I have a Bridal Bouquet Plumeria I like so much I decided to plant a hedge of them to screen my neighbor’s monumentally ugly fence. These are evergreen Plumeria with an upright habit, when planted about three feet apart, they are perfect for a six foot height skinny hedge.
Bridal Bouquet Plumeria
Given the plant’s reputation for ease of propagation, I decided to try growing the new plants from cuttings rather than buying them. I had such good luck with the plants I gave some as gifts.
Propagation is simple, clip 4- 6″ long cuttings from the tips of the branches:
Cuttings
Next, strip all the leaves with the exception of the two or three at the top:
Stripped
The cuttings tend to ooze white liquid so, put them on some cardboard and let them dry in a shady area until the stems appear to have healed.
Drying Cuttings
After drying place the cuttings into 4-6″pots and keep moist for several weeks. The cuttings will start to produce leaves when they are rooted. Then they can be planted in the garden.
Potted
I have three left from my original six, one succumbed to unknown causes and two were gifted to other gardeners. I still need six for my hedge – so it’s time to get the clippers again.
The Shrub Queen 
That will make a lovely hedge; with the deciduous Plumeria (eg P.obtusa and P.rubra), that are commonly grown in the warmer parts of Australia, you can literally break off a 5 ft piece in late winter, let it dry, stick it in the ground and viola…instant tree! Not sure it would work with P. pudica, but it’s almost worth a try 🙂
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The pudicas aren’t branched like the other Plumerias. Although, I would love an instant hedge.
The soil here is so sandy it only stays moist about 6″ down. I have another Plumeria and it took a long time to take – if it gets that tall I will give it a try.
The hedge experiment will continue this summer!
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What a lovely idea for a hedge. Impossible here of course., but i like to imagine such a beautiful fragrant hedge. One day my solitary Plumeria in a pot may bloom. One can but dream.
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Plumerias in pots are fairly common north of me – most gardeners put them in the garden for the summer where they leaf out and bloom.
I tried this after a trip to Maui and promptly killed the plant. I think the key may be to starting the cuttings when the weather is warm.
It will be interesting to see how the hedge works out. There may be a very good reason why I have never seen one.
The perpetual experiment continues.
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I can’t wait to see the end result.
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Me, too. I should post a picture of my current view..
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Good idea. The before and after. My before is always so bad I hate to take pictures of it.
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How clever. And saves money too.
The only thing I’ve been successful with is hydrangea. I’m sure there’s an art to it, but I only snip off the tender branches and stick the stem in the pot and keep it moist. Most catch, but some don’t.
any tricks for grafting apple trees?
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I just received a cutting of the Bridal Bouquet I purchased on EBay. I planted the cutting in a pot, should it be in the sun or in part shade?
I live in SWFL. The hedge idea is wonderful!
Thank you
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Shade til it makes leaves
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Thank you.
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