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Plumeria Cuttings—Novice’s Concerns

6 years ago

Hi all!

I purchased 3 plumeria cuttings in late August and read everything I could find about propagating from cuttings before planting. It’s been months and I’ve been watching them obsessively and am concerned I’m missing some obvious solution to get them going. I bought two cuttings last year and didn’t have enough light in my apartment to give them a chance

I planted (unfortunately, not in a clear container—I just discovers that trick today) the callused cuttings in well-draining perlite-cactus soil, watered them once every 2 weeks when the soil was fully dry. They have a grow light on for about 8-10 hours a day and are in a warm room with heated floor. I’m in Minnesota, so they’ve been indoors for about a month. They’ve definitely greened up, claws emerged at all the tips and the starts of new leaves have come as well (see pictures). One had wonderful little starts of leaves, but when I checked a day later they had started to blacken and then fell off.

It just seems that they aren’t rooting well and the leaves aren’t really coming as quickly as i thought they would by now. On many websites it seems to say that “once you start seeing claws and the start of leaves, they’ve rooted, you did it, congrats!!”...but mine don’t seem to be progressing now.

One has a little black spot that might be fungus, but I’m not sure at this point.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I’m a nervous wreck!

Thanks,

Gina

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Comments (2)

Gina
Original Author
6 years ago
Here’s what this little leaflings looked like before their demise.
PRO
the_first_kms2
6 years ago
I think there are several factors involved here. First is the time of year to root is more difficult as plants are entering their natural dormancy. I would add more time to your lights and place the cutting on a heat mat to warm the soil.

The brown spots at the leaf nodes are a concern but I could not tell you specifically what to do about it yet besides get this thing rooted (more light, more heat) so it walls off the bad leaf nodes naturally. Consider reducing watering and using a neem oil spray to reduce fungus potential.
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Do you think I should be concerned?
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Comments (6)
Hey Mona, If they are coming from Hawaii then it will need time to acclimate. Since Hawaii is closer to the equator the temps and day light hours are different. Your Hawaiian plumies may need longer amounts of light to get going, well more then nature in North Carolina is allowing for March. Try adding a grow light over them before it starts to get dusk and leave them on for the recommend amount of time and see if that helps. Good Luck
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Need Some Advice for My Broken Plumeria
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Comments (67)
Dear Friends, The tree in this thread grew from a cutting I brought back from Maui about 8 years ago. I've kept it alive and reasonably well even in this relatively-cold clime, though it has been plagued, each winter, by spider mites. Due to the climate and the mites, it has only bloomed once, long ago. Then last year the branch was broken that gave rise to this thread and the things I've learned here have helped me make my plumeria a much happier plant. The result is that it is blooming! In addition, I have two cuttings, both of which are putting out new leaf spikes (though I've seen no roots yet and am following directions until I do). So I wanted to share them with you, who have done so much to help make it happen. Thanks again for your time and energy and knowledge and encouragement! If ever we should meet, I shall pour a glass of my homemade pineapple mead for you! Thanks Again and Aloha!
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should this be a concern
Q
Comments (3)
Is this an old tree or plant. When I had 2 trees that were 12 ft tall they had some "dings" on them for various reasons. No worries!
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Is there a way to repair a damaged plumeria trunk, please
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Comments (8)
Thank you for your reply, jedobaTX9b! I can handle the winters; it's the summers that nearly kill me. I had a feeling a picture would help, so I'll upload one. The damage is along the lower 24-30" of the trunk. It might work to add soil, as you suggested, but I would need to either put it in the ground, or find a mighty deep pot. Maybe a trash can would work, and I'd just have to ignore the way it would look. I remember seeing a trunk that was "bandaged," for lack of a better word. It was wrapped with absorbent material, then sealed with plastic and taped, so very much like an actual bandage. I can't remember what kind of tree it was, but I remember that it was done with the expectation that the damage would heal under this protective covering, which would eventually be removed. I also read about making a shallow, oval cut to remove the damage, then allowing that to callous over, the callous acting as a kind of bark. Do either one of these methods seem viable? If I do decide to bury it the way you described, should I use rooting hormone on the trunk or prepare it otherwise? Thanks again for your reply :)
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