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importing plumeria

17 years ago

I have booked a holiday in Madeira for Jan.2007 and understand they have wonderful gardens.Has anyone any experience of buying plumeria from there as I am able to import to the U.K.from there.I am totally jealous of all your available suppliers as they are very limited here in the U.K.The only very mature plumeria I have ever seen is at Kew Gardens.

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Comments (11)

£opaka
17 years ago
You might want to ask them..
http://www.madeira-island.com/interactive/forums/index.php
greenwitch
17 years ago
You need to check with the agricultural office of the country into which you wish to import them. For example in the USA, there are lists of certain plants that are required to be quarantined, some countries are barred from any plant imports, etc. The US Ag.Dept. requires the importer to apply for an import permit, etc. How it works in the UK you will have to find out before your trip. Good luck.
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I received an APHIS notice several years ago for just 2 cuttings. I doubt the regulations have loosened over the years with new pests and diseases looming. But enforment is another thing. Your location relative to the port of entry can be a benefit with or without the permit as certain inspection stations seem to be less strict than others. If it goes through L.A. then its more than likely to be written up for Phomopsis and destroyed (even if they were dipped and included a Phyto). You will be rolling the dice if you forgo the permits but its known that the inspection stations on the East and Gulf Coast let things slide too easily. The 12 cuttings is not something I can find at APHIS website, but there is something about a small number of seeds not requiring a permit. This post was edited by musaboru on Thu, Apr 24, 14 at 13:42
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Hey Love F., I have had bad experiences where the healthy plumeria plant or cutting I bought bloomed and proved to be something other than what I had purchased All three of these sellers were US sellers. One of the seller was in Hawaii and I can not mention her name here on G Web or her the business name she sold her plumies under as both her names are banned here (If you post her name or business name you get a warning that basically says that if you mention her names again you will be banned from G Web) but I guess the initials are ok TN. This sell and I had a good relationship and I trusted her and bought a ton of cuttings and plants from her over a 4 yr period I guess because she thought that we had a good relationship she could send me bogus plants and get away with it saying that it was a mistake... Once or twice is a mistake but many in a short consecutive period of time seems intentional. I paid 80.00 for a 11"cutting of Bill Morange that ended up being Daisy Wilcox, a Kaulanani that bloomed common yellow, and supposedly a special red plumeria that I paid 100.00 for a 12" 2 tipped cutting for 100.00 that ended up being Kimo, and there were several more that ended up being bogus also. The other seller was here in So Cal MG is the initials to her nursery. I spent about 4700.00 worth of plants from this seller, this was her wholesale pricing and she had a minimal dollar value you had to purchase. In this case I think since the seller was very, very old that the tags on the plants were mixed up by accident. I had bought a Nebels Rainbow that ended up being Nebels gold, a Hawaiian flag that was some kind of White plumeria. There was also an Ebay seller that everyone thought was legit in 2003 that was selling rare Thai Varities back in the day that were bogus. This seller was selling cuttings that were labled Thai Rainbow Peacock, nagchampa, and many other exotic named ones that ended up being kauka Wilder, Samoan fluff, and some other type of white plumies that kind of looked like Moonlight. This seller said that the person who shipped him the cuttings from Thailand ripped him off and that he didnt know that the plumies were fake. When everyone asked this seller who his source was he would not tell anyone who it was. If someone ripped you off wouldnt you want to out him and blast his name every where. I got ripped off for about 900.00, but unfortunately there were a lot of others that got ripped off also. Basically my point is that sometimes you get legit plants sometimes weather by mistake or fraud you end up with bogus plants. Best rule of thumb is buy from reputable sellers that stand behind their product and will replace or refund purchases that are either damaged, diseased or bogus. The other way to prevent mistakes with identity is to buy plants that are in bloom, usually you will have to go to the source directly to find blooming plants(in some cases if it is mail order you can call and ask the seller to send a blooming plant.) Personally other than those 3 examples out of literally almost 1000 plants and cuttings that I have bought over the years those are the only bad experiences I have had.
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Rick-The reality is that Miracle Gro is like crack for plants. It is designed to give rapid instant growth but at the expense of your long term soil health. MG uses ammonium phosphate which is toxic to the microbial health of soil. These salts do not leech out well, they acidify to a level that soil organism do not tolerate, and your soil health over time declines. Ammonium phosphate also inhibits the release of potassium which is important in plumerias as it strengthens the plants for winter cold and to fight off rot and diseases. The muriate of potash leaves excess chlorine and it has questionable levels of zinc and copper which are also toxic to microbial life. No one says you cannot use MG, but when growing plants that grow for decades, healthy balanced soil is most important for long term plant health. If you google MG you can find plenty of articles that explain this in greater detail. As far as soil goes, you can grow plumerias in pure clay, but most will eventually rot. In zone 10 in florida, you have a fraction of the dangers that the rest of the nation has in growing these plants. Just like in Hawaii, you can just plant in the volcanic soil and plants grow. For the rest of us, many experiments go on to find the correct match of ingredients that hold just the right amounts of moisture and dries quickly to avoid root rot. A mix that will not get too wet or too cold is what growers strive to find. Even in zone 10 Fl a well designed soil will produce a better plant in the long run both in size and in health. Bill
