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Extraterrestrial? Please come home ET. Any ETS landing in your garden. This is from planet Encyclia of the cochleata species.

This week has been a real trial for my little Ceroxylon amazonicum! Today at 3 PM the temperature... in the shade... was 106 °Fahrenheit (41.11 °Celsius). It's putting out its second leaf since it arrived at my place from Ecuador (via Florida). I'm keeping it in shade and in a deep saucer of water. Hopefully it'll put out a pinnate leaf before year's end?

A couple more pembana floating around the garden!

Side by side, one of my Encephalartos ituriensis which is not hardening it's flush while the Encephalartos whitelockii x sclavoi is still pushing it's soft flush. The wall is 6' high from the base.

Two lovely ramsayi with a stack of seeds, I think they are about 35 years old.

Different light gives different results, a nice chamaedorea klotzshciana certainly looks good in a bit of different lighting.

This is one I’ve posted before, but it’s the first year the existing foliage survived the winter, and the most robust flush (8) to date. It’s a C. revoluta hybrid with bifurcated leaflets that I got from North Texas Cold Hardy a few years ago. (Unfortunately, I’ve forgotten the identity of the other parent.) It’s finally starting to look like something!

They are very pretty trees. Recently saw some at a local nursery in Arizona. aztropic Mesa, Arizona

We have a saying in Greek like wish I had previously the recently obtained knowledge. That fits also in present case. Never miss taking pictures of the mother Sabal specimen, which you had gathered seeds from, focusing especially on reproductive organs, that is inflorescences. The more perspectives you use for the shots and the more close ups, the more will be the chances of a positive identification of both parent and offspring, provided that neither of them is actually a hybrid.😵‍💫 Otherwise you would have to wait about 20 years since germination for the offspring to reach maturity. All I can tell from those pictures is, that palman makes up around the half of the blade. This feature could exclude several spp.

Hi folks, I'm planting out part of my property with a Dwarf Coconut grove. So far, I have found five distinct dwarf cultivars to try. Interested to see what else is out in the world...I'm sure there are quite a few other dwarf varieties...looking to obtain some if anybody has fruiting specimens... :-) Golden Malay for example...

They look like the alien mr Burns in the Simpsons!

I think from memory this one was called popcorn!

No dumb questions John, advice is free mistakes are costly. To reduce the hot soil temperature and the roots touching the container sides burn, try white containers or put the container inside another container that’s slightly bigger. This can help to reduce the burning roots.

I get viable seeds from my one, even volunteers. And this from just one single palm, both male and female flowers are on the same plant. So they will set viable seeds on their own.

My two Sabal miamiensis have been flowering and producing seeds for a few years now. They had no adverse reaction to this year's cold.

A nice bit of colour on the archontophoenix new leaf

Full sun is really too much sun for a lot of plants in the southern climes. Most plants at the massive Florida producers are grown under shade cloth. As for the hot pot issue, you have to physically block the sun from directly striking the sides of the pots. In nurseries, this is accomplished as each pot in a group protects the one behind it. The very front exposed pots can be painted white, can have other empty pots or boards put in front of them, or can be dropped into 1 size larger empty pots to insulate the valuable plants roots from overheating. Direct sun on a black pot without any protection can most definitely cook the roots and kill the plant. aztropic Mesa, Arizona

Our water bill is pretty high here , but we are municipal ( city owned ) . It’s just part of growing palms in an arid climate . It’s just my wife and I so not bad . We learned how to take military showers from over 12 years on our sail boat and traveling in our motor home. Our boat didn’t have a water heater so we would fill a 3 gallon solar bag full of water and place it on our deck while we were anchored at the islands . As soon as the sun warmed the water we should hang it from the boom and stand under it to shower . The 3 gallons was enough for both of us. Of course we were young and it was an adventure. Our palms are responsible for most of our water bill. Harry

New frond on A. vestiaria a few days ago. It needs more sun i think to get better color.

It can be done, but you will want to start with a large container or be prepared to transplant to a larger container before the roots become bound. Here are a couple that I started from seed.

Is that Dypsis pembana two years old? Is it 5 or 6 feet tall? I’m curious because my friend gave a tiny seedling last July and it’s more than quadrupled in less than a year. I’ve actually never seen a palm grow so fast and I’ve been in the Palm Society since August of 1984, and have been growing palms these many years. It’s literally constantly pushing out fronds.

You can see why they call the cabadae the blue cane palm, very distinctive colour.

I’d say that’s a pembana, @Cape Garrett ! They kinda sit awhile then EXPLODE in height. Here’s some of mine after about 10-15 years in the ground.

Mine has grown really well throughout our summer despite multiple days of extreme heat. Mine gets filtered light for most of the day; it’s on the south edge of a south facing garden (southern hemisphere) so larger palms in the garden give it a degree of protection but definitely does see at least brief periods of direct sun throughout the day.

This little Ceroxylon amazonicum endured a lot of stress to get to California eventually! I ordered it in 2025 directly from an Ecuadorian nursery. It ended up in Florida quarantine for weeks, then arrived in California bare-root, half-dead and bone-dry! I tented it in plastic and kept it in standing water for weeks. It's now putting out its second leaf. I've not had much success with this species in the past, but I'm trying again. This palm hates heat waves, so I'll probably keep it indoors in a pot for the future. Eventually it may end up at a Bay Area botanical garden like the C. sasaimae seedlings I grew in the past.

For sure it ain't costaricana, because it lacks the auricles at the leaf base of new fronds.

