Hi Gil
Feel so bad for you..Mmr Celadine did her best. Perhaps someday you will want to try another one.. Glad the others are ok..good luck.
Karen B

Gill,

I'm curious. How long had it been since the leaves fell and you stopped watering it? My (limited) experience has been that rooted cuttings and seedlings that are only several seasons old can't take real extended dry spells. I am keeping all my plumerias a bit more watered in winter than I used to. I poke down a few inches with my finger into the soil. If it's dry, it's time for a little water. I'm amazed at how fast the soil can dry out -- even on a plant with no leaves. So far all my plants have healthy green tips. Of course all my plants are well-rooted and I would not advise watering unrooted cuttings this much.

Hello Curious Dave! I made a mistake in my post above as I missed a word out...it should have read "hadn't been watered MUCH since the leaves dropped".
In the whole of 2008 season it produced only five or so leaves, and they were not healthy looking at all. Leaves prior to last year were rigid, thick, shiny and bright green, these were smaller, floppier, duller and just didn't look 'right' in my opinion. I seem to think they fell off around late Oct/early Nov of their own accord...as our weather deteriorated around that time.(not that it was ever good this year again). I would say I watered once a month, possibly, and only an eggcup full, certainly never enough to run out of the drainage holes. The 4 younger plants have been in the same room and had the exact same treatment apart from some leaves just went limp and refused to fall off so I cut them off leaving only the petioles which then shrivelled and fell of on their own a few days later. All four are plump and have shiny tips and all have latex.
I'm thinking I may have at first kept it too dry for too long (as it hadn't got leaves)...and it shrivelled...so I watered (and oh so little, honest)...but it was obviously enough to cause the stem below the soil line to rot...coupled with the fact I'd potted it deeply as mentioned above. This was all going on out of sight, but the damage had been done and it then showed itself above the soil by the sunken patch part way up the stem followed by the rot that I found lower down when I tipped it all out so here's my theory on what NOT to do. No leaves+even small amount of water+cold+potted too deep=rot...correct? BUT, if you don't water AT ALL surely the roots will dry out and die anyway? These plumies are real tricky ones to get right.
Regards,
Gill.
PS its snowing like fury here, the whole of the UK has slid to a halt. 1/2 m of snow predicted to arrive in next 24 hours for some parts...yikes!

Oh Gill so sorry to hear about your Celadine. Maybe I can send you a new cutting this spring, how about a Carmen cutting instead? I have lots of those as I trimmed my two big trees, smells good and has even a little pink on the sides beside being white and yellow like Celadine and it grows better in our climate.

Here are a few pics. to cheer you up. I just came home from Caribbean last Tuesday after 16 days. Actually Discovery Channel sent me there I won a trip through Dirty Jobs for earning my money diving in deep s..t. Look at the nice Plumerias some bloomed some didn't well at least I fixed my tan to be ready for European Spring. And you even got snow in The UK can't beleive it's so cold there with you! I had hoped Denmark got covered in snow as I was on vacation but they only got some more rain and some nasty storms that flipped all my palmtrees in the backyard and rearranged the garden furniture too.

Hope these pisc. will warm you up it was hot and very beautifull. The first I'm under a Celadine It could have taken a little trim and I could have brought you a new cutting;0)

Soren

Hi there Soren nice to see you on GW again. Stunning views, plumies...and tan! I did email you a couple of times last Autumn, to both your email addys but got no reply, guess you were busy below water level? LOL! Sadly, seeds didn't materialise on a lot of my plants this year as the seedheads collapsed and rotted. Nothing seemed to mature and ripen due to the lack of sun, but I will be in touch once the weather warms up and things begin to grow again, having then figured out what I can send to you. I have 8 of the seedling plumies growing on and the little Agave Attenuata is making steady progress too. I have decided no more plumies though as I must concentrate my efforts on those I now have...plus all my other exotics...thanks for your thoughts though. Our weather is so unpredictable here, last summer was yet another big disappointment and we are having the coldest and snowiest winter for 18yrs, -5c today and I thought it was supposed to be global WARMING?
Regards, Gill.

Gill...
You have those 'tropical' plumies pretty close to the window (with the white stuff on the other side...). that could spell doomesday if any kind of cold draft is coming from the outside!!!

Keep Warm!!!

~Mary Jane

MJ, thanks for your concern and pointing out the bad practise of keeping plants on chilly windowcills. Even though it was icy outside the sun was shining through the south facing window so I put them there to enjoy it, plus the radiator was on underneath the cill. Luckily there are no draughts from our windows. However, I have to remember to move them at night when we draw the curtains else I'm certain they would freeze to death!
Cheers, Gill.

Greenclaws, thanks for that post mortum report. It was very eye opening, I planted mine the very same way last summer, and even the rooted one I purchased was potted that way. As soon as get out and buy some new and larger pots, they will be repotted.

Your observation makes so much sense, since the bottom of the container usually retains moisture even though the top dries out.

Thank you for sharing.