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nauticalcoasts

Any transplant shock advice for a newbie?

nauticalcoasts
10 years ago

Hello! I just potted my rooted plumeria with an inflo on Friday (May 17). The next day the leaves were drooping and they are today as well. My flower has opened up some more, so I am hoping this is a good sign. I watered it yesterday with a 1/4 of the recommended amount of 15-30-15 fertilizer. I am going tomorrow to look for some superthrive. Are there any absolute things NOT to do when a plumeria is in transplant shock? And also, what should I do to ease it out of it? Thank you!

Comments (5)

  • disneyhorse
    10 years ago

    It seems the advice with these plants is to be patient and let them be with no fussing for a bit. It tends to work for me so far.
    The rooted cuttings I got had all the leaves removed so I can't tell if they were shocky or not, but within a week have started to grow little leaves from the tips.
    I hope your plant perks up soon!

  • xerophyte NYC
    10 years ago

    When plants are uprooted what happens is that many of the fragile fine rootlets die. Since they are responsible for maintaining water balance, the plant goes into shock which is fancy for dehydration.

    Succulents tolerate it well since they are resistant to temporary droughts. Plumeria are pretty resilient too. Flowering is a metabolically expensive activity so blooms will be the first thing to suffer when conditions aren't adequate. Leaves will droop because they lost water pressure. More leaves = more likely to see signs of desiccation, etc.

    To minimize transplant shock and get a quick recovery, you want to provide conditions that will allow new roots to quickly grow. In the case of Plumeria there is probably nothing better than heat and humidity. Damaged roots are prone to fungal attack when the soil is wet. Damaged roots cannot absorb water from the soil very well, so wet soil stays wet and leads to rot. It is safer to keep soil on the dry side at least for a couple of days.

    If you can provide warmth and good light, then a week or 2 is enough time for a healthy plant to recover. If you can't, then err on the side of caution and water carefully.

  • nauticalcoasts
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thank you so much. This is extremely helpful! (:

  • PRO
    the_first_kms2
    10 years ago

    I like to keep them on the dry side for 1-3 weeks if they have shock. Also I will place them in a part sun or part filtered sun during that time. Once there is new tip growth I will reintroduce to full sun slowly.

    Since its transplanted and may be weak and dehydrated you can also stake it to help keep or improve its posture and shape.

  • nauticalcoasts
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thank you everybody! My plant is doing well now, however, it did reject its inflo after a week or two. I did get some blooms so I'm not completely upset. The plant is doing fine now and I will remember this experience and all this amazing advice next time I get a plant shipped bareroot with an inflo!

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