Brahea edulis, or the Guadalupe palm, is a slow-growing, hardy palm native to Mexico's Guadalupe Island, known for its large, fan-shaped, green leaves and edible black fruit. It's highly tolerant of drought, wind, and poor soils, making it a popular ornamental plant in warm climates, though it's considered rare in the wild due to habitat threats like feral goats. This self-cleaning palm grows to about 30-45 feet tall and is suitable for full sun and well-drained soil.

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 sometimes push seeds I find in other potted plants , just because I don’t want to throw them away or deal with them immediately. The problem is that I rarely know what I may have popping up . Yesterday I noticed something I couldn’t recognize . I was trimming some plants and pulling little weeds out of the garden when I saw something in a potted Radicalis over by the spa. Unlike anything seen before in my garden. I will know soon enough whe the first leaf emerges. It is very robust and dark in color . I do remember tossing around some Arenga seeds from our Engleri , maybe one got pushed into this pot while my mind was on something else? Harry I occasionally push seeds I’ve picked up in my garden in other potted palms . The only thing is , this one looks very different in size and color . I am hoping it is an Arenga mixed in with a few C. Radicalis . Whatever it is , it has a found a home! You can see the “heal” of a larger Chamaedorea Radicalis along with other babies. (That large root thingy).

Great to see this post revived . I knew nothing about these until I saw one in Ventura at Terry and Sevin Sullivan’s place . It towers over the garden with a dominance like royalty . I didn’t know it was heat sensitive but it seems to like the coastal Ventura climate. Harry

A very beautiful palm and one of only a couple of Licuala that will grow here in our climate , in the right micro climate . I will be planting one as soon as I get my hands on it. I have a nice spot picked out for it. I will not be able to get one super large in my lifetime , so it won’t need much room. Harry

Dwarf Coconut palms seem like a very good idea for those who can grow them reliably . I learned a bit about the regular Coconut when I visited Kauai in 1998 , a few years after Hurricane Iniki wiped out Poipu and surrounding areas . Some of the resorts had not rebuilt yet and had chain link fences around them so the fruit of the unmaintained palms would not kill someone ( I asked about vandalism and was told the fence was just to keep folks out of the coconut groves). I didn’t realize how dangerous they could be . Most of the residential areas had mounds of Coconuts with a “free” sign on the corner of some streets . They need to be maintained in populated areas. That could be a problem on the very tall ones , unless you were skilled at climbing them . Harry Edit: I will say fresh coconut is very good! I learned how to open them easily in Morea , with a stick.

I tried the Malay dwarf in a subtropical climate and no luck. Both burnt to a crisp in the cold weather.

Chuck those rare cold tolerant palms at you and the world is my oyster! 🤣😂🤣😂

Make me an offer I can’t refuse 🤣

Thanks for sharing! Coco bonsai is one of the best bonsai plants here in Indonesia, I've seen a lots variety of it. I'm also planning to grow this later for my collections😁

Our favorite non - native Parrot clan member rummaging among what is left of the native Sunflowers One of ..dozens.... of Ichneumonid family wasp sp. Possibly within the Genus Anomalon Funereal Duskywing, Erynnis funeralis.

Oh man i missed these. These are what i was waiting for.

Now that I have a garden again... Double Barred Finch in our Bird Bath

I have more pembanas, they are not too much work. I dont like losing palms but its a part of growing them the last 25 years, so are edits. THe hurricane damaged so many palms(30?) it was very discouraging. Most of the biggest ones were stripped of almost all their leaves, the pembana was one of them. I have 4 potted 5-7 gallon pembanas that came from the fruit of the solitary one just falling into pots with soil. I've already planted 2 out this past month. My recomendation, never plan to have just one or two palms, get a dozen or more so there is encouragement after setbacks.

Ceroxylon parvifrons popping up from rps seeds another great batch of seeds!

It’s exciting to see them coming, first thought is well I got viable seeds that’s a good thing, second is unreal I got another variety of palm and finally iam glad I got 100 seeds and now have 70 of them!😂 Richard

6 available 1 for 95.00 these are huge Giant timber bamboo (often Bambusa oldhamii) is a large, fast-growing, clumping bamboo known for its impressive height (up to 60-80 ft) and thick, green culms (canes) that are ideal for timber, privacy screens, and tropical landscapes. It's a non-invasive, well-behaved variety that thrives in warm climates with full sun to partial shade, preferring rich, well-draining soil and regular water, though it becomes drought-tolerant once established. Key Characteristics Type: Clumping (non-invasive) Height: 40–80 feet, depending on conditions Culm Diameter: Up to 4–6 inches Appearance: Tall, straight, green culms with dense, lush foliage Cold Tolerance: Hardy to about 20°F (-6°C) once established Growing Conditions & Care Sun: Full sun to partial shade (grows smaller in shade) Soil: Rich, well-draining soil (neutral to slightly acidic) Water: Needs regular watering when young; becomes drought-tolerant when mature Uses: Privacy screens, windbreaks, timber, specimen plant, tropical accent Growth & Maintenance Growth Rate: Very fast, can grow several feet per year in ideal conditions. Maintenance: Relatively low-maintenance once established; can be harvested for timber or pruned.

I would recommend buying one online and then having it shipped from https://www.monrovia.com/bonsai-blue-jacaranda.html They're a trusted source for this special cultivar. I have two from this company that I bought from a local retail nursery.

A quick update! Just looking stellar right now. Tim

Sedirea (Aerides) japonica in bloom.

These guys are all blooming now

I have tried growing Vanda coerulea twice. The first one survived a couple of years and the second attempt was similar in duration. They don't seem to like my damp and cool winters. That is a lovely Vanda you have. I am happy that this third attempt with Epidendrum lacustre Panamanian variety is thriving still after 4 years. The flowers aren't especially large or colorful, but I love their structure.

New ring on my Alex this afternoon 😊