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Another thing to consider---young rooted plants oftentimes have very delicate roots, and, even though they literally are coming out of the bottom of the pot. When the seller goes to clean the soil from the roots for shipping, many are lost. After a year or so the roots get really tough, but the "same year" cuttings are usually not this way. I find it no problem, really. I import plumerias from Australia and can tell you their definition of "rooted" on plants they send me means they have small nubs, or, maybe if you're lucky, more than this. The term they use is "struck" cuttings--have produced their first roots. I find that, if the plant has gone this far, it typically performs perfectly fine since it is in fact no longer just a cutting but has formed te structures it needs to survive on its own in soil. That being said, when I send customers plants, I am not comnfortable sending them plants with nubs only because US customers don't understand this and it becomes more of a headache trying to explain this to worried people than it's worth. I sometimes sell same year rooted cuttings and indicate they will have a small root system. This means typically at least a minimum of 2-5 inches in length remaining after cleaning away the soil. I also indicate when selling such plants that they are young rooted cuttings. As long as you buy them in the Spring and Summer, there really shouldn't be any problems as long as they are not overwatered or overfertilized; planted in a well-drained mix. I have seen many of these plants take off and grow like mad within a couple of weeks of planting. But, that also does depend on the time of year. To add a note on time of year: I would not recommend buying plumerias after September unless you live in a place that has warm temps right through Christmas (or better: all year), or, you have a proper greenhouse facility. Plumeria in their first year after arriving at your place late in the year can often succumb to what I call The Dreaded Winter Rot while in Winter Storage. There have been many speculations as to what causes this, but honestly, I have seen it on plants that shouldn't have gotten it otherwise if you listen to the supposed causes. ALL were young plants that hadn't been with me for over a year. I think the slowing down of the growth due to the late season is part of the problem combined with stress setting in from it being cleaned and shipped to you. This allows microorganisms the plant would normally fend off to take hold. It is a sinking feeling to find that plumeria you spent $$ on is a stick of mush when you go to get it to set out in the Spring.I am not saying all plants bought late will rot, but they are the primary ones that will have this problem. Occasionally the bigger ones get it, but this is much more rare. During dormancy ans winter storage it is crucial you do not water (unless excessive shrivelling is noted-- then give a small drink only)--especially the young ones. My plumerias go into the greenhouse around Christmas and stay there until early March because Jan and Feb are our cold months here. You can stack pots on onto the other and in between since there are no leaves; uproot in-ground plants and simply store them standing up with no soil or water (crazy, huh?). Some people in colder places put loose newspaper around the roots. I don't bother. The last two years I filled up my large greenhouse with them and they sat in there with no water until I brought them out again. The bare rooted ones were planted in the ground once again and have grown this year at least tweo feet already. Didn't mean to get off on winter sotrage but I felt it was appropriate as we were discussing plants with small roots/young plants. This is pretty important stuff to know concerning their care. ;-) Brad
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felixcat
Original Author
17 years ago
Thank you for your replies.I don't think I need any import permit to the u.k. from the E.U. so I should be alright,but I do know it is contrary to import laws here to import without permits from anywhere else.I will look at the Madeira site for more information.
This forum is so helpful to us beginners and indeed I would think experienced plumeria growers are always learning from each other. Many thanks again.
£opaka
17 years ago
You may also try asking folks in the www.mauiplumeriagardens.com forum as most of the sellers on ebay hang out there..
jindegales
17 years ago
Hi there. I live here on Madeira island and i help a lady who works at a flower shop. She sells a lot of plumeria plants to tourists and they have no problem to bring the plant home with soil (As far as i know)... so if you want a plumeria, you can buy one and then ship it, no problem.
Have a nice holliday =)
felixcat
Original Author
17 years ago
Hello Jindegales. Thank you very much for your information. I do hope I can bring one back,it would be a lovely momento of your island. I'm looking forward to seeing it for the first time,I might even see you in the flower shop!
Hazel.
jindegales
17 years ago
Hazel, if you want i can plant one for you now and by the time you come here, i can give it to you, so you dont have to buy it, because they can trick you. Be very cautious when buying plants from sellers. They are very naughty hehe. But first say in what zone do you live, so i can give you all the instructions in order you can succeed well. Plumerias grows and flowers on pots very well. Mines are potted and flower for me. They have about 1 m long, so you can have those deliciously peach (to me it smells like peach) fragrant blossoms.
Forgive me my bad english.
Jin
felixcat
Original Author
17 years ago
Hello Jin, How very thoughtful of you. I am in zone 6-7 here in the U.K. so I know I can't grow them in the ground. I am going to the Canico area of Madeira from January 15th. I was hoping to visit the Boa Vista Orchids flowers because I believe they sell plumerias there. Is that where you work?
Hazel.
jindegales
17 years ago
Well, no i do not work there. In fact i volunteered to help a lady in a store that she has on funchal. But now university will begin tomorow and i can't help her till next hollidays. If you want to see orchids, it is better to visit Madeira's Orchid garden ( www.madeiraorchid.com ). I was there yesterday. I love to spend there a lot of time just to admire those lovely plants. Here they sell plumeria almost everywhere. When you buy a plant, please do not pick it from the ground holding the plant. Always pick the pot instead (this is a common error among tourists). And check up the rootsystem (usually sellers have them in transparent pots). Choose a plant for the roots, not for the leaves, cause by the time you come here (January) they will almost have no leaves (they are deciduous even here lol). Keep in ming that these plants do not tolerate frost, so take them inside before frosts arrive. In spring, take them outside. Be cautious when watering. The soil must be ALMOST dry before any watering action. In winter just water sparingly.
i this helps.
Kind regards
Jindegales
felixcat
Original Author
17 years ago
Hello Jindegales,
How super to see such lovely flowers. I grow orchids myself here in the U.K. but like the plumerias they have to be inside except for the cymbidiums which spend summer outside and are brought back inside for winter. The cooler nights to daytime temperature initiates the flower spikes. Thank you for all your information.
Kind regards.
Hazel.
jindegales
17 years ago
Nice. I love orchids too. But they are always expensive, even the common ones... But their price do not scare me. Cause when i tend for something i must have it if you know what i mean hehe =)

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