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Today, 18 members of Fous de Palmiers (French Palm Society) visited my Garden on their one week visit to SoFla. Two of them came all the way from the island of Réunion. I showed them my garden and plantings around my neighborhood, then we had lunch at iconic Cuban restaurant Versailles. We all had a great time and the weather was the best ever.

About the only cyclone damage I had was a Joey palm washed away I planted a couple of weeks ago in a gully. All was not lost just picked the little fella up and repotted him. I got away with Alfred pretty good in comparison to some places.

Cyclone Alfred is certainly giving us a good soaking, with the rain gauge full overnight that’s 200mm plus, 150mm the day before and it looks like another 250mm until the next reading. I love it a complete soaking and flooded in so the world has to leave me alone for a while, exactly the way I like it. No power only gas for cooking and 12 volt for power. With no damage overnight having protection from the south east winds and the garden saving the house. A few trees down but that’s to be expected. I guess that’s one way to water the garden. Major flooding is expected in all the northern rivers catchment area, not sure how the Gold Coast and Brisbane is fairing up they had the full brunt of the wind but it’s down south that’s getting the rain. The wind last night was like a freight train non stop. I had already removed 3 big dangerous trees so I was not too worried. Now all I just have to do is sit back and relax and enjoy the rain.

Riverwalk reclinata survivor: I am pretty sure others have posted this before. It was my first time strolling down this particular section of the Riverwalk though.

Lemurophoenix, just an amazing palm. Tim

The Smashburger restaurant didn't make it, but the coconuts have. They are a little over-trimmed, but the fronds probably looked a little ratty due to the long duration of below normal weather this winter. The IDRIVE coconut looks surprisingly ratty given the ultimate low of 38F in this area, but the duration took a bit of a toll. The more cool-tolerant Wodyetia bifurcata, Adonidia merrillii, and Hyophorbe lagenicaulis species in the area look pretty good since they tolerate low temperatures without frost a little better than coconut palms.

Very nice, I was also just in Miami last week and the weather was indeed perfect and there’s no other place in the country with more beautiful palm trees to look at. One of the highway exits north of Miami (I think around palm beach or somewhere) heading down there has a bunch of clusters of different palms and it was my favorite setup, I think bismarck, sylvester, palmetto, and two or three other varieties all planted in clusters right around the exit. Miami is the most beautiful city in the country in my opinion, I love it too.

Phal. 'White Dream' ' V.3' AM/AOS and a pink supermarket phal. Been growing these for years. I know some consider white phals to be ho-hum; but I really like them. Years ago, I asked members of the Orchid Board what could be recommended as the best, classic white phal; this variety was mentioned more than any other. The white phal is re-blooming on last year’s spike, so didn’t attain the height it normally would.

La vie en rose.

What a lovely reunion. Pun intended! Thank you so much for posting this.

It was planted in a nursery. See the picture attached.

Hello dear members of the IPS forum. I recently went on a vacation on Zanzibar and I’ve seen some very distinct palm tree shapes. Some appear to be growing in a near perfect spiral / circle shape. I was wondering if anyone has experienced something like this and how it’s possible to shape a palm tree like this. I am not an expert nor do I have much knowledge about palm trees. I would be very happy if a kind member of this forum had an answer to this. I have attached two pictures of palms I’ve seen here growing in a circle. Any ideas or experiences are much appreciated. Thanks :)

I’m new to the site, so apologies if I’m in the wrong area… I inherited this palm tree in southern Texas, and I can’t seem to identify it. The leafy growth at the base is on stems growing off the trunks. Can anyone help?

Pure robustas nobody has really planted in Dallas really since pre 2011, but robusta dominant hybrids were common up here up until more recently. The reason is, they grow really well here and you can pretty much throw a handful of seeds in a garden bed and come back in a decade and they’ll be 20 feet tall. even though they get defoliated many years, they come back quickly and are much more fun to watch than a Sabal. That’s why people continue to gamble with them even though here they won’t last more than a few decades. If we get another decade of mild winters, I’m sure we’ll see more plantings up here

Sehr gemutlich!

Génial!

I agree with comments regarding wind chill. But that's not to say that wind doesn't affect the cold event and plant damage. An advective freeze (most common type in most of Texas) is accompanied by strong winds and a sudden drop in temperature and is very different than a radiation freeze which is heat radiating away from the ground on a clear night with the coldest temperature at the ground surface. Wind or lack of it can determine duration of freezing temperatures and whether juvenile palms are more at risk.

