I wanted to share these tricks I learnt from my friends overseas that grow, as I thought some of you might find it fun to try in spring and summer . I tried the first on all my frangi of the right age , and was rewarded with multiple branches last summer .
POKING -
Poking is done in spring once new life is showing . Its done to encourage branching or flowers on a stubborn tree BUT SHOULD BE DONE WITH CAUTION as any wound on a frangipani can and often does lead to infection and rot so dont recommend doing this to every single branch or plant, and definitely not unless you've had the plant for a number of years with no branching or blooming. If its of flowering age and has flowered well in the past, I DO NOT recommend poking. its really only for if you have never had branches or blooms and is a last resort. I cannot stress this enough, as I know its very tempting to run out and do it to every single branch.
HOW - using a clean toothpick with a sharp point , locate the middle of the tip of frangipani and gently press the toothpick between the new leaves into the very center of the frangipanis tip , with just enough pressure to get the white sap flowing ( be aware the sap is highly toxic to humans and animals so take care ) . the plant will often either branch or produce an inflorescence
TWIRLING-
Twirling is a way to hand pollinate frangi flowers as we dont get a lot of the natural long tongued pollinators here. HOW - attach a thin piece of dental floss a couple inches long to a short stick with sellotape, insert the floss into the frangipani flower and using your fingers , twirl the stick so the floss rotates inside the tubular area , immediately insert the floss into a second flower and twirl , cross pollinating the flowers . watch and wait for twin pods to appear end of season and use a large organza bag to bag them when they do develop .