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In this section you will find some general information and some useful advice to accompany you in the care of your plants!
Plumeria
Introduction
Plumeria (common name Frangipani) is a genus of plants belonging to the Apocynaceae family. It consists of 7 or 8 species of mainly deciduous plants with a bushy shape or medium-large trees. It is native to Central America (Mexico) but can grow in all tropical and subtropical regions. Plumeria is often associated with oleander (also belonging to the Apocynaceae family) due to the similarity between the flowers of some varieties and because both contain an irritating and poisonous milky liquid inside (if ingested in large quantities). In fact, the term Apocynaceae derives from the Greek APO- separation, removal and CYNOS-dog to indicate keeping away from dogs and pets.
The name
The botanical name of Plumeria was coined by the French botanist Joseph Pitton de Tournefort in honor of fellow botanist and missionary colleague Charles Plumier who assisted him during his travels in the Caribbean countries in search and discovery of new botanical species. Plumeria is also commonly called Frangipani which presumably derives from the surname of an Italian aristocrat who created an essence whose fragrance resembled the scent of plumeria. Other common names are used according to the countries where Plumeria is widespread, such as: Pomelia in Sicily (which seems to derive from the distortion of the name attributed to the plant in Hawaii: Pua melia); Frangipanier in France; Flor de Mayo in Mexico; Jasmine de Cayenne (Brazil); Temple tree (India); in Thailand the ancient and sad name Lanthom has recently been replaced with Leelawadee; Lei flower in Hawaii with whose flowers they make the famous necklaces (the "lei") that are given to tourists as a sign of welcome; etc...
The species
Each species of plumeria has well-defined characters that allow easy distinction. Plumeria stenophylla has rather narrow, elongated and fleshy leaves of modest size unlike Plumeria pudica which has characteristic lanceolate and thin leaves that persist even during the winter. Another species that does not lose its leaves is the Plumeria obtusa which differs in having leathery leaves, larger in size than the others mentioned above and with a rounded extreme margin; although it is commonly known by the name of "Singapore" it is actually originally from Colombia. Particular attention deserves the Plumeria stenopetala characterized by slender branches and narrow and elongated leaves and flowers whose petals are very narrow and long, white in color, and an intense jasmine scent. Finally, the most widespread Plumeria rubra, which contains thousands of varieties that are distinguished by habit, flower color (which varies from white to yellow, pink, orange, red, purple in all the different shades, tones and combinations). The presence of so many varieties is the result of the ease of hybridization which occurs spontaneously in nature and recently also by the hand of man.
The flowers
The flowers normally consist of a corolla bearing 5 petals, more rarely 4 or 6 or even more, the shape and color of which vary from species to species and from variety to variety. They are hermaphrodites, i.e. they have both reproductive organs (pistils = female and stamens = male), on the same flower. This could erroneously lead us to think that pollination can easily take place within the same flower with the passage of the pollen from the anther to the stigma perhaps assisted by the action of the wind; however, considering the limited number of follicles (fruits) compared to the high number of flowers that each floral scape produces, one could instead deduce that there is the possibility of self-incompatibility within the same plant. As is known, all plumerias, except P. pudica, give off pleasant scents, mainly during the night, to attract lepidoptera, which they exploit to be pollinated. In reality, flowers do not contain nectar, but their dazzling colors and the bewitching essences they emanate are nothing more than a decoy for the moths, which in their fruitless flight from one flower to another in search of nectar, do not other than favoring the transport of pollen from one plant to another. As already mentioned previously, the shape, size and color of the flowers vary greatly within the different species and also between one variety and another. Of particular importance are the so-called "spider" forms, i.e. with narrow and long petals such as P. stenopetala or some varieties of rubra including the "teresa wilder", "hammaron's curry white", "shooting star", "pet sayrung" , etc.. The "bali whirl" is the only one of its kind, which is characterized by being the only variety in the world so far known with a double flower.
