Ok I have gone and done it

11 years ago

I killed the rest of my cuttings! That's it I give up. I will never buy or accept another cutting EVER again!

Yesterday was beautiful so I decided to take the cuttings out side but then I promptly forgot to take them back inside at night. Temps dipped to 50 overnight. This morning when I remembered and went outside they were moist so not sure if it was frost or dew or what. So now it's just a matter of time before they die right?

My first winter has not been good. So far I have lost 3 plants due to rot with 3 more losing a branch and now my 3 cuttings. At least with the cuttings that was my fault. I am going to wait and make sure the rest wake up and healthy before I offer them up for sale. I am going to give up a lot. Too stressful and too sad when I kill them so they are better off with folks who know what they are doing! :(

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Comments (14)

mksmth zone 7a Tulsa Oklahoma
11 years ago
Dont give up!! 50 degrees wont kill a cutting even 40 shouldnt. The ones you left out should be just fine. Why do you think they are dead. Dew and frost are totally different and I really doubt you had any frost with temps that warm.

Hang in there.

Mike
beachplant
11 years ago
relax, those temps won`t phase them and neither will a little dew or even rain.
Happy Spring!
Tally HO!
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mimalf
11 years ago
Last night it was quite warm here for this time of the year, don't despair! I don't know much about cuttings, just starting with plumerias now, but I wanted to encourage you. :)
jandey1
11 years ago
Relax, Lynn, you're just suffering from a case of frangipanic.

A little moisture, especially dew, shouldn't be enough to hurt them, nor will 50 degrees. Just squeeze near the base of the cuttings every few days to see if there are any changes in the firmness and get them back into a more controlled, warmer climate for now. Don't give up until you feel actual rot!
Carol love_the_yard (Zone 9A Jacksonville, FL)
11 years ago
Aw, come on. Mine spent the winter outside and we hit 28 degrees F for over 8 hours. 50 degrees is a big nothing.
elucas101
11 years ago
****Clap, clap, clap**** (Crowd cheers) I'm giving jandey a huge round of applause for the word 'frangipanic'.

Added to vocabulary.
Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
11 years ago
I too enjoyed 'frangipanic'.
We should start dropping that casually in conversations and see if it gets picked up by the mainstream. ;)

-Robert
ProudMamaSD
11 years ago
So clever, Jen!!!!

No Clue, your cuttings probably enjoyed the added moisture, no worries!

Wendy
Loveplants2 8b Virginia Beach, Virginia
11 years ago
I agree,,

BRAVO!!! JEN!!!!

Lynn.. you do need to realize that we all have had our share of losses. It happens. That is how we learn, i know you don;t like to see them die or have issues, but not all is lost. You have a great collection. Enjoy and know that those cutting didn't suffer like the above posters have mentioned. I have left things out in temps even lower than you and even hotter than your area.. We learn. We move on... We succeed.. We have beautiful blooms...

Please don't give up!!! ;-)

Take care,

Laura
jandey1
11 years ago
Thank you all! I don't know if I saw that word somewhere years ago or what, but I also love it!

Lynn, I woke up last night at 2:30 to the sound of the house being pelted by hail and shaken by serious winds. The outside temp was in the 40's and pea-sized hail was in drifts on the deck!

When I checked outside this morning, the only damage was one little adenium had fallen over in its pot. Everybody else looks good, though I had kept the cuttings I'm trying to root inside. The newly-rooted plumies outside all look fine so far, even after their first Texas hailstorm.

Don't worry too much, you'll get the hang of it!
powderpuff
11 years ago
Don't feel bad, I lost 20 and they weren't cuttings. They were rooted and had 2 seasons growth. I did everything right, let them go dormant in the garage, kept them dry, it was never below 55, opened the garage door on warm days, made sure they had circulation, nothing mattered. They rotted and died. Others were fine.

Of course many of the ones that didn't make it were pricey ones. :(
No-Clue
Original Author
11 years ago
You guys are the best! I was in a funk... and didn't even want to look in on them the last week or so.

Today I went to check and so far the cuttings seem fine. One is still very firm and the other somewhat wrinkled up the top but otherwise ok. I'm tempted to give it a drink of water but I will resist the temptation.

The rest of the plants are doing ok outside except for Texas Aggie...she looks like she got root rot. I just came to terms with the fact that despite my best efforts some will die and some will make it. Hopefully those who do will acclimate to our climate and do well. If not I'm just going to have to buy more right? LOL

As always thank you for your words of wisdom and support. You guys are amazing!

Lynn
PRO
the_first_kms2
11 years ago
OK...props on the lexicon. Glad you got some rain. None here.

Lynn,
They are tougher than we think. It's easy to get wrapped up in creating "perfect" conditions when leaving them alone 90% of the time will give almost as good of results.
powderpuff
11 years ago
I lost my Texas Aggie too. Maybe it's just fussy. I attribute many of my losses this past winter to the fact that they were in the ground and I dug them up late in the season(October) and moved them 350 miles north of the Keys.

This post was edited by powderpuff on Fri, Apr 12, 13 at 11:00