Coldhardiness and adaptability of Parajubaea sunkha

[merrill]

Some of us have had a pleasant surprise in the growth and survival of Parajubaea sunkha here in North Florida. Tank [if I may speak for him] and I would be very interested in ANY other sunkha experience. Personally, its apparent success was quite unexpected.

So, how is it growing for the rest of you in this general North Florida and Gulf coast vicinity?

Best Wishes,

merrill

[kristof p]

Hi Merrill,

i dont live in North florida or the Gulf coast vicinity and have not yet much experiance with the P. sunkha because my few P. sunkha's are still only at seedling stage but i am also very interested in how it handles cold and humidity...

P. tvt has surprised me over the last two years. they are surprisingly hardy but only in dry conditions. when totaly dry -7/-8°C is not a problem for them!....i always hear good experiances with P. sunkha in humid climates and it would be great if the sunkha can handle the same low temperatures as P. tvt does.

Parajubaea is one of my favorite palms. it looks tropical and it is my fastest growing palm during winter (yes, it grows with my winter temperatures).

everyone who grows P. sunkha in a humid climate (and see some frost/freezing temperatures during winter) please post your experiances..

my experiance so far is that it is slower growing the P. toryalli...

[tank]

Merrill,

I would think that you would have a better chance of it surviving in town than at your location on the west side of the county, in terms of surviving our cold snaps.

[tank]

My P. sunkha seems to be doing great, even after getting smashed by a branch during one of last year's tropical storms.

Also, I would not call this plant slow for me. It produced about 4 or 5 leaves last year.

[kristof p]

Merrill,

I would think that you would have a better chance of it surviving in town than at your location on the west side of the county, in terms of surviving our cold snaps.

how cold are your coldsnaps? i am talking of growing them in Belguim at 50°N but you seem to fear it wont even survive in Florida (our coldsnaps are normaly between -5/-6, exept this winter)

[kristof p]

My P. sunkha seems to be doing great, even after getting smashed by a branch during one of last year's tropical storms.

Also, I would not call this plant slow for me. It produced about 4 or 5 leaves last year.

4/5 leaves is what my P. tvt grows in a year. my sunkha seedlings only grow about 2/3 leaves in a year but they might speed up when they start forming a trunk...i sure hope so. or they may need/like a little more heat than P. toryalli?

[tank]

Merrill,

I would think that you would have a better chance of it surviving in town than at your location on the west side of the county, in terms of surviving our cold snaps.

how cold are your coldsnaps? i am talking of growing them in Belguim at 50°N but you seem to fear it wont even survive in Florida (our coldsnaps are normaly between -5/-6, exept this winter)

I saw about -7 C this year and last year. Folks out in the country on the west side of town reported temps as low as -9 C and possibly lower as you go further west. Fortunately our cold snaps are relatively brief events, without prolonged freezing. I think on the coldest night here this year it was freezing for about 12 hours and was back up to 15+ C by the afternoon

[Eric in Orlando]

We have one growing well. It was grown from seed and planted in 2005.

Here it is in June 2006;

and March 2007, it is a bit bigger now

[kristof p]

Jason,

those freezing temperatures are quite simular to ours (even a bit colder!) . we do sometimes have an iceday (days when temperatures never get above zero) but those are rare and on average we have one such day every winter. main differance is the lenght of a freeze, your maximum daytime temperatures after a cold night and the length of your winter. during the depts of winter we are lucky to get to +5/+6 after a realy cold night...but on a sunny februari day we also can get +15/+18 after a cold night of -6°C/-7°C...

that said, i am very interested in the progres of those P. sunkha's in your or simular climates.

[kristof p]

We have one growing well. It was grown from seed and planted in 2005.

Here it is in June 2006;

and March 2007, it is a bit bigger now

wow, that is some impressief growth ...i does seem to realy like your climate!

[merrill]

Hi, Tank & Christof p:

We've had - 12 C once in Gville, plan to winter the P. sunkha in the greenhouse indefinitely. The greenhouse will probably be too hot in the summer for sunkha, so it may move out of the GH for the last time when the Greenhouse can't be cool enough.

Would really appreciate any experiences on temperature minima survived by P. sunkha.

Best Wishes,

merrill

[Kailua_Krish]

My seedling is doing well in the ground even though I planted it in the middle of the summer rains last year. As far as cold hardiness I cant really vouch because it is planted near to my house.

Krish

[PalmGuyWC]

It seems like there are a lot of Parajubaeas spread around now. It will be interesting to see how they do in different locations. All of mine have come through the winter OK, so far. Mine virtually stop growing in the winter time, but it's been chilly and cool here.

Dick

[merrill]

Gentlemen:

Parajubaea sunkha seems to do well in No. Fl. and S. Ga. I urge growers to try it more generally in this area. Many Thanks for your responses.

merrill

Edited March 9, 2009 by merrill

[Kailua_Krish]

Finally I got a photo of mine. After how cold it got this year (for the first time in many years we had damage on plants against the house) it didnt even have the slightest damage. I planted this last summer in July or August and it has grown slowly but steadily since then. It is planted in a raised mound or sand, palm/cactus Miracle Grow, and limestone chunks and has the house on one side and a cement sidewalk on the other. It faces north.

