Your blooms look absolutely GREAT to me!!! You must be doing a lot of things right to even get those blooms! Please post more pics when you can, I'd love to see Allison fully open, but I also love your other 2, they are beautiful!

Nicole,

The forum's been so active of late that I missed seeing your post until today.

Beautiful blooms! Congrats to you! Enjoy them :)

Greg

Nicole, you must be getting some heat because your colors are terrific! Interesting about your experience with baggie rooting.

Hi Nicole,

I think your Thai Temptation is gorgeous.. yes, it is more colorful than the pic that it was posted from. Im sure it is the heat as it does play a major factor on the coloration of the blooms.

Your Little Doxy is just adorable! SIGH.... I love these little guys. They have the best tempermenmt and are just good little companions.. Thank you for the pic!! I love it.

How is the JJ Metallica coming along? I hope it is starting to show some sign of claw activity?

My JJM is repotted from the bottle into a one gallon black container and it is doing fine. The inflo still is growing and i am soooooooooooo excited.

I am sorry to hear of the bag rooting experiment. I have been messing around with different mixes in rooting and im sure you did see the two same cuttings from the same tree..cut at the same time. One in Standard mix and the other in Gritty Mix. The GM had stronger roots and fatter roots, the other mix had good roots as well, but they were finer ones.

So nice to see you.. i was wondering how you were doing.. Hope all is well. Glad to hear that you are having some warm temps now..

Take care,

Laura

Thank you everyone for the kind words:) My growing season still has a LONG way to go before its in full swing! I think I have more blooms than leaves, a very sad sight :(

Jandey- temps are high 90's + I'm thrilled. My rooting experiment was a disaster, huh? LOL I know so many who do a great job with baggies. Just not me :) At least I didn't kill any of the cuttings!

Thank you Greg, I've lived vicariously through your photos while I waited and waited for something to happen in my part of the world.

Emily I'll try to post an updated pic of Allison, so far because my temp's are so high the flowers aren't lasting but a day or so and they aren't fully opening.

Laura :)
My Metallica is doing great! Well it's not like it has an inflo or anything(wink)but it is putting off two branches as I suspected it would. So you have to post lots of your Metallica blooms for me:) On the bad side I have my first case of black tip on an Oragne Splendour I just bought :( Can you believe I have never had black tip on any of my plants before. It was recommended I treat with alcohol and if that doesnt work a type of spray for Roses. Bummer.

I need to move to the gritty mix I was so impressed with the root size in your photos!

Thank you for the compliment on my "dog flower" LOL

Last note a HUGE thank you to everyone who ever encouraged me to purchase Wildfire. A single bloom opened yesterday and WOW what a gorgeous red. I tried to take a pic but as everyone here knows the red's are hard to capture. Love this one!

I look forward to looking at(and drooling over) everyones bloom pics! Summer is here, yay!

Nicole :)

Hi Nicole,

I too had an unusual experience with bag rooting. 1 of many (Guillot's Sunset) put out a fat root that showed through the bag. The others began to grow inflos and small claws, but I too gave up. Once I potted up and put in the sun... things picked up. I'll never bag root again. I have two that have stalled since potting, Siam Ruby and Candy stripe, I cut the Siam's beautiful blooms/inflo and am hoping for better action soon.

Good luck to you!
Wendy

Nicole...

Everything looks great!!!

You know what you are doing... : ) Keep working on the rootings. You will find a method that you like best.

My LL Metallica has grown and will probably open in a few weeks or less.. YEA!!!

Love your dog... sooooooooooo cute!!

Take care,

Laura

A few more to share....

Wildfire...love, love and impossible to capture the real color. It is now developing an almost black edging in the heat :)

An almost spent bloom of Wildfire the colors are incredible!

JJ Sparkle, the colors haven't really developed yet.

JL Allison, it became so hot so fast that the flowers aren't fully opening and are lasting a day a best.

Last but not least, the reason you never sniff a bloom without looking first :)

Happy growing everyone!

Nicole

Your blooms are incredibly gorgeous, great job over there!!! I had to laugh at the "look before you sniff" picture - I've stuck my nose a lot closer to some bugs lately than I would like! That little guy sure picked a beauty to hang out on, that one is so pretty!

