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The nursery didn't provide moss or packing to provide moisture. They were in transit for a week. I immediately plunged them into lukewarm water. Will they plump up, or are they a total loss? They arrived with leaves - should I remove them? I'm so disappointed.
Faithnhope, you didn't say where you got them. Can you show a picture? I have imported plumerias from Thailand that were shipped bareroot and that were in a box for ten days. The roots may look dried out, but they will plump up in no time, and new feeder roots will sprout. In fact, many people who live in areas other than Zone 10 or 11 bareroot their plumerias for the winter while they are dormant.
Plumerias are extremely resiliant. My advice is to plant them in one-gallon or two-gallon black plastic nursery containers, depending upon the root ball size, water them well, and put them in filtered sun for a week. You may remove all but the topmost leaves if you wish as new ones will grow in. There is no need to be disappointed. Plumerias are frequently shipped bareroot.
Many thanks, Clare, for your advice. If these plants can survive what they have been through then they're far tougher than I thought. I've done as you suggested, planted them into two-gallon plastic containers and have them on a covered porch. I did remove the leaves as they were drooping and looked pathetic.
They came from a nursery in Houston and had excellent root structure, and were probably lovely, but there were delays in shipping, which set them back. All but two are shriveled and soft. I think the soaking helped as they seem to be firming a bit. Good to know they can survive this kind of abuse.
These are my first attempt at raising plumeria, so I probably will worry and fuss more than necessary. I'm in the high desert - 3,200' - so they'll have warm days and lots of sun, but I'll bring them in during our chilly nights. A labor of love, eh?
Hi Faithnhope, after looking at your picture, I agree that that stem looks severely dehydrated. I was picturing the roots being dried up and not the stems so badly. You may be able to save them even so. Misting and humidity will help if they will come back. Keep the soil moist at all times. I would keep them out of the sun until they plump back up. Filtered sun or a few hours of early morning sun is best. You don't want to put dehydrated plumerias out in the heat without ample misting. Quite frankly, I would notify the seller of the conditions of the plumerias and send them pictures. They should actually replace them since they arrived in such terrible condition. Even so, with the right care, they could still recover just fine. In the future, I would recommend Florida Colors Nursery. They would never send you something like that.
Hello Clare,
Following your advice, I'll mist and protect them, and hopefully they'll make it. It's worth the effort and challenge. And, as a matter of fact I do have an order in to Florida Colors, so we'll see how that one arrives. I should have read your wonderful, informative, invaluable article first, but I did become enamored by the photos of these lovely plants and just had to order some, even realizing growing conditions weren't the best here.
You're very welcome, Anne. Good luck to you. I have brought some back to health that looked like yours, but it does take a little while for them to recover. If you have a greenhouse, the humid condition of a greenhouse is ideal to rehydrating along with frequent misting this coming fall and winter.
Thanks for the compliment about my article. I understand about becoming enamored as I was too and still are after many years of growing them.
If you want to, you can leave feedback in Garden Watchdog for the seller that sent you these plumerias. Others should be warned, especially if this is a bad seller. I had a bad experience with a plumeria seller in Texas once, and I left negative feedback for that seller. Here's a link: http://davesgarden.com/products/gwd/ I think you will be pleased with your order from Florida Colors Nursery when it arrives.
In the event someone else receives rooted cuttings that are shriveled, I would just like to update the status of these plumerias. They have all firmed up - only one is still somewhat softer than the rest. I think it's because they had good root systems that they were able to revive. They're all putting out leaves and are tolerating our high daytime temps and bright sunlight. Our nights are chilly so I do bring them in. I am amazed as I thought they were done for and now I'm looking forward to healthy plants and maybe some pretty flowers next spring.
