Things are looking good here in Southern California, and I think it's finally time to plant our plumeria in the ground -- It had a growth spurt when we transferred it into a bigger pot a few years ago, but it's been back to slow growing and is pretty dang root bound in there by now.
In light of that, I've got a few questions to ask before I begin! For background, we live in Long Beach and the climate is quite gentle. It gets hot (90s) in the summers but we get only a dusting of frost and that only once per winter if at all. There are a *lot* of relatively tropical plants happily sitting outside all year long including many plumeria, some Bird of Paradise and I've even seen some papaya and bananas.
First question, then: when to transplant? From what I've seen on the forum it sounds like now's the time to do the transplant -- Hetty says that they should be repotted while dormant or when *just* waking up from dormancy. Ours is beginning to put out some leaves by now; do you think it's too late for this year and I should wait until next year, or is this the right time?
Second question, when I do plant it, how big a hole should I dig? I plan to put it in that corner you can see behind it in the picture (between the stoop and the water heater, right outside the kitchen window!) and to do that my plan is to break up the soil with a pick and then move some dirt aside to make a hole for the plant. I'm guessing I should try to make the soil level after planting at approximately the same height on the trunk as it is now? Should I break up the soil in a much larger area to give it an easier time to grow into it?
Third, is there anything I should mix into the soil? Perlite, potting soil, mycorrhizae, some sort of fertilizer, or anything else? I know you want to mix perlite and potting soil when planting a plumeria in a pot to help it drain well, but in the ground without anywhere for the extra water to go once it drains through the loose stuff while it gets slowly absorbed by the normal soil of the yard I'm not sure if that'd be beneficial in this case or not.
And finally... despite my laughable attempt to tie the plumeria to keep it straight in its pot it's growing at a fairly severe angle. Should I plant it with the main trunk vertical, or keep it at the angle that it's been growing at? Should I drive a better stake in when I plant it and tie it to keep it straighter? And how much space should I give it on each side? That alcove by the kitchen window is about 6' by 4' with walls on two and a half sides...will that be a reasonable place to put the tree?
Thanks guys!
