Hello, I new to the forum and since I really like plumerias since my wife and I got back from Hawaii we decided to start a nice garden.
1st, this is my first attempt to try plumerias. I've done a lot of research but think it's best to ask my questions instead of looking for them on the web.

2nd, I have 2 plumeria cuttings I brought back from Hawaii (Honolulu) that just now sprouted 2 3 inch leaves. woo hoo. it worked!

3rd, I bought some more cutting online from Amazon that came from Maui or somewhere else in Hawaii. Those don't seem to be doing so great. the green folded stems seem to burn on top. (Is it wise to give them direct sunlight for newly planted cuttings?)

4th, I bought 6 plumerias from Home Depot during their Hawaii week. Very nice. All about 1 to 1 1/2 feet in size with lots of leaves that were brought up from Anaheim nursery.

5, My problem/questions. The ones I bought from home depot I re-potted in a nicer stable pot than they came in. I'm starting to notice after two days that the leaves are drooping I used Miracle grow potting soil mixed with a lot of perlite. About a 1 bag to 1 bag ratio as I did with my cutting that are growing. I think I may have packed them to tight in the new pot. In the old pot the stock was very loose and flimsy as if they could actually fall over or be pulled out. --- Did I pack the soil to tight to cause the drooping of the leaves?

6. I read adding decorative rock on top of the soil was great to increase heat for the plumeria. So they all got some river rock bought from home depot about 1/2 inch thick on top. -- Could that be not good for the plant?

FYI: all plants have 6+ hours of direct sunlight. I live in Sacramento CA and it's been really hot lately. 90 degree to 100 degree weather.

Any help would be very greatly appreciated.
Thank you

luckyz. To begin with, please go to your "profile" and add your location so that we all know where you are. Growing tropical plants is so climate-dependent. Whoops, I see you are in Sacramento. Still add it to your profile.

I am no plumeria expert but have perhaps 4-5 dozen, all potted. So, what I tell you is what I have found works for me here in Mississippi. I start all my cuttings in a greenhouse with 70% shade. After a couple of weeks I will gradually move them out into the sun. They get several hours of early morning or late afternoon sun and I add an hour or so for additional sun every 5-7 days.

In my opinion your 1:1 mix is super-draining with all that perlite you have added. I think additionally, Miracle Gro already has perlite in it. Sooooooo, with all the perlite plus our hot weather, your soil is drying out way too fast. I think you need to modify your ratio and use 1/3 Miracle Gro, 1/3 Black Kow, and 1/3 perlite. That's not quite the formula I use, and I customize all my potting and garden mixes, but it is pretty close. Again, getting plants from a big box store, knowing that these plants have probably not had a smidgen of direct sun for weeks, I would give my newly potted plants shade between noon and 4:00. And like the cuttings, just add a hour every 5-7 days to acclimate the plants and leaves to full sun.

I don't know about the rock. I don't see anything wrong with using it. Again, this is just me, but plumeria do better with bottom-heat and not top-heat, so though it might not do any harm in having the rock there, it probably doesn't help. Mulching an inch or two would probably be better, though I don't bother doing that. The rock allows moisture to escape rapidly and mulch will help retain some moisture in that potting media.

We all seem to have our favorite way when dealing with plumeria and there are far more knowledgeable plumeria growers than I. I am sure you'll get some other ideas on what to do.

luckyzl130

First of all - a picture is worth a thousand words, so if possible I'd love to see some shots of your plants that have the issues.

Secondly - the rocks on top of the soil in full sun could be burning your plumeria. There is nothing we can do about this information on the web that has been floating around since the 80's it seems, but we don't really recommend the rocks anymore. If you want the rocks, just make sure they don't touch the stem/trunk.

The drooping of the leaves could be due to being repotted. You could clip off the bottom leaves, just leaving the top 4 or 6 or so. Depending. I'd love to see pictures if possible!

@luckyzl230!! I am the least person to ask for advice though a true lover of plumeria. But I wanted to add my welcome. I seem to do OK with cuttings but rooted plants have been a problem for me for some reason?? I have two that I brought home from Cailf. in soil and they are doing well. But I have tried twice to transplant a bare rooted plumeria only to have both die. Let us know how your newest plants are doing. Stay cool in Sact'o!

I really wonder what your problem can possibly be, Cheryl. If my 4-5 month dormant (rooted) plumeria did not begin to grow again in the spring, I would have no plants at all. I "revived" over 4 dozen rooted, dormant plumeria this spring. Of course, you say you have only failed with two plants, so there could have easily been something wrong with that few plants. Just since April, I have already up-potted two dozen plumeria that were in one gallon pots, and they are all thriving as far as I can tell. Before the end of summer, there will not be a single plumeria left in a one gallon pot.

Do you have any idea what the problem might have been with those two plants. Plumeria are incredibly tough plants.

Not sure, Ken? They were mail order from Oahu in the heat of summer.They were Pink Pansy, a hardy variety in Hawaii. After the first rotted, they gladly replaced it. I blamed that one on the massive amount of rain we had. Then the second one started to rot almost immediately. I wrote to the seller a second time and never heard from him. I quickly cut off the rotten part but I guess I was not quick enough. I planted it gently in half and half soil/perlite tryig hard not to disturb the roots. Not sure if it was me or the plant.

