To cut, or not to cut

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

Hello all! Long time listener, first time caller :)

I'm located in southwest Ohio, and have seven plumies of an unknown variety that I grew from seeds. They're about six years old, and are thriving in ten gallon felt pots. During the winter, they come inside and are in my sunroom, with a heater and grow light, in the summer they're outside soaking in the rays.

My issue is, they're getting rather tall (I know, they're trees/shrubs you fool) and I would like to continue to bring them in during winter and out during summer. They're currently between 4'-5' tall, with only some FINALLY giving me some branches. Unfortunately, they decided to branch in fall and dropped the inflos before they could produce blooms (sadness!). A few years ago, one toppled over and snapped in half, it did recover and I also rooted the broken top half. This leads me to question...

Can I cut them off about halfway up to shorten them a bit? I have grown rather attached and don't want to mess them up buuuuuut my max height limit is about 7'.

I'm all ears and open to past experiences, recommendations, etc :)

Thank you in advance!

zombiehiphop69's ideas · More Info

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Comments (5)

phalanx_viridis
8 years ago
Welcome to the plumeria forum Heather! sorry for the delay in response, I hope you find this forum as rich a resource as I have. Congratulations on growing from seed and rooting broken stems!

Ok, so good news, cut wherever you’d like, your seedlings look terrific! Remember, they will likely branch out at the leaf nodes (1-3+) closest to the top.

Sanitize your cutting blade and trim right above a leaf node at your desired height. Please don’t use bypass shears. Cut at a slight angle to keep the top from gathering water and you can seal with latex caulking if you want, many do. I don’t seal but I cover wet wound with Saran Wrap and tape secure. I keep it on until the sap dries and I get great calluses without risk of fungal etc. growing under seal.

You can root the cutting taken and give it away or add to your collection.

Keep us updated on your progress.

-s
PRO
the_first_kms2
8 years ago
good info above. Another option is to down graft. Grafting isn't easy and is often very sloppy the first few times around but might remove 2-3ft of leg.
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rusty_blackhaw
8 years ago
I'm on the verge of giving up on some large seed-grown Plumerias that haven't bloomed after 8-10 years (plants are healthy and multi-branched, 6-7 feet tall). If a season in full sun planted in a subtropical border doesn't produce flowers, out they go (I have three dwarf named varieties in tubs, so there's hope.
rox146
8 years ago
All I can say is...NOT ALL PLUMERIAS AS RE HAPPY BLOOMERS...learned from one if the QUEENS on this forum
rox146
8 years ago
Thats... ARE HAPPY BLOOMERS