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One could say that the coronata is a lot of bang for a little buck! Super easy to grow and germinate. A good old landscaper’s favourite palm. It may be common and not as great looking as some other Pinanga palms , but its good enough to stand next to them in the garden and look just as spectacular!

We've crossed the midpoint of the year. The daylight hours for us in the northern hemisphere are counting backwards now. As everything in the garden that didn't die or get removed begins recovery mode, a photo of the Livistona decora and a small Copernicia alba and then @palmfriend's Okinawa Garden featuring Livistona chinensis and Arenga engleri. Happy Summer!

It will probably be fine. There were pictures of wildfire that past through Vina Del Mar in Chile. All the Jubaea trunks and fronds were charred, then within a year pretty much all of them came back to life and flushed

A nice little tray of bells, collected the seeds through a door knock, in my local area. Time is all you need for these to germinate a year or more depending on how cool the conditions are. They are a beautiful palm indeed!

Here are most of the palms I own

A nice dypsis prestonia showing some good colours. And the next generation of seedlings coming behind.

Wallichia disticha leaf.

Spot on I think - most look bad because of neglect and not enough natural rainfall rather than it being too cold. Some of the better ones I’ve seen are out in the outer Eastern suburbs in the foothills of the Dandenongs where it gets pretty chilly but receives more rainfall than near the CBD or around Bayside suburbs. Same goes for Archontophoenix. I will say though, that Ravenea rivularis was susceptible to crown rot for me when young in Spring. It’s grown out of it now, but I suspected it didn’t like cold and wet conditions while it was still establishing. I planted in a cooler area of the garden in mostly shade intentionally based on what I’ve seen with specimens that dry out too much, but I think that’s the opposite risk when you go too shady and cold. The best one in Victoria I’ve seen is the one at Geelong Botanic Gardens. It gets morning sun but is well protected from all sides from wind and looks to stay quite moist in that area. There are a few mature specimens around Melbourne - this one down the street from my place looks pretty good. Doesn’t look like it gets extra attention but I assume the roots have tapped down deep now. The tree to its north must help with preventing it drying out too much too. I planted this one nearly 25 years ago. It’s the only survivor of about 5 originally planted in this garden. Soil is nearly pure beach sand and no irrigation. This is the result 🤣. And here’s an interesting planting - Singapore Botanic Gardens have them as aquatics. They like it in there in the tropical climate, but I’m certain it would be a death sentence in cooler climates.

That is the old leaf base dying off . Discoloration is normal as they get ready to fall off . Eventually it will be more and more of a brown color until it just peels off . It is self cleaning but sometimes after they get really brown they can be removed with just a tug where the frond was cut off. Harry Last year on a Roystonia Oleracae . Most crown shaft palms are self cleaning and the old leaf base looks very brown before falling off.

The good news is that Queens are not particularly root sensitive . I usually lay them on their side and tap the pot with my hand as I roll it and then it comes out easily with a gentle tug on the trunk. That Queen will grow much more rapidly in the ground. Update us when you get it planted . I had a Syagrus Schizophylla in a deep pot with roots coming out the drain holes. I did the method I shared with you last weekend and got it planted in about an hour , including digging the hole. Harry This was a deep pot to accommodate the root systems that Syagrus are known for. A much slower growing palm than Syagrus Romanzoffiana but the same type of root system. A little rolling of the container and fist bumping the sides of the pot , it pulled right out .

'Stoplight' is one of my favorite crotons. And after this past winter it seems to be one of the more cold hardy cultivars like 'Genera Paget'. I had about 20 different crotons (mostly fairly common ones) and all froze to the ground this past winter (3 nights below freezing; 28, 23, 28/the 23F night it was below 32 for 10 hours). I had 2 'Stoplight' specimens both were 4-5ft tall. One froze almost to ground level, the other only partial and had a couple stems that didn't even defoliate. Neither had any coverings. And they were the first to resprout and start new growth. All my other crotons froze down and are regrowing but they were very slow to start. 'Picasso's Paintbrush' was killed of course and 'Dreadlocks' was very slow to put out new growth.

