You could go to a 7 gallon container. I would look for a container which is wider versus tall. In other words the much sought after Squat Pot. They are more stable and beneficial for the root growth habits of Plumerias from rooted cuttings. Since they have fiberous roots which grow in radial pattern out in all directions until they hit the container wall and then grow along the edges. Seedlings may have a tap root which grows down in addition to the radial roots.

Thanks K. Really appreciate. Cancelled my HD order and found some semi-local squat pots.

Agree with K...

beautiful trees. Petunia fish!!!

laura

Thank you Laura. Quite a compliment :)

Nancy

Looking great.. I'm already looking at what I'm going to pot up come spring!!

Waiting for this cold weather to leave.. Snow has just about melted after the 10 inches that fell on Saturday..

Stay warm and get ready for the new season!! :)

Laura

Thanks again K and Laura. My plants will be under lights year round. As far as potting up and fertilizing etc, have trouble assessing seasons for them. They've been under lights all fall and winter (no dormancy). Weather here in spring/summer is variable (7b) right on the ocean, and wind just pounds in the afternoon. Temp ranges from 50*-75* mostly about 60* all summer. I'd leave some plants out for as long as I can on nice days and rotate, but sometimes that might be as little as 2-3 hours before that summer wind whips through.

K, I'm following your advice and treating everything year round just the same as other plants and repot March/April- maybe use 1/2 Excalibur dose then. (FP 1/2 dose year round.) And in the fall let maybe half of plants go dormant, the other half stay awake under lights and alternate yearly. Does this sound like a reasonable plan?

(K btw, the lovely Grandio greenhouse plan went bye-bye. A landscape architect from a neighbor's advised against it- said he'd built too many of them over the years for oceanfront people, and there is not enough sun. Something I naively didn't appreciate. Man, we can go 2-3 weeks with no sun. Thoroughly depressed- and he ambled by just as we tore up driveway for water/electric!)

Sorry to hear that. I just assumed you would run your grow lights out there to maximize sun exposure.

No, hadn't really planned on lights out there. Between the gloomy weather, the wind the minimal sunlight, and the cost I just couldn't justify it anymore. Have my stakes out where it would have gone. I look out at it and think somewhere over the rainbow....

The basement project is coming along nicely but husband's health has made setting up the electric come to a standstill. Tomorrow I'm going to work on it while he coaches. Hooked up the rain barrels today. Can't wait to post pictures.

I'm in z8b too near Sesttle with similar light conditions. Got to try Plumeria, we have a lot of (semi)tropicals already.

Got a few questions, if you have the time to answer. Thx in advance.

Are these pleasant and very fragrant inside, e.g,, intensity like a gardenia in strength?

Can I get good bloom response in a south oriented indoor solarium without lights to be added to our house and kept trimmed to under 6-7 feet tall?

For fun have you tried moving one outside in the summer?

Do you trade cuttings for fine Hydrangea or Canna variety starts or other plants?

Gary, I posted my thoughts on your thread as well. Fragrance can be dependent on the cultivar but yes there are some very strong gardenia scents. Some smell like Peaches, Grape Cool Aid, coconuts/suntan lotion, and others just offer the very slightest spicy scent. My experience has been scents are strongest under warm humid conditions and at dusk. Generally speaking a plumeria in bloom will be able to perfume an inside room without a problem. While in full bloom some produce enough scent to be detected from across the yard.

General rule is 6+ hours of sunlight daily to have the best chance of blooms so if you can achieve that parameter then you stand a good chance of blooms. You will want to carefully select the plumeria cultivar to get the best growth habits for your situation. Stay away from notorious leggy varieties or big heavy growers. Two potential choices are Divine and Dwarf Singapore Pink. To me both have a moderate scent and very good growth and blooming habits. Proper Pruning is not a problem but expect to loose the possibility of blooms on the branches you prune off.

Many of us in the south protect them from Thanksgiving until as early as Valentines Day and then bring them outside again. A 6-7 ft tree in a 25 gallon container is probably in excess of 300lbs but completely do-able with the right equipment. Tools of the trade for this include grippy gloves, back belt, industrial tree truck (best thing ever), and a gym membership.

..... And good health insurance!!! ;-)

Just googled "industrial tree truck" K. Bookmarked that page. They do look very cool!

I've got some stored Brugmansia, Banana and Taro family that need this equipment!

And I'm currently working up towards needing this size too. http://www.dutchmantruckspade.com/

Or one could always stop by Home Depo and find someone there to help, by the street. A win/win.

The hand model would also really help for moving reasonable rocks.

When planting bamboo last summer our yard gifted us this likely half ton+ rock! It was towards the bottom side of the currently 2' deep pit. And it was blocking where root barrier had to be installed.

We went Egyptian and moved it with a long heavy iron True Temper digging rod*. For a few hours we inched it along levering on other rocks. We braced progress with rock added back to the now ~6'x2+' deep pit. When it was almost out we could no longer lever it more without just filling back up the pit below. We did so. It yielded. Once out I we took another 40 minutes and levered it alone to the front of the pit area.

After hosing it off THE ROCK I discovered that we had purchased a beautiful large pastel green rock with sweat equity labor and didn't even need to haul it there.

Don't think of asking me to move it to the front yard. Even though ... hum, it would look great there with our green house color.

Might need a Bobcat tractor sized vehicle to try to lift this thing ... they rent them by the hr? Do i need to take lessons first?

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* By the way a large iron digging rod is a must have, best ever class, yard tool. It helps replace the need for a healthclub membership, blasts away the thickest driveway ice**, and can scare the heck out of gophers or instantly remove concerns. It is also an important health improvement tool, reducing the chance of bodily damage.

Nix that last statement if drinking while driving it***. Potential skewering of a foot to the ground with the pointed end is not advised. And be careful when standing next to a pit when operating it ... take my word, you don't want to try to envision this either.

** No longer advised for removing ice from windshields

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***

-- Darwin Class Awards --

None have been officially granted yet for use, which may not be a bad thing.

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-- User Discretion Is Advised --

For breaking up rocky soil and roots, but not for lifting out soil, UNLESS desired to enhance exercise benefit or being paid hourly.

Do not use for breaking rocks, dynamite worked better.

Do not leave unattended for long periods outdoors. This has been found to increase the chance for misuse. Also the Rust generated was pretty, but has not yet been shown to enhance use.

Do not drink while driving it.

Do not carry into crowded public places, it might not be interpreted to one's benefit.

Do not take swimming without a life preserver.

Do not carrying in lightning storms or on a bicycle, especially if in a lightning storm.

Not yet approved for Javelin or other official sports uses. However, there has been some consideration of it to combine both Javelin with Shot put events.

Footballs deflated with it did not easily recover full range of function, even with Duct Tape.

What's driveway ice? I had to do an impromptu synchronized swimming routine once with an anchor and my ego. Both of them were deadweight.