Personally, I've never used superthrive so I can't comment on that. I feel that the rooting instructions on www.plumeria101.com are pretty good. They have certainly worked for me. I have rooted cuttings in 100% perlite and in potting soil mixed 50/50 with perlite. I recommend using a small pot or tube with holes in the bottom, as it will tend to dry more quickly after a rain or watering event, thus reducing the change of rot.

Many people who are worried about losing a valuable cutting choose to graft the cutting onto another plant rather than rooting it directly in soil, as the risk of losing it to rot is reduced. If the graft doesn't take after a few weeks, you still have time to try rooting it the conventional way.

There is no 100% sure-fire way to root a cutting. Heat, sun, good aeration, some water but not too much too regularly, all help ensure success...

By the way, I've never heard of Ammarolis Curly White. Are you sure you don't have Ammaron's Curly White?

Thank you for all your good info. And yes, it would be an Ammaron's Curly White. Sometimes my spelling leaves a bit to be desired. Usaully I'm pretty good, not always. Actually I had the spelling of it sitting right here in front of me, but I had a kitten demanding my attention at about the same time.
Thanks again for your thoughts, and any more from anyone would be also greatly appreciated.
Lauri

Just to add to my last response, if I had a cutting that was truly valuable and I couldn't afford to lose it, I would probably cut it in half. I would root the lower half in a pot, standard method. The upper piece (tip) I would graft onto a different plant. Or if I didn't have a host plant to take the graft, I would just hold it in storage while I waited to see if the rooting attempt turns out successful. If it doesn't, then I have the ability to try again with the other half, maybe changing the type or soil or environment this time. That's what I would do. I've had good success with center cuttings (i.e. no tip on the cutting), so the aspect of trying to root a "headless cutting" doesn't worry me.

I put a dab of superthrive in a cut-off plastic water bottle and soak my cutting for several hours in the solution. Then I dip my cutting into a rooting hormone with a fungicide up several inches and plant in a one gallon black plastic pot (unless the cutting is quite large). I then put my solution into a gallon of water with a teaspoon of B-1 and water the pot. I put it into filtered sun for the first week and then gradually increase the sunlight. Bottom heat is very important so I put it on warm concrete in the day and bring inside at night until the night is above 60 degrees. Seed mats are great also. I mist the top but do not water the plant until leaves appear. The stem has water inside so unlike normal plants it can survive like a cactus. Bill

I guess I need to give SuperThrive a try as everyone seems to use it and like it. I've previously held back because for some reason, the SuperThrive packaging just screams "snake oil" to me. I tend to automatically discredit any company that has to fill the box with claims and awards...

Hi Lauri,

I mix pumice with potting soil to get a planting medium with 33 to 40% pumice for my plumeria. You may want to use a bit more pumice if you live in a really wet climate. I have used pea gravel in the past for stabilizing cuttings while they root, but will be using wood chips now that I live in a desert climate. You can use pumice, carved Styrofoam blocks or some other light colored material for stabilization. Dark materials like pea gravel can become too hot under some conditions and burn cuttings. I use rooting hormone to speed up rooting and also because it contains a fungicide. Put your cutting in the sun, and if you live near the shore or in a cool climate, put the pot on concrete or the edge of a paved driveway to bottom heat the soil. Warm soil will speed up the rooting process. Water thoroughly the first time and then donÂt water again for at least a month. A cutting can bloom before it has roots, but leaf growth is a good sign that rooting has occurred and it is now safe to water normally. Sun, warm soil, stabilization, good drainage, and resisting the urge to over water before the stem leafs out are critical to successful rooting.

Philip

Philip- Since you have pumice, you can use it in place of pea gravel to stabilize your plant. I put my 50/50 mix in the bottom of a pot to about an inch below where I want the bottom of the cutting. Then I put a plastic water bottle in the center of the pot and fill around with mix. I wet and twist out the bottle leaving a hole, I put one inch of pearlite in the hole, insert the cutting and fill the hole with pumice. The roots move easily in the pearlite while the pumice keeps the cutting stable and drier than the mix. I label the cutting and date planted on back. This has worked really well for me. Bill
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The correct spelling is Perlite. sorry. Bill

Thanks for the tip and pictures Bill. I like your method of stabilization. I will use this method if I have cuttings to root during the Arizona monsoon season. Is there a particular reason why you use perlite for the bottom of the central hole and pumice for the top part?

