Leaderboard

Agree , I planted a couple of small ones many years ago and just to the base of the palm. They have done very well . I was warned by a fellow palm enthusiast . Harry Hard to see this guy with the Caryota in the way . It was planted here as a very young plant . The base of the palm is in a fast draining section of the garden. It is now over 6’ to the crown. Good air flow around the crown . I think these must come from an arid climate like we have here. I planted two of these , both have done quite well in our 10a climate.

Chamaedorea woodsoniana spathes opening. This palm has to be a contender for greatest crownshaft:trunk diameter ratio 🤣 Chamaedorea nubium first spathes. This could probably also go in the ‘Gettin’ the Ring’ thread. Sabal minor first lot of ripe fruit it’s produced.

Might be planted a tad deep. This species is particularly sensitive to rotting. I’d say it might be safest to dig away a bit of the soil around the stem until you reach the root initiation zone.

It's a blank slate!

My Encephalartos ituriensis is flushing but this is a very difficult one to photograph. In order to get the whole plant in the photo I have to stand pretty far back and lose detail while the tall leaves blend in with the canopy. Also, the existing leaves are erect and do a good job at hiding new flushes. Here’s a couple of photos from different angles trying to show the flush.

From Madagascar to Chile. A magnificent collector's palm tree. For anyone who wants to be tempted.

I got mine as an established palm at a non specialist nursery sold as D decaryi. Not cheap, but a bargain for what it is. It’s done relatively well considering my climate is far from ideal for them; C leptocheilos doesn’t grow reliably long term and there are only a handful of mature C decaryi around and they seem to need very well drained soil or they rot in winter. Even my pure C decaryi gets bad brown tipping and the trunk gets a bit wobbly each spring from what I assume is root rot. My Tribear doesn’t have that problem. A bit of brown tipping but that’s hard to avoid in my climate for most species.

Some of my favorites that have no problem with desert extremes include Bismarckia, Brahea, Coccothrinax, Copernicia,, Hemithrinax, Pseudophoenix, and Sabals. Unfortunately, most are slow growers, and somewhat difficult to locate, especially in larger sizes, on the west coast. aztropic Mesa, Arizona

Super bummer Harry your green leaf. I did find another variegated lytocarum weddlianum the other day in the greenhouse. So luck finds a way. Richard

It’s always been one of favourite palms, knowing they grow so easy in my climate. I just had to order 1000 seeds from rps and ended up with about 700 of them. One of my number one selling palms. A palm as spectacular with black petioles, no thorns and a beautiful silver underside leaf. A perfect deep shade understory palm. They make great patio plants. They will always have place in my garden any day.

Chrysalidocarpus decaryi x leptocheilos F1. Have heard them also referred to as Red Triangle Palms but I also think that’s used for the reverse hybrid. Probably just another reason to avoid common names. Photo from today in balmy Melbourne. The relatively sickly pure C decaryi to the right of it.

A nice Ferox cone, in the far red spectrum of the afternoon sun.

I have to say it was beyond disappointing when I worked and prepared 14 years towards finally moving to Hilo, HI, and had everything set up to establish myself there, only to be met with a housing crisis, living out of my car/hotel, and subsequently having to emergently find a new job, which just happened to be in El Centro, CA. If I had moved to Hilo, HI only 6 months earlier, none of this would have happened 😔 Now I have my eyes on Mexico in 5 years to finally have my permanent garden, as it looks like Hawaii and coastal southern California are no longer realistic options for a large palm garden. Either way, though, it's been fun experimenting with palms in the desert and seeing which ones can take the heat. Many palm trees have pleasantly surprised me!

Thank you! Unfortunately, it's in El Centro, CA, which isn't the best climate for palms - it's a hot desert climate that sometimes gets winter frosts, but I figured I will be here for about 5 years, so figured I might as well buy a house before one day moving into a permanent place. It's amazing how difficult it is to get exotic palms in California! Only a handful of commercial places sell them, but I know many enthusiasts have backyard nurseries! I've been having fun experimenting with what can handle the hot desert climate, however, and have had a few surprises, so am looking forward to experimenting in a place that won't randomly shut off the water when I leave town! lol

This species of Coccothrinax, native to a small beach in N. Cuba, is definitely one of my favorites. Similar in looks to the old man palm, (Coccothrinax crinita) but apparently much hardier. Great palm to grow in the desert, even in full blasting sun. Unfortunately, like many others in the genus, it is a rather slow grower. 5 gallon pot grown from seed in Arizona is already 10 years old! 🤯 aztropic Mesa, Arizona

Agree, I lost one due to over watering. They certainly like it a bit on the dry side.

