Hi Dave,

I'm no Plumeria expert - I grow a couple in pots here in Nebraska and had my first blooms last year (I've got some buds forming now on same said Plumie...) Were I seeing signs as you describe, I would probably unpot them and see what the roots looked like. If the roots aren't healthy, I'd probably cut them off above where they are withering and restart the cuttings.

They seem pretty easy to grow to me. I just put them out in planters in summer in FULL sun, with a bunch of little succulents in the pot with them. Let them dry a little (not too much) between waterings. Spray them with some Eleanor's VF-11 once a week. Put them in pots in winter and keep them in the GH - they all but go dormant (I water them occasionally, so they don't really grow but they do maintain their leaves...)

Don't give up on them - just "tweak" your growing regime and you'll do fine with them.

Denise in Omaha

I have a couple cuttings that also shrunk at the soil line. I still haven't figured out the reason but think that they may have been burned by the pea gravel. The shrunken area never filled back out but the plants are just fine. I did stake them because I was afraid that the stem would be too weak to support the plant once the leaves started growing. So far so good. I have a pic of what the shrunken part of the stem looked like after I removed the gravel. These were the only two that this happened to out of at least 20 cuttings. Don't give up just yet!
Karyn

Never pack it in! Give 'em a chance. I have a Singapore that just insisted on developing black tip. Kept cutting the tip off and spraying with fungicide until I just decided to let it either survive or succumb. Well, it decided to thrive and looks beautiful. Plumies are hardy and I suspect yours will do fine. Let 'em go!
Mike

Dave- You're the guy who learned a lot this year. LOL If your plants look like Karyns and the shrunken part is hard and not mushy and leaves seem to be growing, then all is ok. If you have no leaf growth showing, then carefull dig up the plant with a spoon and see if you have any roots. No roots, cut, dip in rooting hormone, dry 5 days, re-plant. This time water only once and then forget them. Mist the tops but keep dry. You still have plenty of time. Some of my best plants i started in late September. Cal has a very long season (to Nov.) I would say that Karyns had too much water and the gravel steamed the stem but it looks like it has survived so far. Like mike says, plumies can be hardy in certain ways. Never give up until the whole plant is mushy. I have stuck 3" tips in pure perlite and surprize, they grew.

Denise, Karyn, Mike and Tdogdad...
Thanks so much for the encouragement. I just repotted a week ago in the perlite mix. No leaves yet, but there were not any roots at the time of repotting. My moisture meter this morning read "moist" which is way better than pegging out on "wet" for two weeks. The "canes" are firm, but shrunken like Karyn's. I will not water for at least a week or two. I'll let them dry out completely and then water very lightly. My fingers are crossed.

Thanks again.

If all else fails I'll just go to Murdy Park in Huntington Beach on Sunday and buy some rooted ones.

Dave, I had the same problem with my cuttings. I removed all pea gravel and the cuttings stopped shrinking. Put mine on concrete! Temps over 100 where I live. Did have to tie my hands to keep from giving any water. Only gave b1 water the day I put in straight cactus mix (NO perilite!). All nine of them rooted. So DONOT give up...try try try again. Click your heels 3 times and say I believe and The Plumie Fairy will bless you with success.. Waited 7 long tense weeks but I got leaves.Hang in there. Ruthann

Dave I wouldn't water them again until you have significant leaf development. I'd just mist the "claws" with a spray bottle. I only water my cuttings when I first plant them and not again for at least a month. Good luck this time.
Karyn

Dave - go to Home Depot and get Cactus Mix $4.83 - 1-1/2 cubic.- use it. Are you near Cypress, LaPalma?

I'm in Fullerton.

Dave= The Home Depot cactus mix is far to moist and organic for me. I get mine at Flowerdale which is more expensive ($9) but far superior. If you use the H.D. brand I would cut it at about one portion mix, one and a half pumice, and one and a half perlite. With flowerdales I go equal thirds and find it excellent. I also follow this proceedure: Put half inch pumice in the bottom of a 1 gal to cover holes. Put an empty plastic water bottle in the middle of the 1 gal and fill the mix around. Wet the mix with B-1 and superthrive and carefully twist out the water bottle. This leaves a big hole down the middle. I fill the hole half way with perlite, dip my cutting in rooting compound and stick it on the perlite. I fill the rest of the hole with pumice and then water. If it is a large cutting I stake it or cut pieces of styrofoam to go from the pot wall to the cutting from opposite sides to keep the cutting stable. I do not water again until I see leaves or my meter hits totally dry. I mist the tops. I place on hot concrete and try to forget them although, like Karen, I cannot pass without getting sucked in for inspection. Rooting takes from 1-4 months depending on the plant and the weather so you have to be patient and have faith.