My reason for considering woodchips on top of the soil mix for stabilization has to do with the single digit humidity level in Arizona during the spring. Woodchips would prevent the soil from drying out within a day or two, at least this is what I am thinking. The air here is much drier and hotter than in Orange County. I would never recommend woodchips for someone in coastal California or Florida.

Can I get some input from someone who has rooted plumeria outdoors in Northern Arizona? My idea is unconventional and goes against the usual rules, but these rules were not formulated with someone with my situation in mind. Do woodchips make sense in Arizona during the spring or are they a prescription for stem rot.

Philip

Wow, This is all excellent information Philip and Bill. Thanks sooo much. Yesterday I mixed 2/3 perlite with 1/3 potting soil, dipped cutting in root hormone, stabalized with styrofoam, watered well, and put in my little greenhouse. Think I'll mix up a little superthrive and take my cutting out and soak it. And add more perlite. And, go get some pumice. The thought of cutting my cutting in half is a bit scary. I just don't think I could bring myself to do that. Might experiment on some other cutting though.
Thanks again for such great info. And the pics Bill!
Lauri

Lauri- I would recommend you leave it. Once it is started it is best to not mess with it. You will not need to now add superthrive as it is just a good solution to soak seeds or cuttings in before you put on the hormone. The water and hormone is fine now. Just let the cutting dry out now and keep bottom heat on it if you can.
Phillip- The perlite is very sterile and soft so the roots can move easily into and through. Since the roots start at the bottom tip, there is no need for perlite above that level. However, you can root in all soil mix, in pumice, in sand or in perlite. They all will work. I just find this to be a bit more successful. I prefer pumice to wood chips because wood holds moisture and can stimulate humid growths. Plumies are really find being quite dry. My neighbor forgets to water her Celadine for weeks and it grows like a weed. I would rather be a bit too dry than a bit too moist. Look at that thick stem- it is a water tank built to survive droughts. You can always water more but it is hard to unwater a moist soil. Bill

Hi,
Dont mean to sound stupid but where do you get pumice? Would like Lowes or Home Depot sell it?
Thanks
Susan

Hi Susan,

No question is stupid. Growing plumeria from cuttings is an art, not an exact science. This is why we ask for each otherÂs advice about sources, materials and techniques.

I imagine either of these stores would have pumice. IÂve always bought it at local independent nurseries. I prefer to support mom and pop operations because their employees are hired for their knowledge about plants and what will grow well under local conditions.

Philip

I've had problems finding pumice at the local retailers. I also prefer the independant nurseries and if they don't carry a product most are willing to special order it for you.

Bill I like that idea of the pumice filling in the space around the cutting. I'll have to try it with the ones I have drying. I did use your bottle idea last year but I filled the entire space with perlite. I'd think that the pumice would help to stablize the cutting better than the perlite did. I had quite a bit of wiggle room with just the perlite around the cutting. I did use the styrofoam cubes to keep it in place but the additional support the pumice would provide sounds like a good idea.
Karyn

I get mine from a farm supply or a local independent nursery (Nurseryland). Call around to local nurseries and ask if they carry it. It is not expensive. Bill

Well I know I had tried to leave a post last night, but must not have followed thru and posted it.
So....Thanks Bill. I will leave it well enough alone. I've had it out in my little greenhouse, but brought it in and set it on the warm engine of my car (in the garage), and this morning have brought it in, set it on a warm heating pad, and have it under a flourecent light.
I was wondering too where to find the pumice, for future use.
Thanks so much for all the words of wisdom.
Lauri

Just a postscript about the woodchips I was thinking about using. What Bill said about dryness being easier to fix than too much soil moisture makes far more sense than what I was considering. I will be putting the woodchips on the new rose bed instead of in the plumeria pots. We have had a late season heavy rainstorm the past few days that resembles the type of storm that occurs during the summer monsoon. A check of an ocean temperature map shows that the waters that supply the moisture for our monsoon storms are very hot this year. It could be very wet this summer in Arizona, and the summer monsoon may start early. IÂm off to the nursery in the next few days to buy more pumice and to buy perlite.

Susan & Laurie, my Lowes, Home Depot do not carry pumice. I found it at an OSH Hardware Garden Supply.

Thank you for your pictures Bill !!

