Well heck, I am in zone 9 (Tampa area) also and we have not had rain for weeks it seems. Where about are you Karen? Hang in there, plummies are tough little critters. Baby them like an ol' mother hen and I bet they will be just fine. By what they say on this forum and on other plummie sites, it's about time for them to loose all those glorious leaves anyway.
Lauri

Hi Karen,
I can feel your pain. Fortunately, yesterday I did't make it to the meeting that Bill posted on this board. I spent the day moved 10 new cuttings that I started with water rooting technique into the house.

My babies have been warm and safe from the rain yesterday and last night. According to a forcast, today is going to be better, just partly cloudy with only 10% chance of rain, not too bad.
I hope yours will get better when each of them has a little bit of sun. Boom

Hi Karen B,

I'm so sorry to hear about your babies! Thought I would share this but I don't know if it actually helps or not, maybe someone will come along with more experience and let us know. When my leaves get to damaged from sunburn or anything else that might go wrong I clip them off. I feel the plant is expending valuable energy on leaves that aren't going to make it. I feel that when I clip them the plant can then expend its energy making new leaves and hopefully inflos! I hope someone will come along soon and add their opinion.

Best wishes,
Jerri

Hi,
I live in the east part of the San Fernando Valley, in the city of No. Hollywood. We haven't had any rain either, very dry conditions. So wierd on the hail, we were on the news, only city that got the freak hail storm! ha This happened last Feb. too, hailed big rocks for about an hour, our entire area was pure white, roofs, 3 to 4" thick on the ground, yep made the news again. We don't have snow here, can hit the 30's, but is rare. rarely have hail either, so this one shocked me.

I lost a lot of flowers off the plumies, dern it, didn't hurt them, but sure messed up the look of the leaves, I have one plant Daisy Wilcox, that the slight touch or wet or heat, makes the sap come out, the hail activated that too. When it was hailing so hard hollered at my husband..Its hailing on my plumies, like he could do anything about it..went on for about 15 minutes.

Jerri, I was so concerned to get the leaves wet then sun hitting, would go out and wipe them off afraid of burn, now see when I had the burning was 105 out..can see now isn't hurting them...yes, rain is rare here.
Karen B.

Hi Boom,
sorry you missed the meeting, can understand you taking care of your babies, good luck on the water..yes, first thing I grabbed and moved my cuttings out of the rain. It rained some this morning, its ok..now is almost 90 out..wierd weather.

I did check the leaves are very wrinkled, apparently stress..no one like to be bombed with hail.. lol

Karen B

Karen,

Today, it's nice and sunny. Thanks God! I started my 2nd. water rooting with 3 new cuttings that arrived on Sat. which are Tillie, Pinwheel Rainbow, and Yellow Intense #5 indoor this time. Kauka Wilder cutting and 70 mixed variety seeds from Thailand are supposed to come this week. We don't have a greenhouse yet but our homeschool room has a bright sun shine all day long.
Boom

Hi Boom,
so your first water cutting made it ok? I hear that Kauka wilder is a really good one.. the others sound good too. Now are you going to root all of them in water? then plant?

seeds.. I tried them once but think left them in the water too long. Happy for you, neat getting them from Thailand. Do they have different varities?
Karen B

Karen, my first water cutting make it ok. They are healthy no sign of rotting yet. I gave them a drink once a week with B-1 and Super Thrive. Each mid cuttings develops tinies little claws about 2 claws a branch. Hope they all make it through spring next year. I put them out on the balcony today so they would get full sun.

I got Jiffy-7 heated greenhouse 72 over the weekend for the seeds that will come. The greenhouse kit came with a heated mat, trays, and 100% Canadian Spagham Peat Moss. I wonderif anyone had experience with this kit. The seeds have different varieties as described by seller:

" Seeds from Thai Collector such as Aussie pink, Siam red, pinwheel rainbow hybrid, slaughter pink, lady fruit, mamung benjapan, som kalasin,mung numgnen,coral cream, visanu gold . salmon brown ,laing sirimongkol , poungyok ,muang Jack,muang numngen etc. These seeds are mixed together in one bag."

Oh boy! I will have fun playing mystery game.
Boom

Karen, a co-worker told me today he was hit by a few hailstones on his drive to work. All of my stuff is ok. I hope all your plants recover.