NO! I live in Lakewood and have over 100 of these many in pots and use cactus soil from Home depot and nothing else. When I take cuttings and put them right in the soil I use rocks to hold them up. I also have many seeds that I have started. I lost many when I first try to grow them but have not lose any in the last couple of years. I can send you pictures only in the jpg but will be happy to send them to you if you email me at jblgbb@aol.com Thanks, Barb

Well I took my original 8 cuttings and re-potted them in a soil/perlite mix, used the moisture meater and it said "moist"(far better than the "wet" it had registered for the weeks prior). I left the plumies alone for three weeks and checked them yesterday....the moisture meter still said "moist" uh-oh. My heart sank. I checked the stems and 5 of the 8 were rotted ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP. The other 3 were fine (no leaves yet) and their meter reading was closer to "dry". I was on my way out so i didn't have the time to repot the 3 live souls. Obviously the soil that Lowes sold me as fast draining was in fact water retaining. I did slightly tug on the 3 cuttings and one of them had a little resistence so I have hope for the 3 and strong hope for 1. Mrs OC_Dave is insistent that I "waiste" no more $$ on the "stupid plants" so I guess cactus mix is out....I might try hijacking sand from the sand box at the park (Just kidding). Any suggestions? I did buy a huge bag of perlite from HD the last time i repotted....could I do a 4:1 or 5:1 ratio (perlite/water retaining soil)? Bill, I know that when you start cuttings that you do not even have soil touching the stem - could i do a 100% perlite around the stem and the 4:1 ratio soil mix surrounding the perlite? Fingers are crossed for the 3......may the 5 rest in peace.

Dave

P.S. does anyone have that number to the botanical muderers anonymous?

First of all where were you at the SCPS meeting? I brought you a nice, big growing plant so Mrs. OCD could see what the fuss is all about. Secondly, you can start in pure perlite or any blend. I just have known too many people who had the same experience with cheap cactus mix. If you go cheap, regular supersoil cut 50/50 is better. Then one water and set on warm concrete or rock and forget about it. Cut off the rot, wait 5 days, root tone and replant. you still have time. Use 1 gallon, black pots. Do not repot the three rooting ones. Leave them alone and do not water. Mist the tops lightly. Remember- no leaves, no water. Water for rooting comes from inside the stem. 6" leaves, start water and half dose fertilizer. Realize that most of your rot damage was probably already started before you transplanted because they had been sitting in wet soil too long already. Next time should be better. Bill

Dave, You can just about use what ever soil mix you want as long as it dries out faster than just top soil. Heck I use potting soil before I knew better and mine made it but I didn't water them at all after planting but water I gave them in the planting. I have been lucky and haven't gotten a really tuff one yet. We all seem to have our own mix that we like you'll end up having the same. I use my normal soil mix for starting unless it something that is hard to root then I use 75% perlite 25% potting soil.
Never say die we should keep working at it !

Don

Bill, I couldn't make it to the meeting - we had a family get together in HB of all places...I tried to sneak out for a few minutes, but was caught exiting. Doh!!!

Bill and Don thanks for the encouragement. I'm a little gun shy right now, but I will practice patience.

Hi Karyn
Keep a watch on that plant that has the sunken brown area, mine was totally all the way accross brown. I had a cutting that I had a lot of pea gravel all around it, hit high temps burned the stem out. I checked it, took it out of the soil, that area was totally dried out, nothing there to grow. I had to cut above the dried out area, put on root tone, let it dry out and start again. Pea gravel is good, but not up against the cane, burns.
Karen b.

I was able to save my 3 burned plumies from the evil pea gravel. Their stems weren't burned all the way through and they are growing beautifully now. I removed the gravel from all the cuttings, even the ones that showed no damage. This year was the first time I tried pea gravel and I won't be using it again. If I have a cutting that needs support I'll try the styrofoam blocks.
Karyn

Hi Karyn,
Glad you caught yours, mine apparently was below and on the line where the pea gravel was. I did not even notice it until I read on here might burn..yep it did, lost about 4" of that plant dern it. think the gravel is still good, but not to touch the stem. I also have a lot of squirrels in the back yard, has also slowed them down from messing with the plants.
Karen B

You can use pea gravel, just take two fingers and move the gravel away from the stem by two finger width. You can replace with a two finger circle of pumice or just leave it soil. As long as the rocks are an inch away from the stem they will not burn the stem. The rock does radiate heat into the soil and keeps the roots warm and dry. Bill

Update: well this morning I went out and checked the three that were still viable and......they are rotting under the soil line also...I am going to cut and let sit for a week and repot with rootone and use cactus mix this time. I am so angry at myself for trying to go on the cheap and buying the cheap potting soil and mixing in just lava (not pumice). I realized that for all of the time I have spent in the forum reading about what I did wrong I could have been out looking at my rooted plumerias. Well I guess a mistake is a good one if you learn from it...I just ordered some new cuttings (w/out approval from the appropiations committee - Mrs OC_Dave) and I will do it right this time. Thanks everyone for the advise and hopefully I will give you another update in a month or so w/ good news.

P.S. When I trim the rotted part of the cutting off I will have about 4"-5" left. Anything special that I should do differently than a larger cutting?

Dave,
I never do anything different with a small cutting versus a larger one. Sorry to hear that they rotted on you, but as you said it was a "learning" experience. Good luck with the new cuttings, and with Mrs OC_Dave!

John