Thank you Emily! Its a "work in progress" LOL Can you believe the bloom with the spider is the Thai Temptation? Same flower as in the pic I posted at the top. It has changed so much. Then again 100+ degrees can do that :) Now to keep my trunks from burning(thank you for paper towel rolls). First I hope for sun and leaves and then it becomes an inferno and everything wants to burn...LOL Did I mention I get snow at least once every year? Its all worth it, right?

Take care

Nicole

Oh wow! I didn't realize they were the same flower, that's really cool! I love how they can change so much and surprise you time after time! It also make plumie ID a very tricky matter!

And yes, all worth it! LOL! I had a moment that was extremely satisfying the other day that I'll share with you - my boyfriend sees me putting a lot of time and care into my plants and sweetly teases me about it but of course it's hard to make someone understand these things sometimes...we all get those blank looks and "uh-huh, okay"s from our significant others, right?...well I had gone to take a nap and apparently he had decided to go smell a bunch of flowers that had bloomed because when I woke up he told me they were some of the best smelling things he had ever smelled. He said they were so sweet they smelled like honey (which I don't get but I think it's amazingly great he said that) and then he said he was thinking of maybe taking a couple of flowers to his mom to smell next time he went over there!!! I'm still shocked!!!

Oh no!! What is this WILDFIRE flower?? I thought I was done as stick a fork in me but now that I just saw the pic of the Wildfire and my heart just skipped a beat.

That flower is stunning! Please do tell... what is the scent like? Thank you for posting that. LOVE IT!

Emily-that is the sweetest story. I think you may have a plumie addict in the making! Strangely enough it was the plumeria fragrance that captured the interest of my DH as well. And listen to this one... DH noticed that I had 2 packs of plumeria seeds(freebies with a cutting purchase)and repeatedly asked me what I was going to do with them. Long story short, he has adopted and successfully grown 11 plumeria seedlings...LOL he treats them like children. I think I may soon have competition for space in the yard. The funny thing is I'm not getting the "oh another box arrived for you", commments. He now asks, "which variety is that one?" LOL

Never doubt the power of the mighty plumeria! :)

Hello no-clue!

I was "strongly" encouraged by many to purchase Wildfire(I have a thing for reds). Its a stunner!! That picture doesn't show real color at all! I love it! It's new for me this year so its the first time blooming. I got mine from Matt(1-stop-aloha) as a rooted cutting. I know Fuzzy(bloomingplumerias) has listed it as well. Depending on my humidity it gets very dark almost purple-ish with black edges. As you see from above even the flowers that are close to dying are gorgeous.

I'm hoping my other new additions, Musk Rainbow & Metallica give me the same intense color! Still patiently waiting to see Laura's Metallica bloom, mine isn't going to flower this year. Laura got an inflo and I got two branches. I'm going to give her a hard time about that one for a while :)

Take care

Nicole

Oops..I forgot to tell NC about scent... It smells spicy to me(reminds me of Moroccan spices-LOL) but I stink at picking out fragrances :)

Nicole

Oh, my, No-Clue has discovered Wildfire! LOL!

Wildfire was the Holy Grail of reds for many of us in years past as it has not only fierce color but a good scent, too. Some crazy bidding wars have ensued over it, but demand seems to have settled down a bit. It would be a worthy one to get, if you HAVE to break your promise of "no more until after my move", N-C.

Nicole, beautiful pic of WF, you even got the satiny sheen of the petals. Very sweet story of how you quietly turned your DH, too. Love it!

Emily, that's so nice to hear about your sweetheart finally seeing the light, or, er, smelling the scent. Wonder if he'll be eyeing your seeds next. Hm. ;)

"WOW" Nicole, pretty !! I love the wildfire even looks good as it gets old. Wish I was like that :)
You'll have to set up a doggy play date with Laura.
Emily, cute story. Glad he's coming around to your way of thinking. Peg

Ok well you guys got me convinced I NEED Wildfire. I don't have a red! One can't be a proper Plumie addict without a red right??

Nicole you got JL Metallica too? Did you buy the cutting or ROOTED cutting? Matt said it will take 1-2 months before it is rooted and ready to be shipped. So technically I don't have a plant yet... so technically I still can buy one more now and in 1-2 months not buy anymore. See that makes perfect sense to me! LOL

Ok, you guys have me cracking up!