[gyuseppe]

my friend who lives in my city, has a parajubaea sunkha 2+ meters high.

[JasonD]

I planted one in my backyard with undivided leaves last fall and it's gotten spotty on the older leaves but continues to push green new leaves slowly and feels strongly rooted. The soil is almost pure sand, very difficult to keep moist. It has been fertilized and gets 4-7 hours of sun, depending on the season. So far, it's not perfect, but no palm will be with my soil and moisture conditions. Even Brahea edulis is slow and a little haggard-looking.

[merrill]

Hi, gyuseppe

I'm sure we would all appreciate a photo of your six foot Parajubaea sunkha. Any photos would be appreciated by all, I imagine.

Best Wishes,

merrill

[Alberto]

This is one of my four sunkhas (april 2006)

[Alberto]

Same palm:Nov 2008.....and it has grown more since then.....

Edited April 15, 2009 by Alberto

[Jeff zone 8 N.C.]

Alberto, that's great growth in 2 1/2 years. I hope mine grows that fast but they are still in pots. Great picture with the cute kids in front of that palm.

Same palm:Nov 2008.....and it has grown more since then.....

[merrill]

Hi, Alberto:

Congratulations on the excellent growth shown by your P. sunkha! Do you have an opinion on the minimum temperature your large one could withstand?

Best Wishes,

merrill

[gyuseppe]

sorry merrill !,I wrong, I made confusion,my friend has parajubaea torallyi v. torallyi and Parajubaea cocoides,

did not Parajubaea sunkha !.

sorry!

[Alberto]

Today after breakfast. Three years after photo from post #19 and five months after #20.....The foto isn´t very clear,sorry!

It was not really cold tested yet. The last winters weren´t very frosty with minimum of only -2´C at my place.

I hope this winter will be the same.....

By the collor of the grass you can see it is very dry here last 45 days!!! The only dry month here normally is August!

Edited April 16, 2009 by Alberto

[Alberto]

This bigger P.sunkha was planted out at the same day as my bigger one. There is another younger palm in background...

Edited April 16, 2009 by Alberto

[Alberto]

From another angle the same two sunkhas:

[Alberto]

Base of the trunk of my bigerst P.sunkha

[PalmGuyWC]

I've never seen a mature P. sunkha, but judging from Alberto's photographs, it appears that the leaf blades are more narrow than on P. TVT and it has more of a strict habit. The fronds seem to have more of a vertical habit. My P. TVT wants to sprawl and spread out it fronds. Any comments?

Dick

[iamjv]

Alberto, thanks for the updated pics.... your parajub's seem to be doing wonderfully there. What kind of soil is on your property? Alkaline, acidic, deep, shallow, etc. etc. ??? Thanks in advance. Jv

[Alberto]

You are right Dick,today I observed my P.torallyi.var.tors and I saw the fronds are arching more than the sunkhas,making the palms more ´´open´´

My soil at this place isnt very deep (+- 1.5 -2 meter) and is very sandy and acid. I planted some Parajubaeas on other site of my property with more red clayish and very deep well draining soil and and are growing fine!

[iamjv]

Alberto, it'll be interesting to see how the palms do in the two different soil types... Jv

[Kailua_Krish]

My Parajubaea sunkha after another year of growth in central Florida. No damage after last winter and it seems to be picking up speed (its leaves are finally beginning to split)!

[_Keith]

I have P. tvt and P. sunkha in the ground in S. Louisiana. They were planted 2 years ago as strap leaved seedlings. Growth is so painfully slow I am constantly tempted to just mow them over. Something here is just not right, ph of the soil maybe, don't know.

[Kailua_Krish]

Keith,

Im hoping that this will be like a queen and pick up speed once fully pinnate. Im not too bothered by the speed of the sunkha as other palms I have are growing even slower! How does the P. tvt hold up for you compared with the sunkha?

-Krishna

[_Keith]

Keith,

Im hoping that this will be like a queen and pick up speed once fully pinnate. Im not too bothered by the speed of the sunkha as other palms I have are growing even slower! How does the P. tvt hold up for you compared with the sunkha?

-Krishna

They are both progressing exactly alike. But something is not right. I have never really research what condtions they would thrive in. Today, they are in acidic clay soil

[Kailua_Krish]

I have mine near the house in a mounded hole of sand and limestone and it seems pretty happy. Maybe the clay or the acidity is the problem for you?

-Krish

[Alberto]

I have mine near the house in a mounded hole of sand and limestone and it seems pretty happy. Maybe the clay or the acidity is the problem for you?

-Krish

P sunkha grows fine in well draing acid sandy soil. I have 4 planted out and the biggest is +-3 meters.

[Roaringwater]

I have a Parajubaea torallyi v. torallyi planted out in a rubble mound. Given this good drainage, it seems happy in my cool, damp, but very mild climate. It is exposed to strong salt winds, and seems to cope by producing short petioles. It was planted out 18 months ago with its first pinnate leaf, so growth has been quite rapid. I have some sunkhas that I may plant out next year, probably in a less well-drained spot. These do seem to be very adaptable palms.

[Alberto]

Update

Two years anf four months after pic on post 24

[Alberto]

Fibers and trunk.