drdawg said:I have never considered doing this since grafting is done to establish a better root-stock plant. That being said, there is certainly no problem in doing this. That would make a great "experiment", something you can tell us about after you've done it.

Only ever done with an Apple tree and that went south ... Just thought it would be quicker instead of trying to root it again.

No, not quicker. Grafting a plumeria, at least in my experience, should only be done in the spring/summer, when the sun is strong and the heat is high. Grafting took my plants 2-3 months to "take". I can root a cutting, even a difficult-to-root plant, far quicker.

I disagree with Ken here. At this time of year grafting takes very quickly. However, I think the diameter of your rootstock and scion might be too different to ensure a good graft.

I have a feeling it is still winter in Sweden..........here too. Will be in the mid-30's this weekend. I tried for months to graft during the winter months, remember? Every single one failed and I ended up losing 100% of the scions and 50% of the root stock. I will keep to my spring/summer grafting/rooting where I get almost 100% success. All I can relate is my experiences, nothing more.

Good news, everybody! It looks like the stump of the rotted tree is going to survive! The cutting I took from the tip continued to rot (or perhaps began rotting anew) but I just checked the stump again and there are a pair of TEENY TINY leaves beginning to sprout from the edge of the cut.



Thanks again to everyone who gave me advice on this!

for new leaves! Just let it grow, don't water yet till those leaves are fully opened up..just wait for it..good growing!

Really? It's already an established plant, not a cutting that needs to develop roots. I had assumed that it'd be able to process water even before the leaves unfurl; am I wrong about that?

Anyway, I am really excited that it survived and interested to see how fast it grows and what it looks like as it does. I'm planting the other tree in the ground tonight and I'll get some extra soil/perlite and repot this one in its large pot with new, better-draining soil.

Plants with roots but without leaves can process moisture, but very little. Think about it a moment. Where would the water be used? I think @Tarev is correct.

I find when it's been very dry, the leaves hold back from growing, waiting for the water; this is why at this time of year you see plants in blooms with no leaves; when they are then thoroughly watered (or you get a bunch of rain) the leaves will start growing quickly. So my vote is for watering.

Kyle& Liz, You didn't say what type of medium you have this plant in, and in our climate that is very important. I'm very close to you weather wise, an the only Plumeria I ever have trouble with is one in the ground on the north side of the house. That soil tends to stay wet and cold longer, and has caused Black tip on the plant , but never a problem with rot. I have one across the walk that doesn't even loose it's leaves until the new ones are growing well, and two in large pots with coarse, fast draining mix. I never cover or move any of them in winter. I only water the potted ones when nearly dry in summer and in winter, not at all unless the Santa Ana winds , and heat they sometimes bring , suck the moisture out of everything. Even then I stick my finger in the mix, or use a moisture meter, before watering. Our "marine layer" generally prevents things from getting desiccated, when leafless. I would check to make sure the drainage hole isn't blocked and wait to water until it's almost dry, or if you used one of those "moisture control" potting mixes, change it fast for something with lots of perlite or pumice in it. I'm sorry the cutting didn't make it, but the stump should start sending out new branches. If it does, you will have a multi- trunk shrub for awhile, and each blooming tip will produce more branches, etc.

Thanks, @ctcarol! This one was in a large terra cotta pot with plain potting soil -- so not terribly well-draining. I just got more potting soil and a bunch of perlite for putting the other tree in the ground today and I repotted "Stumpy" here into fresh soil (this time with added perlite). It looks so much better now, and hopefully it bounces back quickly!



I transplanted both plumeria today and noticed that this one's root ball was *much* sparser than the other's. There was a lot of dead material there. Lots of the smaller roots (and some of the larger ones) were dry and dead, although there are still roots that are clean, white, and moist. Hopefully I didn't do any irreparable damage while shaking out the old soil. Here's a picture of the old soil after I took the tree out of the pot:



@drdawg, that's a good point and something I'll have to look into. My initial thought is in line with what Hetty said...the roots take up water and nutrients for the entire plant, not just the leaves and blooms. On the other hand, I think most of a plant's moisture loss comes from respiration at the leaves, so you and @Tarev could well be right. It's probably a moot point at the moment, considering the trauma I likely did to any surviving roots in the transplant, so I've held off watering for the moment; hopefully the moisture in the potting soil is enough to tide it over until it gets established.

Finally, a few more pictures of the new proto-leaves!




Oh yeah! And there's a second bud starting!

Haberdashers said:Good news, everybody! It looks like the stump of the rotted tree is going to survive! The cutting I took from the tip continued to rot (or perhaps began rotting anew) but I just checked the stump again and there are a pair of TEENY TINY leaves beginning to sprout from the edge of the cut.



Thanks again to everyone who gave me advice on this!

I'm in California bud, what you have here is a sun burn on your plumeria...this has happened to a few of mine and I noticed a trend in mine, a couple Of my sun burnt ones were cause by a low dirt line and having them setup against a wall that reflected a lot of light lol...here is the worst one that got burnt..they do survive no need to cut!

and I am going to adopt the term 'low dirt line' (well, adapted to 'low soil line' ). I'm seeing this a lot with rooting cuttings too. Fill your pots!!

Dutchlady1 said: and I am going to adopt the term 'low dirt line' (well, adapted to 'low soil line' ). I'm seeing this a lot with rooting cuttings too. Fill your pots!!

K&L I also see those dried out roots. Your plant is just waking up, so this is indeed good timing to repot and amend the soil. Also remember, our humidity in Cali is way lower , so its growing habit is different from high humidity areas.

My Plumie's media is very coarse, it looks like this: my mix has cactus soil, pumice, perlite, pebbles, akadama, kanuma, compost. But that is just my preference since I grow mostly different types of succulents and drought tolerant plants. Once the plant is fully awake and we start hitting the high 90's I am not worried of too much watering, since my media is as fast draining as it can get.

Fill your pot!!

I just knew that was coming.

I needed that laugh, Hetty. My paranoia is setting in. Going to head outside to check soil levels now

@Mark619 this plumeria was pretty clearly rotten once I cut it -- the blackened parts were spongey and when cut were not colored like healthy branches and didn't bleed. The trunk down low was a bit burned like in your picture, but something else came in and did for the plant. However, you're giving the same advice that Hetty did early on, and I took it to heart -- now that I've repotted I made sure to fill the soil nearly to the top of the pot!