For Nurseries
Do you own a Nursery and love helping the home gardener find their perfect frangipani mate?
One who loves taking on DIY projects? Then at Frangipani Magic, we have just the beauty you seek, providing your customers with semi-advanced trees to create a bloomin lovely garden that will be the envy of their neighbours. Our semi-advanced trees are an ideal selling point if customers have a small space and are limited in size. We recommend our multi-grafted frangipani as it is as colourful and vibrant as the rainbow. But we also stock various varieties so avid, or amateur gardeners can plant their favourite colour or colours. So next time you think of stocking up on something timeless, extra special and magically fragrant, let us help you establish a collection of our stunning frangipanis that will keep your customers coming back time and time again. And, of course, the more you order, the more cost-effective it is.
MULTI-GRAFTED FRANGIPANI - LIVING BOUQUET
These unique multi-grafted advanced plants feature two or three different flower types selected from the Fancy Frangipanis collection.
Each flower type in the multi-graft range has been selected for their superb fragrance, synchronised long flowering and complementary flower display. The new multi-grafted range has been 10 years in the making, creating showy living bouquets, reminiscent of a perfect tropical sunrise or sunset.
Floating in a water-filled bowl, pinned in your hair, made into floral leis or featured in a prominent garden position for all to enjoy, the flowers of these unique multi-grafted frangipani plants epitomise a love of the tropics.
Classic Range - INDIVIDUAL PLANTS SINGLE FLOWER TYPE
Plants are grown from the Fancy Frangipani Collection at our plant nursery in Bundaberg Central Queensland. Fancy Frangipanis has over 300 different frangipani flower types in its collection with a breeding and selection program that commenced in 2005.
The selected Plumeria Rubra, frangipani flower types in this introductory offer are long-lasting, beautifully perfumed and will produce large bunches of flowers throughout the warmer months
FAQs
Potted and container grown Frangipani
Plumeria can be grown to a relatively large size in large tubs
Plumerias also grow somewhat in proportion to the size of the container they are planted in. For example, in a 300mm pot size a plumeria will grow to about 1 meter or so, but in a larger pot, the plant can grow much larger.
Always plant frangipanis at the same depth as they were in the container and keep mulches from touching the base. Their trunks are prone to fungal decay, particularly in cold, wet weather.
To grow frangipanis in containers, particularly plastic pots, use a premium-grade potting mix without added wetting agents or water crystals. Terracotta pots benefit growth. They are porous, which helps drainage while discouraging root-rot.
In addition to this, container-grown frangipanis can become top-heavy. The weight of a terracotta pot can help balance this. Terracotta also warms in sunshine, helping frangipanis succeed in cooler climates.
Growing Plumeria in Australia
Plumeria Rubra and the wide range of hybrids are frost tender, so in Australia it is widely grown in the tropical and sub-tropical areas of Western Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland and in warmer coastal positions in Victoria and South Australia. I have seen specimens growing in glasshouses in Tasmania and New Zealand and in gardens in the North Island of New Zealand.
Growing frangipani in warmer coastal climates
Plumeria is a common ornamental in yards and other planned landscapes. It is easy to grow in hot, dry areas and is found in Australia from sea level to the mountain ranges in warmer parts of Australia. It requires full sun and grows best in well drained, slightly acidic soil. It has moderate wind resistance and salt tolerance.
To flower well, Plumerias require at least a half-day of direct sun, but they perform best in full sun.
Prevent mulch from touching the base of frangipani trunks, as otherwise you are encouraging basal rot to occur during wet weather.
6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight is needed for good blooming of your plumeria. Some varieties require some shade from the hot inland sun in the summer months.
Growing frangipani in cooler frosty climates
Plumerias are very sensitive to frost and if grown in containers they can be moved inside when night temperatures in autumn start to drop below 10 DegC. If conditions indoors allow for continued growth, provide water on a regular basis, but only after the soil becomes moderately dry. If conditions are less than ideal, allow the plant to go dormant for the remainder of winter. During this time, plumerias require no water or light. All the leaves will be shed and the plant will resemble a defoliated tree limb or a stick, and will rest until spring. Move outdoors only after all danger of frost is past and night temperatures stay above 10 DegC.
Always plant frangipanis at the same depth as they were in the container and keep mulches from touching the base. Their trunks are prone to fungal decay, particularly in cold, wet weather.
The further south you live in Australia and the further inland you grow frangipanis the more important warmth, drainage, sunshine and frost protection become for establishment.