Très bien!

A video I made a few months ago...it's not perfect, but it gets to the basics and to the point.

Thanks Tyrone. Yes it's been downgraded to a tropical low. The winds were quite intense last night, blowing my staging over and damaging some palms beneath it. Spent all morning in the wind and rain sorting through the carnage of crushed palms and blown over pots. Should have laid it flat when I had the chance (lesson learned for next time). So glad I moved my rare seedlings off that staging and into the garage. House is in one piece though, which is a relief.

They sure are tough. There was one actually north of Dallas in Garland that survived 2021 on north side of a movie theater. Unfortunately though it died after 2022 winter when we hit 10F and had a few days where it didn't go above freezing

Pretty easy plant ..if you get them off to a good start and understand their pre- germination biology ...Some at least.. Many sps from the eastern U.S. / higher elevations in the west and Mexico often require some deg of cold stratification before they will germinate. W/ all native Milkweeds, best to direct sow rather than starting in pots then transplanting ..Though some are more durable to such treatment compared to others.. Obviously, w/ out these to utilize as a food source, = no Monarchs, ..and / or Queens < Here in the S.W. U.S. > A few other " Tropical " butterfly sps that occasionally show up in various spots north of the U.S. / Mexico border from time to time will also utilize U.S. locally native Asclepias sps. when present. Ever see gold colored Aphids on Milkweed? Leave them be ..Evolved specifically to feed on it.. Won't hurt the plants at all.. 🤦‍♂️ Asclepias AKA: Milkweeds = Definitely not a " Pest " plant -anywhere- in the US ..Native sps esp. From the Xerces Society: https://xerces.org/sites/default/files/publications/19-029.pdf

When I was living in Arizona in 2008, I saw a really nice p. rupicola triple at treeland in chandler. I was inspired by the curved trunks and nice green canopy. When I moved to florida I found a nursery MB palms that carried 1g size rupicolas. I liked the rupicola for its cold tolerance(26F) and its bright green foliage. It also has thorns that don't hurt you, they bend at the base of the thorn. Having been stabbed many times by my various phoenix species I grew in Arizona, I was interested in a pain free trimming process. This triple was planted in early summer 2011 and has been a slow, easy care grower. I thought it might be a permanent hedge but now it looks as if its going to be exactly what I wanted, an attractive medium height canopy for filtering hot western sun. It has fruited 3x the last one a full load of striking red fruits(sorry, no picture). The three palms grew away from each other more than any triple I ever tried, no need to tilt a palm when planting. Here is a pic taken today of the overall palm, and a close up of the trunks. just after a post hurricane Milton trim of the many(30-35) dead leaves After many of my other palms have grown tall and more difficult to view into the crown this one still gives a nice crown view. Anybody out there have phoenix rupicola pic/experiences. they would like to share. For scale, the fence is 4'.

Awesome palms Tom! I bought this field dug rupicola in 2023. Perhaps now I have a better understanding of why it didn't survive a full year for me in alkaline soil during a hot drought in spite of adequate irrigation. I don't think it was 100% pure since the thorns were fairly rigid. Interestingly last year I planted one that I grew from seed and it's doing fine - no damage at 27°F.

Adam requested updated photos of my Aloidendron "Hercules" hybrid. Here it is.

The palm in the picture is a Phoenix robellini. Very common and an easy grow. Yours looks to be doing well.

I am glad your damage was minimal. Weather events can really mess things up and hurt the plants. Here we have had very little rain but major winds that blow debris everywhere and tear up the palms . Some palms are more vulnerable , like newly planted ones or fragile leaf forms. Harry

Great explanation. I also learned a new vocabulary word in the process.

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Chrysalidocarpus carlsmithii SOLD OUT

I wonder why people planted Robustas in Dallas to begin with. Their usual northern most long term area is Austin or College Station. But wow. That one fought hard.

Thank you. ....and yes, that is true about matter, you are right. And I've heard that theory. I think I look at it kind of in a way like a cold-blooded animal, but in a plant sense in their world under their rules. At the end of the day, plants can't regulate their temperature which means they are highly influenced by the ambient temperature and factors in their environment.

Possibly lack of humidity, overwatering. Looks like a fungal situation to me with the soil. How cold have the temperatures been?

