Pink Frangipani

The Pink Frangipani (Plumeria rubra) is the tree that makes an Australian summer smell like one. It settles at about 5m tall and 4m wide, carrying heads of soft pink flowers through the warm months with a scent that carries across a courtyard at dusk.

Why you'll love it

• Scent that reaches the whole garden. Blooms open from late spring into autumn and perfume strongly in the evening.
• Roots that stay out of trouble. Non invasive and shallow, so it can go near paving, a pool shell or a boundary.
• A small tree that acts like one. It gives a modest backyard a real canopy without taking the whole garden.
• Tough once established. Drought, heat and salt tolerant, which suits a hot coastal block.
• Sculptural in winter. Bare grey branching through the cool months is a feature in its own right.

Where it works best

Poolside. The classic use. The canopy throws dappled rather than heavy shade, and the flowers drop whole instead of shredding into the water. Allow 2m from the coping.

Feature planting. One tree in lawn or a gravel bed is enough. The open, layered branching reads as sculpture even before it flowers.

Pots. A pot 500mm or wider holds one for years and keeps it nearer 2m to 3m, which is the practical route in cooler districts.

Growing Pink Frangipani in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun, and the more of it the better for flowering. It suits tropical, subtropical and warm temperate gardens. It is frost tender, so Melbourne, Adelaide, Canberra, the tablelands and cold inland districts need a large pot that can move under cover, or a warm north facing wall.

Soil. Free draining above all else. On heavy clay, plant on a mound raised 200mm to 300mm and open the backfill with coarse sand. Wet winter soil causes stem rot.

Water and feed. Water weekly through the first summer, then only in long dry spells, and cut right back over winter. Feed a high potassium fertiliser in early spring and mid summer; too much nitrogen gives soft growth and few flowers.

Pruning. Very little is needed. Shorten branches back to a fork in late winter if you want a denser head. Every cut releases milky sap, so wear gloves.

What to expect when it arrives

Eight sizes are grown. The 200mm pack of six is the value option for a group; single 300mm and 400mm pots are young trees with one or two branches. From 45L through 100L, 200L, 300L and 400L you are buying an advanced tree with a formed head that flowers in its first season.

A plant that arrives leafless in the cooler months is dormant, not dead. Delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost, and every tree carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Our guide to frangipani varieties
• Plants suited to poolside gardens
• The wider fragrant plant range
• Trees with non invasive roots

Common questions

Will it lose its leaves in winter?

Yes, everywhere except the wet tropics. It stands bare for several weeks before new leaves and flower buds push together in spring. That is normal, not a fault.

Why is mine not flowering?

Usually shade or too much nitrogen. It needs full sun for most of the day, and lawn fertiliser drifting into the bed gives leaves at the expense of flowers.

Is the sap dangerous?

The milky sap is an irritant to skin and eyes, so this is not a plant we list as pet friendly. Wear gloves when pruning and wash any sap off promptly.