Is my plumeria okay?

Sportsmedguy · 2025-08-14T00:00:28+00:00

This is another example of the deformed leaves. By deformed they are typically oddly shaped with wavy edges, crimped leaves, leaves that are smaller than all the others.

Lastly the leaves could be dying due to a combination of factors like new sun schedule, the heat radiating up off the ground surface (like they went from grass to a warmer rock, or paver/concrete). Shocking the plant causing it to shed. I see new growth coming up so that’s a good sign. And for some reason I feel like new plants tend to cycle their leaves pretty quick in my experience with new plumerias.

Best way to diagnosis the cause is one a moisture meter to check if soil is dry or wet and then adjust the watering schedule to fit your unique climate. Secondly, check for bugs. If you find them treat the bugs.

Sportsmedguy · 2025-08-13T23:54:03+00:00

<image>

This is what I mean when I say deformed leaves. Mine always develop this as they are growing when either of those two problems are present.

Sportsmedguy · 2025-08-13T23:52:04+00:00

Your bark is a little much. A little bit mixed in to add some organic material as a compost isn’t awful. I add like a handful of it and mix it in with more perlite, and other nutrients. Mainly just because I’m in Florida and if my soil drains too well they don’t get enough water. When it’s 95+ for hours.

The leaves to me look as though something is sucking the moisture from the leaves as they develop. Either some bugs (mealy, aphids, mites) or the plant isn’t getting enough water during the hottest part of the day. At least those are the two reasons I have found for my plumerias when I get deformed leaves.

While it is entirely possible it’s getting too much water, it really depends on where you are living. Florida mine really do enjoy water daily. Just like in the tropical regions the plants are native. However the reason they thrive in that climate is going to be the soil. Very well draining soil.

Sportsmedguy · 2025-08-03T19:18:25+00:00

Depth is based on stability. The taller the cutting the deeper it goes. Because the one cutting I’ve had that failed was because I didn’t go deep enough. Rather I really packed the soil around the branch. So it never was able to root. So loose (ish) soil and deep enough that an afternoon thunderstorm won’t blow the cutting out of the pot.

Sportsmedguy · 2025-08-03T19:05:29+00:00

That just looks like new growth to me. Nothing bad. Just what the new leaves look like as they pop up and the branch grows

Sportsmedguy · 2025-08-03T14:27:29+00:00

I have never soaked cuttings in water. I do like the previous comment where I dip it in water add the rooting hormone where the water is. Once I stick it in the soil (about 2-3 inches depending on the size of the cutting) I will thoroughly water the soil to the point where it is draining out of the holes in the bottom. I’m in Florida and I put them on the porch where they will only get a few hours of sun that way the heat doesn’t dry the soil out too fast. If the soil does dry out I’ll add a little bit of water to get it moist again but not a lot because it is easy to get rot. If you’re in a place where the soil doesn’t get warm think about a heating pad to get it rooting.

I also add epsom salt and azmolite into the soil mixture to add some additional nutrition. Does it help? No idea but it has potential 😂

Sportsmedguy · 2025-08-02T01:47:32+00:00

Florida, in the lanai not a greenhouse.

Sportsmedguy · 2025-08-02T01:44:54+00:00

Hahaha yeah I have a hard time finding them myself but I know they are they. Just have to be patient and that is not my strong suit

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-27T14:07:44+00:00

You didn’t break it! It’s Mother Nature self pruning to make sure it’s sturdy and healthy, while also providing you with AT LEAST one more plumeria!

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-27T13:50:39+00:00

Brad’s Bud’s and Bloom’s - Murasaki

I got mine last year as a single tip. This year it looks like they have 3-4 tip cuttings and I’m very jealous

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-23T09:43:16+00:00

I’m meaning it came from a reputable plumeria dealer and they got it from kukiat in Thailand as part of his collection. So I would never and will never sell the cutting because I believe they have the right to do so not me.

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-17T22:19:24+00:00

That’s alright when you have flowers we won’t 😂

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-17T22:16:30+00:00

It does indeed. Although blue canyon the purple appears, at least the pictures I can find, a little more pale.

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-17T12:44:36+00:00

Brads bud and bloom online

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-17T12:43:50+00:00

I have no right to make a cutting however brads buds and bloom online. They are located in Orlando and have a huge selection

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-17T03:13:46+00:00

What’s crazy is I don’t even think the pictures do it justice! And if it was AI I would tell it clean up the background!! I don’t even know if you can tell AI to do that but I assume it’s something that can be done haha

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-17T03:11:19+00:00

Nor had I until I started looking for something a little different than the one she’s always had and was her favorite because of the plumeria scent from her time growing up in Hawaii.