This question is for Bill.
What kind of potting soil do you use? I find that many potting soils compact too much. What kind should I be looking for?

for years I used Unigro Cactus Mix cut 50 mix, 25 pumice, and 25 perlite. It can be used right out of the bag as I believe Freak does. This year I am using a product by Premier called Pro-mix HP. So far I really like the mix. It is very dry and I mix it 50/50 with pumice. I buy it at Orange County Farm Supply in Orange Cal. I think Jack at Kimis is using it this year too. I did many large pot root prunes this Feb and used three large trash cans of mix. So far, all the plants look happy and beginning to leaf out. I will know more on the product at the end of the season but so far so good. Bill
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To each their own. We have to use what we have available. For rooting cuttings, I've been having good luck using 1/3 Mir. Grow potting soil, 1/3 perlite, and 1/3 kiln-fired expanded clay granules (Aquatic Plant Soil).

hi Phillip,
I use red wood chips in the top of my soil on the canned plants. It helps stop the squirrels from digging into soft soil. I also have all my plants sitting on the red wood chips, cuts down on weeds. Need this year to buy new bags of chips to fill in holes. have a large area need weed help. Now my neighbors palm tree is shading my plumie area facing the east/south sunshine. may have to re-think a new location.

got all my plants outside, transplanted in larger containers, was warm day and morning temps.. now in low 40's..darn it..damp and wet.. hope will be ok.
Karen B.

I really like the Pro-Mix HP (high porosity) too Bill. Jack @ Kimi's turned me on to it a few months ago and now that is all I am using since he informed me Scott's bought out Supersoil, changed it's formulation and it's no longer a superior soil to use for this purpose. I mix about 1/2 Pro-mix, 1/2 agricultural pumice and throw in a handful of perlite for cuttings and have not lost a cutting yet. Also using it with adeniums and the results are great so far. I have to also mention that since last fall, I've been soaking the cuttings in Growmore seaweed extract and superthrive before I root them, and I can't believe all of the success I am seeing with it. I have several cuttings that rooted quite a bit faster than did with my other methods and I can't count the infos on the very same rooted cuttings, and they were started this winter! Of course having the greenhouse helps with the mix of sodium and metal halide lighting, and heat. I can't say enough about the seaweed extract though, it really is great for foliar feeding too.
Karen R.

I'm so upset I can't find the Premire Pro-Mix-HP here in my area. I have some cuttings to root, and will do the soak in seaweed extract that Jack mentioned to me as well. I have to agree with you Karen about the seaweed extract, it's good stuff !! I foliar feed and water with it (did last season)... and or will when the "kids" wake up. They've had their 1st shot of seaweed extract & B-1, they all handled it nicely !! Getting more claws and my Mardi Gras has 8 leaves on it already, with new claws showing up. It wants to BLOOM this season I just know it !!!

Cali~

Cali,
What part of CA are you in?
Having the greenhouse this past year was great - I've kept most of my babies awake in the greenhouse all winter so I'm not waiting for them to wake up, now I'm waiting for them to bloom :)
Congrats on the Mardi Gras! You'll have to post a pic when it does bloom!
Karen R

Karen, I'm in central Calif... just north of Bakersfield, in a tiny town called Delano. I have no heat or lights in my green house... maybe this winter.

Cali~

Hi Cali,
I am familar with Delano and where it is. You should be able to get some great soils in your area, being the heartland and all. We go to Yosemite every May, the weekend before Memorial Day. If you want, I can pick up a bale or two of the Promix HP and drop it off on our way! :)
Karen R (or Karen #3 as sometimes called)

In the Phoenix area Bakers is about the only place to get pumice and they don't sell it in the large bags either.
Mickey
Cave Creek,Arizona

I've been mixing potting soil with Wal-mart's Special Kitty litter (red bag), which is a bit smaller than pumice, as sharp for drainage, and lots cheaper at $2.54 for 25 pounds.

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Hi! I found pumice and perlite mix at Fred Meyer...I am not sure what the stores are called around the other states...but it was pretty cheap! Maybe Longhorns? I think that sounds right to me?

Thank you for your kind offer Karen !! I spoke with Jack, I'm standing at a hardware place reading labels to him via my cell phone !! I found a good substitute that should work as well as a substitute could. Again, thank you for your offer, it was very kind of you !!! Our natural soil here is clay ...rolling my eyes.

Cali~

Oh good Cali - I'm so glad you found something comparable. Jack is such a blessing - he is so generous and forthcoming with information and horticultural knowledge. I try to go over and learn from him every chance I get.
Happy Growing!
Karen R