The diffusion
Today, in all countries with a warm temperate climate, it is easy to come across a plumeria plant but in reality the area of origin of this fascinating plant seems to be Central America. In fact, evidence is found in manuscripts of the Mayas who were well aware of the therapeutic characteristics of the latex of the plant. It remained confined here until the end of the sixteenth century, when, apparently by the hands of the Spaniards, it was imported for the first time into the Asian continent where, finding the ideal habitat for its development, within a few centuries it spread throughout the south- east of the continent. The rapid diffusion was not only at a territorial level but became part of the cultures of some populations such as in Thailand in Buddhist temples, in India in Hindu temples where it assumes the meaning of immortality. During the nineteenth century, Europeans and Americans became aware of the charm of plumeria and began to import it to cultivate it in botanical gardens and private gardens. Contrary to what one might imagine, the diffusion center in the old and new continent is not the Caribbean area but rather South-East Asia. In Hawaii it seems to have landed only (so to speak) in 1860 at the hands of a government official returning from a trip to Asia. Favored by the large influx of tourists, Hawaii seems to be the springboard for Plumeria which began to colonize states such as Florida, California, Texas and even the Australian continent. In Sicily, where it is easy to see it on the balconies and on the streets of the coastal areas, it seems to have been introduced in 1845 by the hand of an important shipowner and Italian consul in Russia, Don Gaetano Fiamingo born in Riposto (1795) and later moved to Palermo where he became a partner of the Florios to assist them in international trade. The first plan seems to have reached Riposto on a large sailing ship of the Fiamingo-owned fleet, the "Sant' Anna", and then brought to Palermo by the shipowner Gaetano Fiamingo where it found a favorable environment and spread rapidly. It is also said that Fiamingo's wife paid homage to the Tsarina of Russia when she, together with her husband Nicholas I, Tsar of all Russia, were hosted in the rich residence of the Fiamingos in Palermo which was also the seat of the Russian Consulate. These testimonies (provided by Valerio Longo Fiamingo and by an article written by Prof. S. Correnti) would explain why the two main diffusion poles.
Cultivation
Plumerias actually require few cultivation practices but some tips can be useful for making your plants grow well. First of all, it is good to know that they love sunny positions, which favor abundant flowering: in any case, it is advisable to avoid direct exposure to the sun's rays on the hottest summer days (or at least not to let them run out of water to avoid make them suffer unnecessarily); they fear the cold, therefore already in late autumn-early winter they must be hospitalized in a protected environment, which preserves them from possible night frosts, and where the temperature does not drop below 6-7 degrees in any case; the important thing is that it is well ventilated and dry since the combination of low temperatures and high humidity are harmful to the plants. In autumn and winter the plant goes into complete vegetative rest, therefore it can also be sheltered in a dark or shady place, such as a garage or a closed veranda. There are many formulas for the soil and everyone can prepare their own, what is important is that it must be porous, draining and be able to retain the necessary humidity that the plant needs, instead favoring the elimination of excess water; depending on the soil used, then it is necessary to regulate the irrigations which must be regular and abundant in summer (avoiding excesses), sparse or zero in winter. It is good practice, before watering, to check the degree of wetting of the soil: if this is very dry, you can give it water, otherwise we can stall for another day. In late autumn, with the decreasing temperatures and luminosity and the consequent slowing down of the vegetation, the waterings will be progressively reduced until they are completely suspended and the plants placed in a place sheltered from the rain, if they are not already, or inside less favorable climates. In this period Plumeria needs practically no care and can almost be 'forgotten'. When the leaves begin to turn yellow, you can wait for them to fall by themselves, or you can decide to eliminate them manually. In this case it is advisable to avoid tearing the leaves but it is good practice to cut them leaving about 2-3 cm of petiole attached to the plant which will subsequently fall by itself. In this way it is avoided to cause wounds on the trunk of the plant and to open possible passages to potential pathogens that can cause rot. It is in this period of vegetative stasis, or rather towards its end, that the operations of repotting and/or renewal, even partial, of the soil must be carried out. If you have space problems, a pot of the same size can be used for a long time, gently removing the soil on the surface and laterally, together with the thinnest roots, which does not cause much damage since these generally dry up in winter; the space left free will be filled with fresh soil. In spring, after the vegetative restart, therefore when the tips of the stems begin to become shiny and the first leaves begin to differentiate, it is possible to start giving a little fertilizer; it is good to start with a fertilizer balanced in its composition of macroelements (eg 20-20-20) and in small quantities. During the summer, or in any case during the entire phase in which the plant is in full vegetation, it is advisable to use a fertilizer with a high content of phosphorus and potassium and avoiding or reducing as much as possible the supply of nitrogenous fertilisers. Already in autumn and throughout the winter, when the plants are in vegetative rest, the supply of fertilizers is useless or even harmful.