We can help you out here, they are pretty well much one the greatest indoor palms of all time! A bright light area indoors out of direct sunlight, a good aerated soil mix. To repot or not, look at the root ball you have, can you lift the palm up by the stem and not have the root ball fall apart. If it is packed tightly with roots then yes repot in the next size container up. If possible place the palm in shaded area outside for a couple weeks if the temperature is warm enough. Water it once when you repot with sea weed extract, for vitamin B stress relief. And then indoors in a nice spot to be admired. Then every now and then rest your palm in a couple of ways, one outside if conditions permit for a rest. Or indoors place in the shower and a good washing of every thing, this will help keep mealy bugs and insects away. If its life is indoors you will need to control insects. Don’t overwater indoors it’s the biggest killer of palms indoors. Let it dry out a little before next watering. Fertilise only in summer with seaweed extract or whatever that is suitable for palms indoors, but a little goes a long way, go a little under the manufactures directions. Must the leaves with water frequently to create humidity. They look perfect in an old wooden barrel or square homemade wooden containers!

Variegated rhapis, and a nice little dypsis lantzeana!

Small queen palm showing some nice colour.

Good photos to illustrate the difference. I think the only thing I can add is that if it is armed, even slightly, then it cannot be pure B calcarea. Brahea sp can be prone to hybridising and I think there’s still a bit of confusion in general within the genus so I can’t give any more insight.

Stoplight has gotten a bit huge now. Comfortably over 7 feet tall at the peak. I have to think about trimming back at this point. Has enough roots now not to droop too much in the summer heat and sun, and it drops seeds and babies pop up in the mulch.

Welp i was pulling weeds with Sancho (he really does help, he eats this wild mint/clover stuff) and right before i absolutely faceplanted in the yard, I noticed this lil guy! Not only that, but look at the size of this new leaf. Uhh house for scale. Ok that's misleading, but still.

Will update you as soon as I do so also one more question I get these brown spots on the crownshaft is it normal aging or some sort or fungus the new spear is emerging fast so the growth point is health Will update you as soon as I do so also one more question for you by any chance know what these spots on my king palm are the spear is growing fast so the growing point is healthy but is this some sort of fungus or normal aging

Thank you for the reply , I’m planning on planting it on the ground since it did not get cold damaged during the winter but rather got stress damaged when I brought it from the nursery I also have two little litoralis queens I’m also planning on planting the big one right now I’m going to have trouble removing from this pot I feel like that’s my only concern

Maypan coconut has been in the ground as a 7 gallon for close to 3 years now. It was unprotected year 1, probably burnt about 60% or more of foliage, year 2 it was poorly protected (I was not aware it needed heat source plus covering), year 3 I protected it for all the nights in the 20s with sheets and incandescent Christmas lights…. Then I took them off too soon and it got burned again by the next frost. Anyways, she always rebounds by this time of year. If we can get a couple warm winters or I can protect better maybe she’ll get some size. next topic, you guys can clearly see I planted my Sylvester and beccariophoenix alfreddii way too close together. It doesn’t help that I haven’t pruned either in months but what would you do here? I have no plans to dig up and transplant either one because they’re growing healthy together but you can’t really see the frozen coconut which is disappointing. Should I stake it with some pull to the right in hopes it grows out a bit?

Bp x pjc hitting its stride.

