First-time planters may be alarmed to find their once-healthy Frangipani trees looking far less majestic than usual in the winter months. Never fear, it’s a perfectly natural phenomenon that your plant can easily survive and come back from without any damage.
Basically, the majority of Franipanies grown in Australia are deciduous so they lose their leaves from Autumn to Winter. When the spring flowering period begins, new leaves will emerge and the cycle continues for the entire lifespan of your tree. The exception to this rule can be found in P. Obtusa and hybrids derived from it which don’t lose their leaves regardless of the season.
As temperatures dip below 10 C those leaves will start falling which signals that your plant is going dormant. This process allows trees to carpet the soil with a thick layer of moisture-retaining mulch that could come in handy during the warmer months. It also lets the tree release nutrients it stored in the leaves during growing months to enrich the feeder roots (while protecting new root tips).
If your Frangipani is growing in a container, all you’ll need to do is place it indoors where it can hibernate in peace. It won’t require water, light or fertiliser, just a safe place to rest until it’s time to re-emerge and bloom.