Multiplication
The multiplication can take place via gamica (from seed) or via agamica (from cutting or grafting). By seed, in spring, using the fresh seeds produced by the previous year's flowers. These should be soaked in water overnight: those that are still viable will swell while the others can be thrown away. After which they must be placed in containers filled with a mixture of sand and peat in equal parts, taking care to plant them with the membranous wing facing upwards without the latter being covered. The compote should be kept slightly damp, without excessive watering and preferably in a very sunny location where the temperature does not drop below 18-20 degrees. Germination occurs in about 2-3 weeks. The negative aspects of plants produced from seed is that they usually flower 2-4 or more years after sowing, and furthermore, the flowers are hardly the same as those of the mother plant. For this reason, however, seed reproduction is used in the search for new hybrids and varieties. The multiplication by cuttings is done by taking at the end of the dormant period (therefore at the beginning of spring) a portion of the apical branch no less than 30-40 cm long, making a clean cut, preferably obliquely. The cuttings thus collected must be dried in a dry and warm place for at least ten days (depending on the variety these can remain viable even for a year) before being buried in a mixture rich in sand; also in this case the soil must be kept moist, but without soaking it too much, to avoid harmful root rot of the new seedlings. Unlike seed plants, from cuttings instead, specimens identical to the mother plant are obtained and also much earlier flowerings; sometimes they manage to flower even the same year. One method of multiplication is grafting, i.e. the insertion of a cutting on a rootstock using mainly the "V-shaped" method. In this way it is possible to create plants that bear different varieties of plumeria in order to have plants with branches that bear flowers of different colors. Grafting is generally used to remedy some intrinsic problems of some varieties. For example for those varieties that root with difficulty or that often have root rot problems. Other methods of multiplication are air layering.
Diseases, parasites and remedies.
Basically plumeria is a very rustic and resistant plant, but in our climatic zone its worst enemies worthy of importance are basically rot: root and apical. This is mainly due to abiotic factors (particularly climatic ones) such as the high environmental and soil humidity associated with low temperatures. These rots, if not diagnosed in time, can also lead to the death of the plant. The only real remedy is prevention: it is therefore advisable to carefully take care of the drainage of the pot (preferably earthenware), and to keep the soil porous and draining; in the winter period, if possible, place the plants in dry, well-ventilated environments and where the temperature does not drop below 10 degrees (especially for those more susceptible varieties). finally, if possible, or if it is difficult to create the conditions mentioned above, carry out a treatment with a broad spectrum fungicide. In case the rot is noticed late, when it is already underway, and the plant has not been able to compartmentalize the rot, it is necessary to cut the rotten part until the trunk is clean and subsequently treat with a fungicide broad spectrum (this if the rot affects the apical part of the plant). In the case of root or basal rot, also in this case, cut the rotten part at the base until clean wood is found. With the apical part healthy it is possible to recover cuttings with which to make new plants. Other parasites that frequently colonize plumerias in our environments are the spider mite (Tetranychus urticae), some forms of scale insects, Mectalfa pruinosa, aphids and more rarely thrips. The most feared and widespread is certainly the red spider mite which occurs mainly in the hottest and most humid periods. The initial symptoms are the silvering on the upper page starting from the central vein of the leaves, which gradually spreads over the whole page up to the margins and the consequent yellowing of the same. This is due to the fact that the spider is equipped with a buccal stylet which it uses to suck the contents of the cells, emptying them completely; the tissues thus depleted of the green chlorophyll gradually turn yellow. Tetranychus is difficult to see with the naked eye because the dimensions of the adult females are less than half a millimeter, they produce a thin layer of cobwebs on the upper page which can be seen by looking at the profile of the page against the light. One of the possible methods of biological control involves the use of a natural antagonist and predator which is Phytoseielus persimilis, also belonging to the family of mites which is capable of destroying large colonies in a short time. Alternatively, it is possible to resort to traditional fight methods using special acaricides commonly found on the market. Mealybugs, aphids and Mectalfa pruinosa are also insects with sucking mouthparts which, however, unlike the spider mite, do not draw on the surface cells, but suck directly from the lymphatic vessels of the plant. In this way they remove nourishment from the plant to satisfy their needs, but since the sap is mostly made up of sugars, the part exceeding their needs is expelled forming a sticky layer of honeydew on the plants. This subsequently becomes the ideal substrate for the development of pathogenic and non-pathogenic fungi. In this case it is possible to intervene in prevention by avoiding excesses of nitrogenous fertilization which favor the development of tender and succulent tissues easily attacked by insects, or with infestations in progress with common insecticides available on the market. A simple method can be to treat the plant with a solution of soap and water and then wash the plant well.
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