Hey NC,
Actually back in the early 2000's thru 2006 some of the very hard to get exclusives like JL's stuff went for over 500.00 for a cutting. I think the HIGHEST price I saw was for JL Tidal Wave rooted and sold in the high $600 range, think 680.00 by Becky Sue.
So actually prices have come down dramatically as there are more retail resources for Plumeria. Back in the early 2000's most of the hard to get stuff and exclusives were sold via Ebay and set precedence for sellers to mark up retail prices. Examples where Bill Morange cuttings were in the 80.00 range, ACW from Rick stone over 100.00, etc.

If your looking for some deals you may want to hit plumie people who already have plants that might sale, some will not ship though so you need to take that into account like Irene Jones.

Good Luck on your plumie hunt :)

So are the JL's cultivars expensive because there are not many around or are they that exceptional??

I don't have an JL plants so I don't know. I wouldn't dare pay that much for a plant since I have no idea if I can keep them alive! Would it be cheaper if say I hop over to Hawaii and buy from there?

NC,
Actually it wasn't just JL, it was a trend back in early 2000 as bidding on Ebay drove prices really high. Now there are sooooo many cottage industry sellers and Nurseries that sell not to mention the cheap deals you get on Plumies from HD and Lowes because of bulk price they get. So basically in the early 2000 through 2006 prices were high based on availability and the ability of some buyers to pay super high prices. 2006 on there were a lot more sellers and Home Depot started selling cheap plumies and basically all the high roller spenders bought everything they wanted and were full up. Once the High Spenders cut back on their spending the people who were buying wouldnt or couldnt pay the high prices. Even Jungle Jack when they first sold Retail plumies were really expensive like a 1 gal Gina or Jenny with 3 tips was like 100.00. John has since adjusted prices to reflect the current buyers.

I was one of the crazy's in the early 2000 who bought a ton of JL stuff and hard to get plumies. I will still spend on an exceptional and rare plumie but I am not as obsessed in just buying anything, more because I am out of space in my patch..lol

Oh wow... I get it now. Well I'm glad I didn't get into Plumies in the early 2000s. So they are a bargain now compare to then.

How many plants do you have now? And since you just mentioned running out of space... I'm a little worried about space myself. Most of my plants are 5 gal with a few 2 gal but I have no idea how big they will get! So what do you do when they get too big to fit in your back yard?? Where we are we don't get a big yard.

NC,
Actually Ive bought more then I can count, but at my highest I had close to 600 plants,3 in the ground trees, 40gal down to 1 gal pots and no repeats all different cultivars. Back when I had that many plants I was living in Palos Verdes and had almost an acre lot and also kept the rest at my apartments I own since there is property/yard in the front and side and its all fenced/gated off with video and sighns. When I moved in 2007 I had downsized my collection to about 200 and moved all my plumies to my patch aka apartments as the plumies didnt work with my new landscaping. I actually own 2 complexes next to each other and use both properties. I now decreased my collection to about 127 or so. I only kept the best of the best. If I buy a new plumie I kick one out, so this year I bought a Kukiat Fantasia from Doug J and thats it and kicking out University Hawaii Orange.

Ive moved again and am not going to stay long term here, I am renting out my other house and will move back there after. Where I am living now in Holmby hils I am on 2 1/2 acres but the winters are not as mild as in the South Bay and again the plumies do not work with the more traditional gardens and I do not want the dropping (leaves and flowers) messing up the yard or pool.

Oh ic... well my 20+ is not out of control yet. But perhaps I should stick to just the best of the best like you said. Then I won't need to worry about space! :)

Yup...best way to control space and $$$. I use to give my plants SnG triple strength 2x a week along with ST and all this other stuff and they would grow double the size they should n a season. Now I do not use anything except for a mild feeding as to slow down their growth.
When people first start collecting they want big plants/trees, but once they start running out of space then they regret all their impulse buying..lol

Well luckily for me I'm rather picky even for a beginner. Scent, looks, and named cultivar or hard to find... or they don't get to come home with me. :)

James is so right on. Just imagine the size of a VW bug. Then figure how many VW bugs you could fit where you want plumerias. If you are planting in the ground that is the space needed in a decade and a half. In 50 years you need about 100square feet per tree. These are trees in case you didn't realize, but they only grow about a foot or two a year. I was like James, buying hundreds and now running out of room and readjusting for the growth.

Oh no!! I am already up to 29 and I have 4 cuttings. Shoot!! I guess in a few years I will have to let some go in order to make room for all my favorites. Well I still got a few years to enjoy them... Thank you for that visual Bill!

LOL..Hey Bill!!
That is the first time I ever heard any one use a VW Bug..lol
Ill have to remember and use it if its ok with you .
Cheers

NC, you may have to forget you ever heard the name "Viola G." It'll be years, maybe a decade before any cuttings are available to anyone, even those close to the owner of the cultivar.

I can tell you the reason it's hard to find Makaha Sunn is probably because it's a bear to root, like Bill Moragne. Try Carol at FC for MS. She may have it in limited numbers, and it this case, grafted may be better than rooted as I hear it can black-tip.

James, you and Bill always have good insights on these things. We appreciate the experience you guys bring to the forum.

I'm happy to say that NC has managed to collect as many plants in one season as I have in three, lol! Of course, I'm not counting my seedlings...

Jen

Jen,

LOL... you have not heard what I bought this week on Ebay. Many apologies if I swiped your plants folks... but this girl is on a mission! Once I get everything on my list I can sit back and admire.

The damage alone this week:

Vera Cruz Rose
Jeannie Moragne
JL Pink Pany
Makaha Sunn
Bill Moragne
Donald Angus
Kimo

I accidentally bought a Duvachelle CUTTING. What am I going to do with that? I guess I can practice to see if I can root it. :)

What I really really want now are

JL Metallica
JJ Viola G
Lani
ET Lemon Drop
CA Sally

I really should shift my focus and try to find ingredients for Al's gritty mix. But thus far it sounds near impossible to find. Like yesterday I ran to a few stores to look for Foliage Pro and NONE of them carry it. I ended up ordering from Amazon of all places!

No clue

You ARE on a mission. You got the addiction bad dont you, LOL

Mike

Mike.. my family is very worried about me. I think if I don't stop soon...they will think I have gone off the deep end. Considering I do NOT have a green thumb and I never gardened before in my life until this April when I went to the Spring Flower show. I keep saying just a few more and I'm done for now. Then you guys post something and it's all over. Zero self discipline!

Next week I'm taking a girlfriend to JJ's (well she's going to be my driver). I want to see if she will get hooked too. LOL

NC,
Actually You may want to go to C Stars Nursery in Gardena as they have 1 gal rooted Vera Cruz Rose and many varities.
C Stars has some beautiful seedlings of their own also.

Good Luck

Freak... I got one on Ebay last night... so I got Vera Cruz. Thank you for thinking of me!

Now if you run across these please give me a shout. :)

JL Metallica
JJ Viola G
Lani
ET Lemon Drop
CA Sally

If C-Stars has VCR, has anyone seen it at Lowes or Armstrong?

it's the same with any plant, new ones are desirable and not available so price goes up. It is not a bit unusual to see daylilies going for hundreds of dollars! Brugmansia were going for over a hundred dollars....
We have no grass, plants hang on fences, in trees, the roof of the porch is covered, the decks have plants, plants in front of windows, plants in the alley, the hellstrip....there is always room for one more lol!
Tally HO!