I was walking my dog about a week ago and saw my neighbor cutting down his mature plumeria tree. After chatting it up for a few minutes, I asked if he didn't mind me taking it off his hands. He had no objections and just like that I jumped into the amazing world of plumerias.



I already delved deep into videos and even lurked in this forum the past few days. Making sure I start off on the right foot. Here is where I am at:
- Cuttings are about 3 feet in height
- I removed the leaves
- I am in the process of letting them callous

Here is where I need help:
- Should I put root hormone on it now or right before I plant?
- I live in southern California. It is generally 70s-80s this time of year. Is this acceptable weather for growing?

Wow, you scored, there's a lot to consider, IF it was me I would cut a foot off of them and let callous for 4 or 5 days, 3 feet is pretty tall unless your putting them in the ground. I start all of mine in pots. I put root hormone on when I plant them. I'm in So Cal too so I would get them started as soon as possible. I would also cut all the inflos off as you want all the energy going to growing roots, not flowers. This is just my advise as there are a lot of good growers on this forum. Good luck how ever you go😎

Couldn't have said it better..
@Gimmiesomewater

Gimmiesomewater said:Wow, you scored, there's a lot to consider, IF it was me I would cut a foot off of them and let callous for 4 or 5 days, 3 feet is pretty tall unless your putting them in the ground. I start all of mine in pots. I put root hormone on when I plant them. I'm in So Cal too so I would get them started as soon as possible. I would also cut all the inflos off as you want all the energy going to growing roots, not flowers. This is just my advise as there are a lot of good growers on this forum. Good luck how ever you go😎

Awesome advice. I plan to start them off in pots then eventually get them into the ground. I will go ahead and cut the inflos and chop off an additional foot. I didnt consider the difficulty of keeping them upright at their current height.

My plan was to let them callous for a week and then root hormone and stick them in pots. I will throw up an update in a weeks time. That will also give me enough time to think of names for the 4 of them lol. Naming your plumeria trees isnt weird right?

You could in all actuality also root the 12" stems that you chop off as well, and basically double what you have now. They will push their own branches out also. In case you were wondering.

[UPDATE]

Its been a whole week and my cuttings have been drying out in my garage.



It's a bright and sunny day, the perfect day to get these bad boys in some pots. I went over to Lowes and picked up all the necessary tools.



Since these will only be in pots for 6-12 months, I opted to just purchase some gallon paint jugs and drill some holes in them (They are a quarter of the price). Ill move them from pots to the ground once I feel they have properly rooted and are healthy for transplant.



Mixed soil with perilite and then dampened it. dipped the cuttings in root hormone.




Stuck those suckers in maybe half a foot into the soil. Put a stake right next to the trunks and tied them with some garden wire so they dont fall. I moved them into the sunniest part of the backyard and then added some rocks on top that will hopefully maintain extra warmth.





Now we play the waiting game. What do you guys think? Did I miss anything? How long do you think before I start seeing some progress? Any tips on what to do now?

I'd say you nailed it. I give my new plantings one good watering and then keep them dry. I also try to put in a spot that only gets 5 or 6 hours of sun. Probably too late in the season to see new leaf growth so you may have to wait till spring to see how you did. What part of the country are you in.
Definitely looks like a job well done.😎

Gimmiesomewater said:I'd say you nailed it. I give my new plantings one good watering and then keep them dry. I also try to put in a spot that only gets 5 or 6 hours of sun. Probably too late in the season to see new leaf growth so you may have to wait till spring to see how you did. What part of the country are you in.
Definitely looks like a job well done.😎

Thank you so much for your kind words. I feel pretty good about it.

I actually live in Los Angeles. It tends to only really starts getting cold in December. I will monitor nightly temperature and make sure to move the trees in the garage if it get crazy cold. Good note on lowering my expectations on seeing leaf growth in the next couple of months. Honestly ill be happy if they root down and look healthy.

I'm so excited for you! I started my own two plumeria this year as cuttings.

Your fortunate, there's still plenty of warm weather for you. Those suckers should root enough to be just fine next spring. They look like really healthy cuttings. 😎

So that you can get an idea of how fast, or slow, these may grow, I thought I'd post pictures of my 2 plumeria. I took them today. Please excuse the weeds.




I got them as cuttings earlier this year. They rooted in late June and I needed to size up the pots in mid August. They are currently in 10" terra cotta.

Obviously, one is much happier than the other. I still haven't figured out why.

hlutzow said:So that you can get an idea of how fast, or slow, these may grow, I thought I'd post pictures of my 2 plumeria. I took them today. Please excuse the weeds.




I got them as cuttings earlier this year. They rooted in late June and I needed to size up the pots in mid August. They are currently in 10" terra cotta.

Obviously, one is much happier than the other. I still haven't figured out why.

Oh my that is great progress! I think I planted my cuttings too late in the year to expect something that awesome. It does get me excited on what is too come next year though.

@ggordo! Enjoy your plumerias! Once they are rooted, they grow very quickly. Hopefully you can get them outside for at least part of the year. I find them to be one of my favorite plants. Very exciting to grow!