Planting near masonry walls, buildings or in paved areas provides shelter from wintry winds and reflects warmth. Frangipanis grow about 30–60cm a year, depending on climate and care. Frost kills shoot tips, and damaged tissue can decay, leading to dieback. This is not fatal but spoils appearances and reduces flowering. Cut back affected stems to a healthy branch in spring.
In cooler areas it is still possible to grow frangipani if the microclimate around the house is warm. Radiating sun and heat from brick paving, walls or mirrors will help the frangipani withstand cooler winters, so keep them close to the house.
Where are these plants grown?
We have been collecting and breeding frangipanis now for over 15 years with mother stock plantings in Tully North Queensland and Bundaberg. FrangiMagic is the nursery arm of our frangipani business and has been given the rights to commercialise and grow the named frangipani varieties as they become available from FancyFrangipanis. Our stock gardens provide the planting material going forward to support the nursery potted plant operations.
In recent times we have entered a joint venture arrangement with the Forrest Family who have large wholesale nurseries in Bundaberg and Western Australia. This arrangement allows us to ramp up the production of a unique range of plants from the frangipani collection.
The stock that is developing in this arrangement will range from 200mm to 200L with a focus on innovative products such as the multigrafted frangipanis with three different flower types branded Sunrise Magic.
We dispatch plants from Bundaberg Weekly with services running plants from Bundaberg to all parts of Australia. Landscapers and Nurseries like to keep plants on hand to meet customer demand for plants required for ongoing project activities.
How to prune Frangipani?
Pruning is easiest in winter, following leaf drop, but heavy pruning sacrifices the spring blooms. Stems that are shrivelled and bent or damaged can be removed back to their juncture with a main branch and destroyed.
Many old trees in home landscapes have responded well to the pruning practice known as stag horning in Australia. Stag horning is a method in which a framework of branches is established with yearly pruning back on each main limb to a point where sub branching resembles a stag horn shape.
This head develops several growing points because of the pruning, and each year a new group of shoots is produced. In plumeria, the new shoots may develop flowers late in the year if stag horning is done during the dormant season. Stag horning during the summer growing season will produce a series of short branches that will not set a flower head but will go dormant in autumn and grow out as longer branches the next year, many of which will flower in late summer.
Prune or wound dressing is available from most hardware stores such as Bunnings and when applied protects the cut surface as it heals, and a new growth of cells and bark covers the cut surface.
Thinning out 15 to 20 percent of the canopy of your mature frangipani is good to do every few years; it opens the branches, allows light in, and reduces stem rot.
Occasionally, you may need to prune your frangipani to restrict size, tidy a broken branch or to remove an inconvenient branch. On older trees, look for any branches that have started rubbing or crossing over, or have stopped producing foliage or flowers, and remove them.
How to water Frangipani
For best growth and flowering in the landscape, irrigation is needed during dry periods of the growing season.
Keep the soil evenly moist during the summer growing season but allow some drying to occur in between thorough watering’s. Always avoid soggy conditions, as this could lead to root rot. On the other hand, excessive dryness will result in yellow leaves and foliage loss.
But be careful not to over-water frangipanis as they prefer to be on the dry side and too much water can prove disastrous
Water regularly to help plants
establish during the summer growing season but allow plants to go dry in between watering’s. Never saturate soil. After the first season following planting, your frangipani may need infrequent watering’s during summer conditions if little rain autumns to improve root system development and uptake of nutrients to aid in growth and strong seasonal flowering.
Water is very important to your plumeria. Your plant must have enough water in the summer months. Without adequate water your frangipani could go into a suspended state or dormancy. The plant will abort flower stalks and the leaves will drop. Watering depends on the daytime temperature and humidity; a good balance is essential. Plumerias do not like standing water, do not use a catch bowl under a potted Plumeria.
When the plant drops its leaves in the cool autumn and winter months cut back watering. Give it only enough water necessary to keep the soil slightly moist. Mist the stem if it begins to look wrinkled.
Plumeria should almost be treated like cactus or succulent. The major thing that can go wrong with growing frangipanis is that people tend to over water their plants.
Feeding Frangipanis nutrients is important
Fertilize plumeria with a high analysis NPK a couple of times during the growing season at about 100g per 25mm of trunk diameter, distributing the fertilizer evenly within the growing area under the tree canopy and extending just beyond the canopy or foliage line
A regular fertilization program with a formulation high in phosphorus will produce vigorous plants with large clusters of flowers that generally appear from early summer into autumn. “Blossom booster” fertilizers give excellent results.
Avoid fertilizers just high in nitrogen, which tend to produce leggy plants with few blooms. Feed every other week during the growing season but discontinue in late summer to allow the new growth to harden off prior to winter.