Peg-wouldn't it be nice to age like Wilfire..LOL Love it! Laura and I would get into way too much trouble if we didn't live on different coasts. I think we have the same taste in plumeria :) But we could bring the dogs along for the plumeria hunt:)

Jandey-The darn Wildfire has been on my "hit" list(along with many others) I'm so thrilled to have it! I think I'm going to keep the DH well stocked with seeds. It makes my addiction so peaceful...LOL I'll post a pic of his "plumeria children" if he will let me close enough to them! I'm not even allowed to water them! LOL

NC-I will always be the wrong person to ask if you "need another" I myself have little restraint(although I did skip JJ's open house). If I were moving as I understand you are I would find SOME rational way to justify just one more. Every time I buy a cutting I think of Bill telling all of us about VW's so I visualize that and it still hasn't deterred me as much as I wish. I end up with crazy rationalizations like, "but its just a Hotwheel now"...LOL I'll regret it later and will eat my own words, all the while hearing Bill's warning. I also have lots of space(see how I justify)....but I get snow at least once a year and that means that all my trees come inside during the winter(got rid of the pesky guest room, oh the sun room too..LOL)

With all that being said, if you can find a rational way to justify it. Get Wildfire..LOL Just the fact that you don't own a red, I mean really everyone must have a red!

I do own Metallica, its getting its first leaves. I bought it as an unrooted cutting. Laura got hers about a month before me and she is getting an inflo as we all know, I'm getting branching. Metallica along with Musk Rainbow and Black Tiger were at the top of my list this year and I managed to score them all(plus others but I better not disclose how many I added). That means for me its been a good season!

Each of you are great! Thank you for keeping a smile on my face :)

Nicole

Nicole thank you for posting a picture of Wildfire, I saw your pictures, and ordered one from Emmerson. It came yesterday. Now I just need to wait until they bloom so I can take pictures. Emmerson told me you have to wait until the plumeria blooms 4 times before you can see the true bloom. I had never hear that before. Barbra

Honeybunny,

Does Emmerson have one to sell to me too? I NEED Wildfire NOW! LOL...

Barbra

Congrats on your Wildfire! The picture up there really doesn't show its beauty. I tried like mad yesterday to capture the black veins and edges that are now on the flower with the high temps and wasn't successful.

I've never heard of a 4 year rule but...my blooms do get better every year. Wildfire is new this year for me so I imagine it will only get better. A perfect example is the pic of Kona Candy(another new addition) that I posted which clearly wasn't going to reach its full potential at all. Greg(SFLGPlumie)posted a gorgeous picture of his and it doesn't look like the same flower.

You'll love this one when it flowers for you :) Don't you love how we feed each others addiction....LOL

Take care,

Nicole

Oh Barbra, how do you like Emmerson's? I've never ordered from them before, not like I need another source...LOL Just wondering :)

No-clue I just called Emmerson to see if he had any plants he was able to mail out. He has two Wild Fires, but they are both too big to mail out. He has them loaded tof the PSA sale in Rosenburg Tx this Saturday. I asked his wife Nancy if he had any that he was rooting? She said he would check. I asked if I could post their phone number on the forum, she said yes. I also asked if they can ship plants to Calif and she said yes. Their phone number is 281 471 3641. Emmerson is leaving for the Plumeria Society meeting, but he is still there right now. He may have some that are rooting. The one I got said it was rooted on 3-11-11, it was 14 inch tall and 7/8 thick, I paid approx $30 for each plant and $10 for the postage. Just to give you and idea of the cost. He will only mail out single tip plants, just to let you know. I told him I would have you call him if you are interested. Barbra

Nicole, I really like Emmerson's. They are really nice folks, they told me if I could drive to La Porte, I could get really nice size plants, for about what I paid for ones that he would mail me. He will only mail out single tip plants. I thought what the heck they will grow, and ordered them. The California Sally was 16inhes tall, they are about the size that I get from Florida Colors, but not grafted. They do not have Raspberry Sundae, but the other nursery in Texas does, but I will try to get one at the Corpus PSA Sale on the 21st. Barbra

Thank you Barbra! I'll check them out, despite my self imposed "no more" rule :)

NC-I sent you a message :)

No-Clue, do you want me to see if I can find Wild Fire at the PSA Sale in Corpus on the 21st? Email me as to what you want me to pay, if I can find one. I can always mail it to you. Barbra

Barbra how sweet of you for offering! But is it a cutting though? I don't know if I can root a cutting? Especially one so precious!! But I am soo tempted... for it's a beauty!