You can only try!

@CascadiaPalms palms do produce heat. All matter does. Cold is only a theory. Or better stated, "there is no such thing as cold, only the absence of heat". Absolute zero(absence of heat/energy) is only a theory. I liked your video!

@Merlyn Copy all. That makes sense to me. I amend my compost with our native soil so it is not too moist/water logged (the veggie garden seems to like it that way). I will keep your soil recipe in mind for future projects. Here is another upload of the last photo; not sure what happened originally. I join you in hoping for a hurricane free hurricane season for all Floridians and other in the Southeast 🤞🤞🤞 Thanks!

I’m assuming this will be easy ID as the most obvious answer is Chamaedorea elegans. My neighbor asked me to care for it while they traveled. She’s had it for 30 years; a tiny houseplant gift for birth of her 1st child. That’s how she always remembers how old the plant is. Has been growing it indoors in RI all these years. i just want to give her an accurate ID. thank you!

Thanks everyone for all of the help. I'm going to get some topsoil to put down over the roots of the one still alive. I'll also build up the surrounding area a bit too. The other trees root systems are mostly covered up. As for the trunk cut, I'm going to watch the videos provided and look to do the technique mentioned. I already have the hydrogen peroxide and copper fungicide. I'll keep yall posted.

All the best over there. I think it’s been downgraded to a tropical low but centred just north of north Stradbroke Island, so at least wind strength has weakened, but the rainfall will be very intense for a good while. Lots of power outages reported.

Hadn’t seen this one in ages, stuck in a lonely spot for a long time. A more open spot and a bit of rain and whaaa laaaa. Just a ‘nuns cap’ orchid, Calanthe tankervillae, obviously taking a good amount of neglect. Beautiful.l Tim

Link didn't work... paste!

Flowers... they caught my eye.

Konstantinos, they are doing great here, one of the best species to grow, I have 3 in the garden, I like them so much and they don't need any care

I don't know that much about them but I know they are native here in Pennsylvania they grow all along the creeks and rivers. I think you can grow them in pods on your balcony but maybe do some research before you try.

Another hot take: Washingtonia robusta is a very attractive plant. Imagine you’d never seen one before. Large, full, bright green fronds. Orange leaf bases. Some of the more common palms are common because they are popular, and for good reason.

Brahea

Since moving here about a year ago, I have really paid close attention to the way that things here are climactically, and I have found things interesting. First - this may be one of Earth's wildest climates in terms of extreme temperature swings when the cold fronts make their way down off the plains. It is the only place that I have been able to find where even the hardier natives are frozen to the ground with some regularity (every 50-100 years). Presumably this could also be true in central FL but I haven't found any conclusive proof that it has happened. Would love to hear from some people who have been there for decades. This includes Lucaena pulvirulenta and Cordia boissieri. Some more tender natives, like Solanum erianthum, freeze to the ground every few years. Second - this is one of the hottest (on average) places in the country. Average winter temperature in January (the coldest month) is right around 63F, which in line with Tampa, FL January average temps. Average temps are even higher here than Phoenix, AZ in May and October. August median temperature is right around 87. Third - this is one of the most humid places in the country as well, despite receiving comparatively little rainfall (although this varies wildly). Because of our influence from both the west and the gulf, we have had years of rainfall as little as 9" (an average Phoenix year) or as much as 60" (an average year in Homestead, FL). Average, however, is approximately 25-27", which is enough to keep us out of a semi-arid climate classification, but is comparable to many monsoonal climates in the Sahel. Despite this, our average relative humidity is approximately 75-76%, compared to 73% in Miami. Fourth - heat and peak temperatures. We have seen 95F in every month of the year, and 100F in 7 of them. Peculiarly, the two hottest all-time temps were recorded in March and August, the only warm US city I can find with comparable March and August peaks. Absolutely fascinating place. Glad I came here and it's making me interested in the weather.

It' s sunny today after two weeks of cold and rain, so I ' ll take some new pictures of my C. decipiens after arriving home.

Call me crazy but I still like all my Trachys. Considering I moved from a 6B where I couldn't grow any palms without protection I consider myself lucky.

I never knew the man but since being a member of this forum I've come to realise his name is legend in the world of palms! I think Robert's post above should be made a locked sticky at the top of this forum so all new members can read it-vital information!