@Brad52 I decided to take out my not-Nana last week. It was really too close to the house (~12') for the height (~30-35') for hurricane safety. I had a clump of Dendrocalamus Hamiltonii flip over in a ~80-100mph winds hurricane in the exact same spot ~5 years ago. Plus it wasn't cold hardy and lost 100% of the culms at 22.5F in February. I'm glad you mentioned the culms are solid, because they are HEAVY. The cutting part was easy...but the dropping to the ground and not smashing other stuff wasn't so easy! 🤣 It had started shooting new smaller culms, which of course went all wonky and started blocking the driveway. This was one of the more brutally difficult boos to dig out, because the rhizomes had started shooting downwards more than 2 feet before arching back up. 3 inch solid culms is a good estimate. A shovel, a pinch bar, and 9" carbide reciprocating saw blades worked, but it took 2 entire days 9-5 to dig it out. That's a 5 foot diameter hole that I had to dig out 3 feet deep to make sure I found every piece of culm. And to replace it, a Schizostachyum "Murray Island" from Tropical Bamboo! You can see the dead culms on the Wamin Striata in the top of the photo. That's another one that didn't survive 22.5F, but is slowly shooting back.

One of the most popular palms around, it needs no introduction. This little batch is showing some nice colour already. I will most likely sell this batch to a local hardware store.

Nice looking collection there for your climate zone . Might be time to move that Syagrus Romanzoffiana into a larger pot , and maybe the Archontophoenix as well. Those are both fast growing palms that need constant watering and room to grow. Harry

That inflorescence is a show in itself! Lovely palm , that one. Harry

They are not as well represented here as the Foresteriana, but there are a few large ones . One of the Sullivan’s apartment buildings has a very large one that overhangs the sidewalk . I have one here that struggles where I planted it . I have thought about moving the location but it is so close to other palms it would be very difficult. Harry

A man with a vision, I like it. Beautiful!

I purchased seedlings from a reputable seller on palmtalk probably 7 years ago of Brahea calcarea ‘blue’. He stated the seeds came from a known specimen in California and differed from ‘Super Silver’. The most obvious difference being this palm is blue from the start. I unfortunately am down to one but the palm has rapidly developed over the past 2 years. Up until the last flush or so the petioles had stayed pretty much “unarmed”. A trait of calcarea. As of this last set of fronds, nubs or small teeth have started to form. The palm has a lot of similarities to Brahea armata except A)it’s fronds are flat and don’t have a crease in the center like armata B) the palm is drastically faster than a neighboring larger armata. The calcarea was probably a 3/5 gallon 2 years ago and the armata a 15 gallon when planted. Likely by the end of the growing season or early next year the calcarea will have caught up in size. I know that’s not definitive but of note. Both survived mid teens (Fahrenheit) with minimal damage. I covered the calcarea and it took no damage unlike Brahea clara that had minor burn, but was also protected similarly. Does anyone know of the origin of Brahea calcarea ‘blue’? Identifying traits? Any other useful information ? If this one is accurate then it appears to be a hybrid likely with armata. Thanks Brahea calcarea ‘ blue’ in front, armata in rear : Brahea calcarea ‘blue’ old petiole New petiole: Brahea armata petiole:crease in Brahea armata frond:Brahea calcarea ‘blue’: Brahea armata:

Here is the closest visual answer I have to how it was originally planted from November 2018. This isn't Encephalartos cupidus though. It is the cycad species on the front jacket of Loran's book.

There’s some photos from Colin of C yumutumune on Palmpedia so I’ve always assumed it must be one of the hardier Calyptrocalyx sp. Would be good to know how it is going now further south in NSW @palmtreesforpleasure . I think many Dypsis species are actually relatively hardy to cool conditions as long as they aren’t subject to frost. I know heaps are thriving in Sydney so no surprise most grow well for you Richard. I think I’m near their limit here in Melbourne; my D rosea is relatively happy and fast growing but gets a bit burnt by both sun and cold each year. My D ‘Yellow Seed/Wilsonii’ seedlings from Colin are actually finally coming along too, but I’m not sure how much further I’ll get into the genus. Hard work for palms that may never thrive but I do enjoy a good zone push.

Also one of the few Brahea that will grow in Florida, even though they are seldom found. That's a great price, Paul!

I just picked up 2 more

Here is a young Encephalartos equatorialis that is starting to push out bigger flushes.