N-C, just a warning: Wildfire can be very difficult to root, so you're smart to stay away from cuttings.

My Wildfire came to me "rooted", i.e, with a couple of tiny centimeter-long roots, back in 2010 and has struggled the past couple of years. That's not to say that some folks haven't had vigorous ones, but my experience is that it isn't a great grower and needs a lot of moisture, AND it won't tolerate too much hot sun. Just so you know, for me anyway it lives up to the "fussy red" reputation!

That said, if you want a red I don't think you can find one with a better bloom. You may just need extra patience and luck with this one.

Geez, Barbra, I wish I'd known Emerson had big Wildfires in La Porte. I'm tired of waiting for mine to grow up! Glad you got one; it'll probably love your place at the coast, especially if it's in-ground.

Barbra, if you and I keep going the way we have, there won't be anything we can trade with each other--we'll have all the same stuff, LOL!

Nicole, that cracks me up that your DH is suspicious of your plumeria-nurturing skills when it comes to his own, lol! Bless him, he must really be attached to those babies.

Hi Nativec - your plumerias are so beautiful. I especially love the color of Alison. Thanks for sharing.

Kasie

Nancy said they will not sell cuttings, just rooted cuttings.

Jen, I just checked on mapquest and Rosenberg is only 176 miles from my house. That less than I drive to go to the coast. I think I might just drive down on Saturday, if the Ipod people will not be here. No-clue if I get to go, I will try and get a wildfire, and then I can mail you the one I got. The Ipod folks are suppost to be here this morning, I will ask them. We were burgularized on 7-5th, the Ipod is for our contents while they repair the $11k damage they did to the garage.( safe was bolted to the floor)

Jen none of my plumeria are in the ground they are all in 5 gallon pots. Next year I plan to put the 2 year old plants into the ground, and keep the younger plants in pots until they turn 2. Barbra

Jandey, thanks for the warning... I have no experience in rooting anyway... so what are the chances when it comes to a "fussy red"? Better stick w/ rooted ones.

Barbra sorry to hear that! I hope the Ipod people show up for you today.

If rooted cutting then YES!! PLEASE!! Let me know thank you!!

Ok, I am free Saturday, I called Nancy, the Wild Fire is an instand tree, for $85, but she did not think I could fit it into my Toyota, its too big. She is going to check with Emmerson to see if the other one might is smaller, she is going to call me back. No-clue, I am trying. Barbra

I went on a covert mission to obtain photos of the DH's precious plumeria children. He's doing a good job. Had to snap quickly so he didn't see me moving them...LOL

Good luck everyone with the Wildfire hunt! :)

Barbra, that is a fantastic find!! Much less than I spent on my "instant tree". Hope they have one you can fit in the car. The front seat can always be reclined and the pot and branches braced with cushions and blankets. Yes! You can do it!

N-C, the anxiety that comes with rooting even easier cuttings, for me anyway, is not worth the savings over a rooted plant! Hopefully Barbra can help you out there.

Nicole, they are so cute! Just remind him, tho, what happens to babies after only a short time:

That's approx the same number of seedlings as what your DH has growing now, after only a year. The two dozen or so I had took up most of the breakfast room:

Jandey-Love the photos:) I have attempted to explain to DH that his precious little babies are going to grow up. He's put up with my plumeria addiction for years. This switch of thinking on his part has me completely confused! I'm getting some idea that there might be some competition for yard space:) I don't know if 2 plumeria people can even share the same house! LOL

Thank you for sharing your pics!

Barbra I will take it!! LOL

Can you ship something that large though?? LOL

Nicole, that is tickling me to no end about your DH being interested in plumies now and growing his own seedlings! (they look great, BTW) But the kicker is you not being allowed near them and him being so protective of them AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! No wonder you're confused by this turn of events, I would be reeling if my BF did that! & then just like you I would begin to fear for turf...LOL! Too funny.