A faster growing option with similar looks, is a hybrid with a borhidiana parent. Not quite as hairy, but way faster growing and just as hardy. This compact species fits in well with today's smaller gardens. aztropic Mesa, Arizona

Would be interested to see any progress. Once the consistent summer weather hit in June (high dewpoints and overnight lows, rain), I'm seeing rapid recovery. My soil temps by my coconut hit has been 84F-87F. My plumeria left for dead just sprouted from the base.

There are a few palms that can handle the inland temps that El Centro has . Perhaps some of the inland folks can help out. Congratulations on the house! Harry

Chamaerops humilis. Mediterranean fan palm. I hope to see it grow like never before.

With a touch of the new garden section!

I want at least 50 good ones in and around my garden, perhaps planting a 100 of them may achieve this. Survival of the fittest sort of thing. You can’t go wrong planting a kerriodoxa or two! Richard

I remove the suckers on my one in the deep shade. I just didn’t want this garden monster thay they become. And as for age well Harry we are not getting any younger that’s for sure 👍 Richard

So I have this king palm and from the most recent frond that opened there was a broken part of the spear that just split from the main spear now that I look at it it has grown significantly looking like it’s turning into its own spear is this the case ? As you can see it’s turning thick at the bottom and it’s very thin at the top since it was split from its original spear

Perhaps you are correct, to me it just looks like a new spear pushing up past the old spear.

The gable end screened of with some 70 percent shade cloth. And the roof up on the potting bench and storage shed. As they say Rome wasn’t built in a day and this little project is certainly taking its time. As there won’t be a shortage of palms to fill it up.

Couple of chamaedoreas. Falciferegenoformis

There not a full sun palm, as you say a bit of shade helps them a lot. I did make an attempt at the variegated one, purchasing 100 seeds and not one variegated at all from about 80 that germinated. Richard

There not to bad at all, they love water. The age of the palm in question is about 26 years old.

Latania

Red latania

I'm happy to report that I've got a very precocious and showy Heliconia blooming like crazy out here in Palm Springs. It's a Heliconia stricta cultivar called 'Sunrise' and it's available from Plant Group Hawai'i. This is apparently a seasonal bloomer as my two clumps, which are growing in slightly different sun/shade profiles and different areas of the yard, started throwing their inflorescences synchronously, within a week of each other this spring. I planted one around mid-2023 and the other in April, 2024. I think it's safe to assume this is a second-season bloomer due to its strong desire to flower in spring. The inflorescences are really quite large and showy, and I'm a little surprised to be seeing so many appearing in two separate clumps (three on one, two on another). Each bract measures about 4" long and the overall inflorescence height is about 7". One thing to note is that this, like a number of strictas, seems completely happy in quite a bit of shade, so it's a good sub-canopy subject to try, at least in hot interior areas. Cold-tolerance hasn't been tested in extreme conditions, but mine have survived low 30sF up to 124F so it seems quite strong to varying environmental conditions. We have 30-to-50-degree diurnal swings out here with most December/January mornings 40-45F with maybe a dozen or so in the 30s F, and highs pretty predictably somewhere 65-75 (average high 70F). The plant keeps quite a good appearance over winter with minimal damage here, and the overall height of 6-8' with rather long leaves makes it a really nice landscape element. Spring starts here the second half of February and warmth accelerates very quickly. I have no idea how this would do in the much cooler coastal plain or right at the coast in SoCal, but I think it's certainly worth attempting by any "Heliconia nut," particularly if you have a nice, protected area with dappled sun/shade. It would likely need more sun right in the fogbelt within a mile or two of the coast, and I would think you would need to carefully carve out a wind-protected area under canopy that gets some winter sun-warming. This one is very easy to root in a tub of warm water. Just put the rhizome in and let it sit in full sun so it will warm up (use an aquarium heater if necessary to keep it around 80-85F while sprouting). But water should be changed every day or two to prevent fouling and also for oxygenation, which is very important. Once it has a mass of roots you can put it straight into the ground (that's better than in a pot, where it may rot). Closer to the coast where there is winter rain, I'd strongly suggest planting on a raised mound composed of really chunky high-drainage materials (like a good homemade Philodendron potting mix). While these clumps were not planted on mounds, I have more recently found that treatment to really accelerate growth for many Heliconia. Out here in the desert I mix coco-coir chunks (not fines) as a spongy moisture-reservoir, combined with lava rock, pumice and coarse sand. I'd also recommend avoiding the north side of a building or other winter-shade area where it may "wet-chill" to death. H. stricta 'Sunrise': I also (finally) have a couple of H. rostrata throwing blooms, one H. rostrata 'Misahualli' and another that is probably either a '5-day'/'Peru' or '10-day.' Inflorescences are still pushing but I'm very happy to finally see this stunner blooming out here in the desert. This one will bloom in appreciable shade but requires propping up under these circumstances because the pseudostems will stretch to find light and fall over under their own weight. In sunnier conditions they will stay stronger and more compact. H. rostrata 'Misahualli.' This one is under the canopy of a rather large Cassia javanica and an adjacent Thevetia peruviana, so it doesn't get very much sun at all...just dappled for the most part, but seems quite happy in its spot. H. rostrata (probably '5-day' or '10-day'), just starting to push. This one is in a pot that has rooted into the ground, and in too much shade, which is why its long, thin pseudostems are lying almost horizontally, being propped up by some nearby plants.