Hi Musarojo,
yes, its strange, was warm..thought it had to be cold to make hail, guess not. They knocked off a lot of flowers, for that I am sad, but plants are ok..some wrinkled leaves ha ..but ok. odd weather now, cool, then hot..cloudy..I mostly was concerned that my inflo on playful would be damaged that one is in the ground. My only one that is putting out a large one.. I want that inflo to make it, want to watch it grow and bloom!!!!.. I was going to run out and bring in plants on the patio..but just stood there..Oh my gosh..duh. ha.
Karen B.

Hi Boom.
ok..now question. I have one old cutting, plastic pink, just will not do anything, is about a 5 month cutting. I took it out of the pearlite, doing nothing, cut off the bottom and put it in water with superthrive. gonna try this. leave it in the water until ? then plant?
So happy yours are doing so good, no rot is allowed!.
Karen B.

Karen, it was heart breaking to imagine what was going on in your yard. I always think everything happens for a reason. For example, last week I was outbided on eBay for the 50 seeds mixed from Thailand in the last second before the bid ended . I was so so sad. I emailed the seller to see if she had more to sell. She put the same items up again with Buy It Now option on the maximum price that I was willing to pay. She also generously threw in 20 more seeds for me.

I hope you succesfully root your plastic pink. You might get nubs within a week or 2 if the cutting is mature enough or it could take longer if you have a young cutting. Don't forget to put it in the bright warm sunlight at day time and bring it in at night time. We still have warm weather and sunny through the week. Good luck to you, plastic pink and the plants, Boom

Hi Boom,
wellllll My plastic pink in the superthrive water in 4 days started to rot on one side..checked it daily. So took it out, cut off the rot..basically is sitting on the table giving up on it, is a 5 months old cutting, that dumb. , just will not root was hoping for this one to work. Its a dark pink red, guess not the way for it to grow. That plant is impossible, out of many months tries on cuttings, only one made it. I also have a celidine cutting that will not produce either..keep hoping. Cut it back a couple months ago, just sitting there in pearlite and cactus mix.

My neighbor will be cutting her tree again, I will say no to the plastic pink cuttings.
Karen B.

Karen,
I'm so sorry about your plastic pink cutting but I'm so glad that you don't give up. I wonder if seasons have a big impact for us who are trying to root the babies. Mine have stood in the water with B-1 and have shown a little wrinkle. Today isn't so sunny up here and last night was 50F which I need to put N-Sulate sheets over the new members to seal them from the cold air and wet . I think I will not try to root them anymore this year.
Boom

Hi Boom,
couple days the cutting sat on my table, on my patio where I have my coffee, and watch my plumies grow..ha I finally dipped the cutting in b-1 and root tone and planted it again...always hope, my 9" cutting may surprise me and grow 4 feet tall over night!!! ha ha. I read somewhere that the reds and dark pinks were harder to root. This one is a vibrant pinky red plant is definatly worth trying to get it to grow. my neighbor has a huge tree, taller than her house. They are in massive bloom all over the tree, spectaculor..

You may be right on the weather, nice in the 70's today, then cooling down in the evening, had to put on socks, ha , then back up in temps. Maybe the hotter time that water method would work for me..worth a try next spring, thanks.

sounds like your temps are starting to go odd too, zone 10. Glad you were able to keep the others warm too, yes, maybe a spring effort now.
Karen B

"yes, maybe a spring effort now" you said,
Let's see, I have a several peaks at "rooted" one on eBay. It was so tempted. I love the look of Puu Kahea so..so..much. I will get the cutting soon ....but... I just thought if in case that I unsuccesfully root it......Anyway, I have 2 days to think about it before the bid ends.
Enjoy your inflo,
Boom

Hi Boom,
oooh dear, that would be awfully tempting. ha I have that plant bought it this summer in a one gallon container, is a very small one, planted in the ground, have hopes for next year, told beautful . I keep forgetting how to spell it, the tag broke with the name on it. Need to make a new one. Where do you live? are you staying warm?
Karen B

Karen, I think that days are still warm through next week. However, nights are too cold to my new cuttings about 48-51F here in Thousand Oaks plus our house is on the hillside which might be lower than the forcast.

We are leaving to San Fancisco for the weekend. My plumies will not see sun for 2-3 days. I wrapped them up with N-Sulate sheet. I think that they'd prefer not seeing sun to getting cold and wet at night. Will get back to you when we come back. Have a good warm weekend.
Boom

Hi Boom
I haven't been to San Francisco in years, have a great time.. visit alcatraz, suppose to be so interesting. your babies will be waiting for you, chilly at night. You are wise to keep them warm.
Karen B.