Jen, spoken like a pro - "...fold down the seat & cushion with pillows and blankets..." girl, this is not your first rodeo! hahaha! If you ever have a cutting you need to root you can always send it home with me and I'll root it for you - no guarantees but I haven't lost a rooting one yet - *KNOCKS REALLY HARD ON WOOD*

now you know why I drive a convertible, put the top down and anything fits. Suggest getting a bigger one though.
I may run by Emersons on Friday while I'm in LaPorte, gotta work this weekend so will miss the sale. Ya'll head to LaPorte you might as well buzz down to the island and have lunch with me. I have a shovel to help you raid the garden.

Your blooms are gorgeous. I have never tried the bag rooting method, probably just too lazy.
Tally HO!

Beachplant- thank you! And in my opinion your not missing out by skipping bag rooting :)

Emily- I'm officially in trouble. A box arrived today and guess who's name was on it? The DH!!!! What planet am I living on!? He ordered a PLANT! I'm the only one who gets to sneak in boxes! LOL. My turf has officially been breached :(

Hope he ordered a good one...lol. Oh geez I just thought about this...what if it's a duplicate! Oh, no!

Just take the box and make like you thought it was something YOU ordered. Maybe it isn't a duplicate but one you've been longing for. He could possibly forget that he ordered it. (Yeah, right!)

Embrace the "togetherness" thing! LOL

nativec, Are you in trouble !!! I can see it now, 2 addicts, competing against each other in the same house !!! Bidding against each other on ebay and not knowing it !!! No money in the bank. Credit cards to the max, but great vacations to plumeria land."LOL" Peg

Lol Nativec! How fantastic! Whatever you are feeding your dh to make him into a convert please share so I can do the same to my dh. Please share what he purchased.

You ARE in trouble. I met my so at a plant swap! Between our two addictions there isn`t a spot without plants. It`s a fight with trees, will I get them planted before he finds them and turns them into bonsai.
I bought a cool plummie that is the perfect bonsai at Larry`s so we combined our addictions, this does not bode well.
What do we do on vacations? Go to nurseries, garden centers, bonsai gardens....

I may try the bag method next time I order cuttings from somewhere. I`ve only used the method for oleander cuttings.
Tally HO!

No-Clue, I just bought the big Wildfire from Emerson, I am going to pick it up Saturday. That means I can send the 14 inch Wild Fire that was rooted 3-11-11 to you. I paid for 3 plants plus freight $100, so I think I paid $30 for it. Is that ok? I will mail it out to you on Monday, it is in a pot right now enjoying the Texas sun. I am so excited. On the paypal bill, Emerson noted it is the largest plant he was taking to the PSA sale, 4ft tall. I will take a picture of it, and get my son to email it to someone so they can post it on the forum. I just need to get my hubby to remove my cars back seat, so I can get it home. Barbra

Well NC it looks like you have a Wildfire! Congrats and how thoughtful of Barbra.

On the issue of the plumeria turf war-I hid the DH's box to see if he would say something...LOL He did ask and then told me to open it because he got it for me. Just melted my heart. I think I'll keep him a bit longer...LOL

Oh, it was a Katie Moragne(he must have heard me talking about it after I saw the picture here, then did research to find it) Yep, I'm living on a different planet these days. I'm still not confessing what I spent at BBB...LOL or on the Metallica. Some things are better left unsaid :)

"Congrats" Barbra on your new tree. Great find. Have fun getting it home. I know you'll find a way. When we want it bad enough we figure it out. You'll be the envy of everyone there, just like Jen was with her great T.Lemon Drop.

nativec, isn't that sweet. You can't help but love him now! Thanks for the rest of the story :) Peg

Yay, Barbra! Can I come visit your new tree sometime? :)

OMG, Nicole, that story is so sweet I think I have a toothache! What a keeper!

Jen

Nicole you got a good one! Dh that is.

Barbra, I am beyond thrilled! Thank you. I emailed you back. Thanks again. If you ever need me to get a plant from JJ's let me know. :)