Thanks for the help drDawg.

Here is the pictures taken of my Plumerias.

One shows a good pic of the droopy leaves.
Another shows how now they are starting to turn brown. (moved one in the shade that got really brown)
Another shows my cuttings how it seems like the curled stems were burnt.
Another shows the whole garden except for the one I put in the shade.

Today it reached 104 degrees . They are in my front lawn and get direct sun from 9am to about 5pm as the house gives them shade after 5pm
We have close to $200 invested in these plumerias from cutting to plants from home depot to rock to soil to root tone etc etc.
Please help!

Lucky, I think you are simply cooking those plants to death. Please do what I suggested previously. Hetty, says get rid of the rocks. Though most of them are light colored and wouldn't absorb much heat, there may be enough to tip that balance to overheating. Use those rocks somewhere else. They can even be used in the bottom of the pots to weight them down if nothing else.

drdawg said: :
In my opinion your 1:1 mix is super-draining with all that perlite you have added. I think additionally, Miracle Gro already has perlite in it. Sooooooo, with all the perlite plus our hot weather, your soil is drying out way too fast. I think you need to modify your ratio and use 1/3 Miracle Gro, 1/3 Black Kow, and 1/3 perlite. .

Actually the soil is still pretty moist. I do have to say that the bag of miricale grow soil was a big bag and the perlite was a small bag.
So were actually looking at 1/3 perlite to 2/3 soil. Again I did pack it really really firm when I repotted them.

Patrick, I agree they are being cooked. I think full sun at your temperatures for those young plants is a bit too much. Certainly the spots on the leaves are burn.

Your soil/perlite ratio should be perfect. Packing the soil too tight may compact it too much. It is essential that the soil drains well, although at your temperatures I cannot imagine it would stay wet too long. That Miracle Grow potting mix is not by any chance one that has the water crystals in it??

I think the rocks are ok but do move them just an inch or so away from the trunk.

The sticks without leaves - are they unrooted cuttings?

Thank you for your help Dutch,
I have moved them now all in the shade on the porch under the eve. They will still get plenty of light just no direct sun.

Yes the sticks are cuttings. 2 of them I brought back from the exchange at Hale Koa in Honolulu. One of those cuttings has two nice leaves growing.
Then I bought 4 more on Amazon from Hawaii and things that I believe come from Maui. Those were doing ok I guess until the temps went from 90 to 100+. I see the tips look like they are burnt to a crisp. But only 1 looks like that as they others just look sun burnt. I also have a plastic saucer with rock in them for the cuttings. The water in them does not reach the pot at all. Read that it creates humidity for the plant.

I moved the rocks away from the trunks and it seems the soil is still moist on top from the ones I repotted. I figure they should be at least semi dry after two days of 100+ temps.

Would it hurt to repot the ones I bought from Home Depot and use the rock I have on top and put in the bottom of the pot as DrDawg mentioned?

PS: I did use "Mircle-Gro water soluble Bloom Booster" to water the plants that I repotted from Home depot. They were extremely dry to the point I had to mist the soil with a spray bottle to keep soil in tack when I repotted them. I read/researched (again I know it was probable old news) that they love 10-50-10 ratio plant food.

I also saw that a lot of people recommend cactus soil mix

The Miracle-Gro potting soil doesn't say anything about water crystals. Its a 32 qt bag of moisture Control potting Mix for indoor or outdoor container plants

"Moisture control" means that there are those water-retentive crystals in the potting mix. When establishing plumeria, I would never use a bloom booster formulation. You are trying to grow these plants right now, not bloom them. Use a 20-20-20 water soluble fertilize at 1/2 strength. Sorry if I am repeating myself.

drDawg, can you please name a 20-20-20 water soluble fertilizer that I can get at home depot or Lowes?

The bag says it "Protects against over and under watering"

Thank you

Lucky, because I grow so many tropical plants, the majority of which are orchids, I primarily use 20-20-20 orchid fertilizer. It is much more expensive but I go though many pounds of it in a year so its handy. Some people don't like using Miracle Gro fertilizer, but I see nothing wrong with it. Also, I use Osmocote routinely with my plumeria, putting it in each pot in the early spring. Every watering and every rain automatically fertilizes those plants. By the time my plants go dormant in the fall, the Osmocote is pretty much used up, which is what I want to happen. I quit fertilizing my plumeria by mid-September.

I don't use any of those water-retentive potting media, like your Miracle Gro Moisture Control. Again, I customize all my potting soils so I know exactly what's in it and have complete control of them. But I use 30 or so cf. of potting mixes each year and that doesn't even count all the cf. of orchid media I use.

Patrick. I have nothing more to add, I just want to you.

Come on, Gigi. Jump in there!

So do you have a nusrey of tropical plants drdawg?
I'm assuming with all those tropical plants you have a big green house?

Nope, just two 10'x12' greenhouses, a temporary 6'x9' greenhouse for dormant plumeria (built in one side of my garage in October), and a 10'x32' porch that is winterized (enclosed with clear, marine vinyl in October). That porch is getting ready to become a climate-controlled, 18'x32' sunroom. Construction is due to start this week (hopefully). I have stuff all over the place.

Wow, nice.

I wish I knew how to make a small greenhouse.