How I Grow Plumeria (Frangipani) In The Mountains
Can you grow plumeria in the mountains? Short answer: heck yes!
When I packed up my little condo on the coast to take on a new adventure in the mountains, riding shot gun with me was one of my hundreds of plants (my favorite), a plumeria tree.
I treat all my plants like living, breathing, parts of my family because, well, they are! But this tree is especially sentimental. Long story short, I gave birth to my daughter at home, alone, beside it in my garden. (If you’re interested in reading that full story, along with oodles of other positive free birth and home birth stories, you can check out my book on Amazon: Women of the Wild by J. Dylynn Dais.)
It was an unbelievably empowering experience – one which I always want to remember – and this tree is connected to that. That said, it was imperative that it thrived in its new home.
Before packing it into the car, I significantly cut it back. I took roughly ten 12-inch cuttings from it about two weeks prior to the move, dried them out, and brought all of them with me just in case the mother tree, for any reason, didn’t survive.
Upon arrival, I planted them all into small pots, gave the mother tree some fresh soil and blood meal, and put them all on my porch facing south. I was less worried about this part of their transition because it was still summertime, and the heat and humidity matched what the tree was already used to in Florida.
Prepping for the overwintering was the part that had me a little concerned. But, they all made it though! And they’ve been blooming happily all season.
If you love these luxurious tropical trees as much as I do and are wondering the best plumeria care practices to get them through the winter, here is what works for me:
Let it do its own thing for a bit. At the end of the summer, going into fall, you will begin to notice the leaves start to yellow and drop off. This doesn’t mean your plant is dying; it is just prepping itself to go into dormancy. This is totally normal, and it doesn’t need anything extra at this point.
Be sure to stop fertilizing when you start seeing the yellowing leaves. This only applies to the end of summer. If you’re seeing yellowing leaves at any other point in the growing cycle, your tree will need a little boost of nitrogen. (Blood meal is a fantastic option.) However, if you fertilize too late in the season, it can cause the tree to delay its dormancy process as the weather gets cold and will end up doing more harm than good.
They’re stronger than you think! Fun fact: plumeria can tolerate temperatures as low as 33°F. But you really don’t want to leave it sitting out in these temps for too long. The good news is, the change in weather will trigger the plant to go dormant without any extra effort from you.
You can then take your plant out of its pot and store it. During its dormancy phase, the plumeria doesn’t need light, water, or soil! Wild, right? So, you can simply gently dig it out and cozy it into a garage, attic, or spare room and wait for spring.
If you want to leave it in its pot, you can! It’s totally fine to dig them out and store them if that is easiest, but in my case, I don’t even bother with this step. I have set my rather large pots on rollers, and once the temps drop, I simply roll them into the house and let them stay warm in the living room by my windows.
Don’t overwater them if you decide to leave them in pots. Your tree will be just fine without water. Plumerias are deciduous plants, which means they have already stored up all the water they need to make it through the winter. If you water them during this stage, it can cause rot and kill the entire plant.
It’s as easy as that! There’s nothing else you need to do besides wait for the warmer temps of spring. Then you can take your plumeria back outside, replant it if you chose that route, give it a nice boost of compost and blood meal, and watch as it bursts back into bloom.
I hope these overwintering tips help to keep your garden blooms thriving.
Happy growing!
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