Listen, my friend. You must first buy giant palm trees. These giant palm trees will protect the more delicate and exotic tropical palms. They will protect them with their fronds. Those leaves will create a favorable microclimate for your large collection.

Congrats Kyle! Obviously I can’t help unfortunately but I know it’s been a source of frustration for you not having your own place and full control of your collection. I fully expect your palm collection and obsession will get completely out of control now if you’re anything like me 🤣

Sabal DeFuniak - May 29, 2026

Or very free draining medium, such as pumice, leca, lava and pine bark. If I knew already it many years ago, I would be having now a nice trunking specimen.

The May-June edition of the IPS Newsletter covers part two of the Vietnam Biennial Tour and features Palm Hero Award winners, including the newest winner in 2026. Jun 2026 newsletter.pdf

Some 23-24° F 2021 Horrible Texas freeze survivors here in South Texas I think this will give you guys some hope and see what’s possible. Peep the huge coconut unprotected that managed to survive absolutely crazy cold ! All these pics are from this April:)

I would take this opportunity to pull it farther away from the house, especially that window. At LEAST 6 feet away. You don't want the fronds to touch the house nor the rain gutter when it gets taller.

Thank you for posting an updated picture of this palm. I've planted mine in February. So far it has pushed out one palmate frond. Kind of slow growing. My Palmettos in partial shade grow faster . The Defuniak is planted in full sun. I assume once it grows more fronds it will speed up its growth.

Like Tim Bris

Beautiful ! They look quite happy. Harry

Coming along nicely. The “newbies” I’ll soon fill in like the rest of your jungle. Harry

Couple of mitis in the garden. You either like or dislike them. They tend to get quite large and a bit messy looking with a bit of age. But each to their own. Still a good palm for a large screening plant, relatively medium paced growing in good conditions. Very tough and will take some sun and shade, the more sun they get the more yellow looking they get. They were very popular many years ago in Australia.

The good old Chambeyronias!

Nursery is still going strong . Karl has retired and things have changed but they still have some interesting palms and cycads . No more seedlings , that disappeared after the local growers moved on . Karl used to let them sell in the greenhouse . I recently bought a Syagrus Schizophylla there . The nursery , in general , has quality plants , flowers , shrubs , as well as hardware . Soil and fertilizer , mulch , etc. Harry

For me it started when I set up a landscape design and construction business nearly 30 years ago. Never got to deal with palms or many tropical looking plants at horticultural college, but Tracycarpus started to be a popular plant for gardens we built, and from there I started using a local nursery selling more unusual plants that were suitable for a south east England climate. Got more interested in palms from there, growing my own collection and experimenting with growing from seed. But didnt really have the time and dedication needed. Fast forward to 2019 and the decision to move to the Mediterranean, and now had the time and climate to grow and care for the paims I could never have living in northern Europe. Trying not to make it an obsession, but certainly loving learning new ideas and practises living in a different climate. Has been like going back to college.

A few germination successes for some rare species caught my eye: Syagrus harleyi Syagrus campestris Syagrus cataphracta Pritchardia waialealeana

There are 4 pups and 2 more about to come up from last year! 👀

The multi-caudices Encephalartos horridus male is awash in flushes right now. The pale green leaves have yet to harden and attain their final blue color.