrinkled' ones to begin with--to only have the cutting standing their with the outside skin intact--but the insides turn to brown mush w/a unpleasant smell when broke open. :( And I live in Houston-zone 9.

Here's hoping you luck from the brug gods above!!!

~Mary Jane

Mike... it always hurts to lose a Plumeria, with all the attention we give them. Better treat yourself to some more.

Mary Jane... I'm loving that Snow Bank! An angel would be a fitting tribute to a fallen Plumie. Very nice!

Bob