A well-fed frangipani makes a more robust, disease-resistant plant and fertilisers that have a balanced micro-nutrient supplement are ideal.
Although in fertile soils frangipani rarely need feeding, they will flower bigger and better than ever if you spread some fertiliser around the drip line (under the branches) during spring and summer.
Minor pests and diseases of Frangipani.
Plumerias are fairly resistant to insects and diseases, though spider mites will sometimes infest buds and new growth, especially indoors when conditions are hot, and the humidity is low. Spider mites can be controlled with forceful sprays of cool water that are strong enough to knock them from the plant. If need be, low toxicity sprays can be used.
Frangipani rust, Coleosporium plumeriae, was first detected in Queensland in 1993 and has now spread to many parts of Australia. Look for masses of tiny yellow-orange spots on leaf undersides during spring to autumn. Mature spots, called pustules, release spores that dust foliage below. Infected leaves autumn early. Remove and dispose of the infected leaves in the garbage because they are a source of reinfection. Frangipani rust is not fatal to a tree and helps in some cases to drop leaves ready for winter. Spraying early with sulphur or a copper-based fungicide helps control it but will not eliminate the problem.
A black sooty mold develops on stems and leaves when scale insects, whiteflies, or mealybugs are present. These insects exude a sweet, sticky honeydew upon which the fungus flourishes. Although unsightly, the fungus does not harm the tree (although the insects weaken it). Ants nourish the insects and carry them up into the trees. The control for the sooty mould problem lies with control of the insects.
Feeding Frangipanis nutrients is important
Fertilize plumeria with a high analysis NPK a couple of times during the growing season at about 100g per 25mm of trunk diameter, distributing the fertilizer evenly within the growing area under the tree canopy and extending just beyond the canopy or foliage line
A regular fertilization program with a formulation high in phosphorus will produce vigorous plants with large clusters of flowers that generally appear from early summer into autumn. “Blossom booster” fertilizers give excellent results.
Avoid fertilizers just high in nitrogen, which tend to produce leggy plants with few blooms. Feed every other week during the growing season but discontinue in late summer to allow the new growth to harden off prior to winter.
A well-fed frangipani makes a more robust, disease-resistant plant and fertilisers that have a balanced micro-nutrient supplement are ideal.
Although in fertile soils frangipani rarely need feeding, they will flower bigger and better than ever if you spread some fertiliser around the drip line (under the branches) during spring and summer.
When do Frangipanis flower?
Frangipani flowers are tubular, expanding into a “pinwheel” of five petals that averages 50 to 75mm in diameter and may be white, red, yellow, pink, or multiple colors. Flowers of most cultivars are highly fragrant and bloom for extended periods. The hybrids differ in their profusion of blooms, with some producing more than 200 flowers per cluster and others only 50–60 flowers.
With plants starting from cuttings, flowers can be expected within the first year, depending on the original cutting size and the time of year that it was taken.
In Australia plumerias typically begin blooming mid-summer and continue until early autumn. In warmer regions of the country, they may bloom continuously from September through to April, the flowers they produce are incredible. Being related to periwinkles, they have very similar flowers in a broad range of colours, and the fragrances they produce are amazing — from citrus to coconut, jasmine to peach and just about every sweet scent in between.
Most Frangipanis lose their leaves for winter
Most frangipanis grown in Australia are deciduous types, the leaves begin to drop in autumn and during wintertime. New leaves emerge during or following the spring flowering period. P. obtusa and its hybrids can retain their foliage year-round.
When temperatures drop below 10 DegC, plumerias will begin to lose their leaves and go dormant. At that point, in cooler climates and planted in containers they need to be over-wintered, either in the garage or in the house. Once dormant, you don’t want to do anything to them again, which means no watering and no fertilizing.
They may not look much but they will be fine when spring rolls around again. We find them easy growing plants that gardeners all over the country can enjoy, and once you grow them, you will love them just as much as we do.
Leaf drop allows the frangipani to carpet the soil under the plant and build a deep mulch layer that helps to retain moisture in the warmer growing months. This mulch layer protects the new root tips near the soil surface, cycles nutrients that are drawn up during the growing season into the leaves, from deep within the soil profile to enriches the feeder roots near the soil surface during the growing period.
How big do Frangipanis grow?
Frangipanis are slow growing and take time to reach full maturity.
Plumeria is generally a small tree growing to as much as 6 meters. I have had the opportunity to see mature trees in Hawaii that stand over 8m in height and carpet the ground under the trees with beautiful flowers.
Usually the round-headed canopy is often about as wide as the tree is tall however you can prune trees to any shape that you choose.
