Keeping your plumeria protected in the winter

Winter means plumeria growers need to take precautions if they want to see their tree bloom for another season.

The season can bring about the possibility of hitting 32 degrees, freezing point, which can cause rot. At Southern Blooms Florida Plant Nursery, we want to provide you with the wisdom needed to prevent your plumeria from getting rot.

There are several ways to keep this from happening.

• Move plants indoors: You can move small plants under coverage, whether that’s under shelter, inside your home or garage
• Larger in-ground trees: If your trees are in the ground they can be dug up and placed under thick oak trees or other trees that are not dormant. After laying them on the ground we suggest using a thick frost cloth that should cover the tree and touch the ground. You can weigh-down the frost cloth with paver blocks or any heavy material that would keep it from falling off during the night. When temperatures warm above 40 degrees over night the frost cloth can be taken off.
• Tree is too big to remove: In this case you’ll need to use a frost cloth that can reach and be secured to the ground. You can also use large clips or pegs that look similar to the old fashioned clothes pins to secure the cloth to the branches to keep it from blowing around.

What if I forgot to cover my plumeria?

If you forget to cover your plant, we recommend you wait a week or so and examine the tips. If they are mushy, keep trimming them down the stem until you see only white sap. This will ensure that you have cut the rot out and it should not kill the tree.

When can I replant my plumeria?

Once winter is over in March, you can then replant any trees that have been dug up. We would suggest staking them up as they have very small root systems which make them easy to dig up. Don’t worry though, foliage will return faster than the roots and they can be prone to blow over.