Looking great Richard. I tried some in shade and they just slowly declined in my climate. Not enough summer heat. However I saved most of the shade declining ones by digging them up and putting them into full sun in a perpetually wet spot with white clay below the surface and they just took off. I’ve got I think 15 planted in the same spot at varying stages of growth but when they all start to trunk it’s going to be great to walk underneath the canopy they will create. In winter, like right now, the area is literally oozing water from the ground. Mine have started growing pneumatophore roots like a Raphia or a mangrove. I’m hoping they will set seed one day, however they are not that popular any more and most WA soils are crappy gutless sand which they just hate unless you constantly feed them with fertiliser and leave the hose running on them 24/7. They are tough. In the middle of January (summer here) I took some 30cm high seedlings out of the shadehouse and whacked them in the ground in full sun but in heavy wet soil and a week later we had a 42.5C day and I expected them to just be fried. No, they didn’t even fade. As long as they are wet they will take tons of sun, and they can take light frost in winter. Heavier frost creates damage but they are so quick to regrow it doesn’t cause lasting harm. One of my tallest trunking ones took a direct hit from a dead pine tree I cut down that fell the wrong way. I was devastated and thought the growing point may have been shattered. No. Some leaves were damaged but two years later you wouldn’t even know. I love them. They are a real feature in the garden. A totally under rated and under utilised palm in my area.

I started a community pot of these to try in southern Germany. So far they're growing strong!

Iguanura wallachiana , dypsis minuta!

Blue latania

I'll take a picture of mine later but it's almost as identical as yours except the new front starts growing palmate but super slow, at least for now.

Update 6 months later from above January image. Not gonna win any races but it's chuggin' along.

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.

Sabal DeFuniak - May 29, 2026

Yep , great SoCal palm . This size is perfect for planting out . Mine grew from a strap leaf to a large palm in just over 20 years . This size will save a lot of years! Harry

I have always loved chatting about palms/cycads and plants in general with Maria. I've known her and her sons for the better part of 10 years, and she has always been so kind. Maria was the owner of Sago Rey Palms in Fresno, where she continued the business after the passing of her husband Thomas Wash. I was very saddened to hear of a horrible incident at the nursery over Easter weekend, and further saddened to learn of her passing. She will live on in the memory of many of us here in the area (and out of the immediate area) who have crossed paths with her. My garden is full of plants she cared for and nurtured. If any of you got those really blue Sabal uresana seedlings, they came from Maria. A few photos from her obituary: https://kmph.com/news/local/nursery-owner-dies-after-easter-machete-attack-nephew-faces-murder-charge

Very cool find! That's definitely another oddball!

Outside of the Malone United Methodist Church there is another DeFuniak or Brazoria looking palmetto. Malone is about 60 miles from DeFuniak springs. It definitely isn’t a palmetto. Most likely a sabal minor and palmetto hybrid. It could be the same as the DeFuniak palm or a brazoriensis or some other hybrid brought in and planted there.

I'm keeping mine in a 50°F - 58°F environment and it has grown another inch though fall to current. None of the other species I have ATM are showing any signs of growth. Started in 2023.

Here is my Sabal defuniak seedling that I had dug up under the tree back in 2023, has had slow growth but it’s expected since it’s in a more shady spot. First photo is May 2023, second photo is January 2026. I’ve just put it there and been letting it grow on its own, not helping to much and letting it do its own thing. Also I am an hour from Defuniak springs here in Okaloosa county Florida

So far, G Princeps has grown as planned. With vertical tending fronds that stay out of the way at this size. Pretty happy and easy, with the tips of the fronds about 9 feet tall now. Blight spots mentioned above seem to have mostly gone away on their own.

Well, I’ve got a lot of important work to do today, and no time to fool around, so I thought I’d fool around and update a couple of posts….. Gaussia princeps babies have been in the ground 4 months. It was a hot, wet summer. They responded by greening up and growing a single new frond each. Much, much slower than bottle palms for me so far, which is fine. Have not been watering them much, or pushing them with any extra fertilizer. Just letting them chill in their spot. Hopefully these will be low maintenance and happy. October 2023…