The Australian hybrids vary somewhat in tree size, compactness, and branching character, leaf and flower size and colour.
The trees reach maturity in about five years in the tropics however they are slower growing in the cooler climates.
Sourcing larger advanced landscape trees is popular when planning a garden feature in cooler locations in Australia.
What soil type do Frangipanis like?
Frangipanis are not fussy and suit a wide range of soils, but well-draining soils are essential. In areas with heavier soils, plant in raised beds with free draining mix or in pots filled with good-quality potting mix.
Waterlogging quickly kills roots, especially in southern Australian winters. Keep cuttings and plants dry in winter. In clay soils, plant trees in a mound 15cm above the surface to help drainage.
Plumerias, roses, citrus trees and fruit trees are happy in soils with pH 6 to 6.5.
Plumeria plants require slightly acidic soil. Constant fertilization can drop the pH by increasing the acidity of the soil. However, if this happens obtain a soil additive from your local hardware that can be added to the soil to increase pH levels.
If plants continue to struggle in clay soils, where it is hard for water to drain away, lift them out and replant into large containers where you can manage their growth and enjoy the flowers.
How to plant Frangipanis
Before planting frangipanis loosen up the soil and add compost or organic matter. For clay soils, work in gypsum at the recommended rate to improve air and water movement. Planting in a mound, about 15cm above the surface, improves drainage in clay.
Transplant during the warm seasons when recovery is fastest. Retain as many roots as possible and firmly stake until strong anchoring roots develop, this usually takes about 12 months.
Always plant frangipanis at the same depth as they were in the container and keep mulches from touching the base. Their trunks are prone to fungal decay, particularly in cold, wet weather.
When planting, dig a hole twice the size of the root ball. Work in organic matter and manures, in heavier soils apply Use an open mix along with one-part soil and one-part compost. Combine the cactus mix and soil at the bottom. Make sure the root ball is 25mm above the soil.
All parts of Frangipani exude milky sap
Take care in handling frangipanis flowers and plant parts as all parts of the plant exude a milky sap when damaged. The sap may irritate eyes and skin.
Frangipanis do have a milky sap that can be irritating on some people’s skin, causing rashes, and minor blistering in extreme cases. If ingested, the sap can cause vomiting and diarrhoea.
Frangipanis in the garden
Frangipanis are a spectacular plant. Their flowers and fragrance bring a romantic feeling to any garden, and they will never go out of fashion because they are drought tolerant.
Despite breeding advances in flower colour and shape, frangipani fragrance remains the true prize. Grow them where you can appreciate their delicious scent, which intensifies at night.
Their size and umbrella-shaped silhouette make frangipanis ideal for landscapes large and small. In summer they cast dappled shade, they line footpaths to create beautiful avenues and they are ideal for framing distant views – perhaps a beach. Use a pair either side of an entrance to create a sense of welcome or employ spotlighting to dramatically illuminate their flowers and shapely form.
Grow them in lawns and let their flowers cover the ground. Their leafless branches in the cooler months allow sunshine to filter through, just right for brightening a patio in winter. Their light canopy can be underplanted with perennials, their forked branches support hanging baskets and their trunks can be used for growing epiphytes, such as ferns, orchids, and colourful foliage plants such as cordylines and bromeliads.
Grown in tubs, frangipanis make colourful pool-side specimens and are ideal for hot or sunny balconies or patios.
Where to plant a Frangipani
Use the shape of the frangipani tree to your advantage in the garden, taking note of its wide umbrella shape. Plant it somewhere you can admire it from up close, near a window or veranda where you can fully appreciate the flowers and fragrance.
Take advantage of the shade it gives which can be a blessing on hot summer days. Plant one on the western side of your house to help shade the house in summer and allow the sun to stream in during winter when the stems are bare.
Plant one at the front gate to welcome you home each day, or beside a quiet pool to create a relaxed scene. They love growing by the beach in sandy soils and are one of the best trees for tolerating salty air along the coast.
Mature frangipanis can grow to around 6m high and 5m wide, although older trees can be taller in tropical climates. They grow slowly, only about 20cm per year. This, along with their small root ball, makes them ideal for planting around pools, in planter beds, containers and beside walls, as there is no fear the roots will harm any structures.
Trees around pools can be trained to tilt from a young age giving the impression the tree is
Frangipanis can flower from October to April, and thrive in well-drained soil, plenty of sun and frost-free conditions.
Contact us today to become a supplier!
If you are a Nursery looking to supply Frangipanis Plants, contact us to get more information on how to become a supplier today