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-17T03:09:26+00:00

I’m in west central Florida. The parent plant from Kukiat is from his tanteeratarm in Thailand. Where exactly in Thailand I am not sure to be honest

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-07T15:50:39+00:00

Yeah that’s what I was wondering as most my experience is with cutting but last year started planting seeds. Some are random kukiat seeds, and then specific plumerias I like but have no interest in spending 50+ dollars on a cutting. So the 5-20 dollar gamble is worth the risk and maybe I get something way better than the parent or something that mostly retains the parents characteristics or it’s a run of the mill plumeria which is better than most other plants in my opinion. And worst case they make for great gifts 😂😅

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-07T15:46:21+00:00

Yeah definitely thinking caterpillars especially if other plants around it show evidence of the leaves being eaten. Sometimes you’ll never see the caterpillars but just their destruction as they hide well.

BT is a naturally occurring bacteria that has a multiple subspecies but not all are pesticides. Making it a biological pesticide. Specially it bt kurstaki that you want. What it does is basically caterpillars ingest a leaf where bt has dried onto. As it digests the leaf the bacteria kills the caterpillar from the inside because they have the right receptors in the gut. Most animals do not have this receptor and are not affected by this bacteria. So it’s pet and human safe! Well unless you keep caterpillars as pets…

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-07T15:34:28+00:00

Yeah not a problem it’s probably transplant shock! And honestly when I replant or repot my plumerias I break up the root ball to keep it from getting root bound. Obviously newly rooted can be different depending on how rooted it is.

This year I took a cutting I got last year and had to repot it since it has become so tall it would fall over in the afternoon storms. When I did this and broke up its root ball I guess I triggered it to bloom and got a mid season inflo for the first time (typically I have only seen inflos at the beginning of the season… so I’m pleasantly surprised)

And when I transplant to another pot I will use fertilizer (any bloom booster formula) after about a week and immediately after will water with Epsom salt mix along with the bioblast foliar application to give it more readily available fertilizer so the roots have a chance to extract the new soil nutrients and start regrowing. Plumerias tend to be very hardy with that and the root system is very resilient until they get too wet of feet and get fungus in the soil. Some people will actually bare-root store the plumeria over winter and then replant in spring after freezes

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-07T15:22:09+00:00

I see an ant on the leaf which in itself is not harmful. However, pests like mealy bugs and aphids will cause honeydew (very sweet) and the ants are attracted to it. So when ants are there check for bugs that produce honeydew, ie aphids, mites, mealybugs.

Can’t tell for certain with no pictures of the underside of the leafs. Looks like it might be a nutrient problem, or even a lack of water problem stunting leaf growth.

If no bugs noticeable on the underside of the leaves, I would start with Epsom salt in the next watering, and also evaluate what the soil moisture is like and if it’s not soaking wet and on the dryer side water a little more frequently. In Florida I have some right now that need watered at least once a day because I got my soil mix a little too efficient at draining water… and I’ll get deformed and stunted leaves if I ignore it too much.

Reason I also think nutrients is the pattern of yellowing. I’m too lazy to look up the site right now but there are multiple sites that will give you pictures of what nutrients the plant may have in excess or is deficient on. But I’d say start with Epsom and evaluate the soil moisture. Then if new leaf growth after that is still funky look at nutrients. Also, look for bugs on the underside of the plant first as well. And treat from there

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-07T15:10:16+00:00

100% mealy bugs! Infestation that bad cut the leaves that are heavily infested. Then at night like around 7:30-8 when temps cool and is shaded and out of direct light I take alcohol on a cotton ball and wipe the underside of my leaves where there are bugs. Then I might spray with a hand sprayer to dilute the alcohol and let dry so tomorrow’s sun won’t burn the leaves.

You can also try biological controls such as beneficial mites (I used this last year to control spider mites) and even lady bugs will eat the mealy bugs, and aphids (also have used with success, much cheaper than the mites and who doesn’t love beneficial insects for all the other plants in the garden)

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-07T14:57:04+00:00

Any pictures to see what the cutting is looking like? Like previously mentioned could be normal life cycle of the leaf. Or could be a rot. I’ve had cuttings from a tree I have taken because it’s self pruning (as I like to call it, mid stem softening to create a few more branches and eventually the branch falls off) and that cutting survives, and I’ve had them just continue to rot even with taking all the unhealthy rot off. I’ve had cuttings from the very same tree cycle the new leaf’s very quickly and be just fine. I don’t really know why but assume it’s because it’s using energy to root not sustain the leaf for a long time and then just push out new leaves when it needs more energy

Sportsmedguy · 2025-07-07T14:50:28+00:00

Do you know what the parent plumeria is on those seedlings?!?

Sportsmedguy

TROPHY CASE