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This Spring’s annual order from Floribunda has arrived! Three one gallon Basselinia glabrata, two Pinanga coronata, two Cyphophoenix alba, and three 4” container Prestoea montana. Are are robust and big for container size as is usual.

It’s nearly 13 years since I had the great fortune to first meet the legendary ( and extremely generous) Tassie Troy and I thought it’s time to pay homage to all those who have helped me , and those in the Palm pantheon , like Darrold and Colin and Jonathon, who visited in the early days ( when there were only tiny plants) and didn’t wonder, at least out loud , if anything would ever eventuate. Here are a few pictures .There are around 25 species including 12 of chamaedoria. Some like the big baueri , trachycarpus and forsteriana are hard to depict . Nothing can keep up with the torallyii. Of course all 4 Lord Howe Island palms love it here in Hobart. Mike

I spoke with the person in charge of the French Guiana Botanical Garden in South America, at the Palmetum de Guiana. They explained that they have two Tahina spectabilis palms, one in the Palmetum garden and another in a private garden in Cayenne. In total, there are three Tahina palms in French Guiana. They also explained that they obtained the seeds from RPS Germany in 2008, and that many palm trees originated from those seeds. Those in Thailand also originated from the 2008 RPS sale. They also mentioned that there is a Tahina spectabilis in Venezuela. These are probably the only palm trees in South America. In our conversation, they also noted that there are Tahina palms in Martinique and Guadeloupe. With all this information, it is very likely that it could flower in the French Guiana garden in 2038, if it flowers within the minimum 30 years required for this highly sought-after palm. Below is a photo of the Tahina plant. Its trunk is thinner, which will likely accelerate its flowering. Hugo Aravena Chile

Flowering Oraniopsis appendiculata at the Royal botanic gardens in Sydney

To my knowledge, the only Worldwide example of Archontophoenix alexandrae “Alba” came from a batch of regular Alex seed germinated in SE Queensland a number of years ago. Subsequent seedlings were distributed amongst a few lucky Aussie growers and are now maturing. Seed from these first generation palms appears 100% true to the “Alba” form. Not only do they have a yellow crownshaft, but some also produce pink/red new leaves. Gorgeous palms. Look incredible planted together with Archontophoenix pupurea.

This little Veitchia always looks great, especially sporting a large spathe. Flowering is infrequent and I can only surmise that it’s a function of having just the right amount of rainfall. I’d throw in temperature and humidity, but those conditions don’t fluctuate much in East Hawaii. We’ve had over 100” (2500mm) since the beginning of the year. Here are a few updated photos. Tim

Dave, I’ve always been a “plant them even when they’re tiny” kind of guy. Many of my big honking palms were planted as 2 or 3 inch seedlings directly to the ground. Here are just a few of them…

I am curious if other SoCal gardens have had their KO’s bloom and/or set viable seed? This is by far the biggest and best flower mine has set.

Trachycarpus princeps

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Hello everyone, My name is Sebastián Vieira, and I’m writing from Colombia. I’m a naturalist and currently the Executive Director of Salvamontes Colombia, a non-profit organization focused on the conservation and restoration of threatened species and their habitats, mainly through the creation and long-term care of private natural reserves. Although I didn’t come to conservation through a formal biology track ( I originally studied and worked as an engineer and spent many years working in telecommunications ), my interest in plants and the natural world has been with me for as long as I can remember. Over time, that curiosity slowly turned into field work, conservation projects, nature photography, and taxonomic research, especially on Pleurothallid orchids. It was that long, hands-on relationship with nature that lead me to be a co-founder of Salvamontes, and nowadays, its leader. Andy Hurwitz invited to come and participate in PalmTalk, and share with everyone here our amazing story, so it’s really nice to finally introduce SalvaMontes and our work here, especially thanks to the invitation from the International Palm Society, whose support has been fundamental for one of the projects I care most deeply about. That project is the Sabinaria Natural Reserve, located in the Darién region of northwestern Colombia, close to the border with Panama. This is an incredibly rich rainforest area, still poorly studied, and it happens to be the only place on Earth where the striking palm Sabinaria magnifica is found. A few years ago, while visiting the area, it became clear that much of the known habitat of Sabinaria magnifica was privately owned and increasingly exposed to deforestation and land-use change. Given how limited the species’ distribution is, it doesn’t take much habitat loss to create serious long-term risks. With that in mind and with crucial support from the International Palm Society, we were able to acquire and legally protect 50 hectares of tropical rainforest, securing what we believe is a meaningful portion of the global habitat and population of Sabinaria magnifica. Today, that forest is permanently protected as a private natural reserve. What makes this especially rewarding is that Sabinaria magnifica also works as an umbrella species. By protecting its habitat, we’re also conserving many other threatened organisms that depend on the same intact forest. This includes species like the critically endangered harlequin frog Atelopus fronterizo and the rare tree Magnolia sambuensis, along with many other plants and animals that are still little known. For us, Sabinaria is much more than a single-species project. It reflects a broader way of doing conservation: protecting habitat first, learning directly from the field, working with local communities, and committing to long-term stewardship rather than short-term interventions. I’m really glad to be here and look forward to learning from all of you, sharing updates from the field, and exchanging ideas about palms and their conservation around the world. I am also sharing some images showing the Sabinaria palm and its natural habitat. Finally, it is very important to thank and recognize the important support and participation of biologists Norman Echavarría, Norberto López, Saul Hoyos, Gloria Galeano and Rodrigo Bernal. Without them this project would not be a reality. PS: I will come back soon with additional information and images. Warm regards from Colombia, Sebastián Salvamontes Colombia

The palm tree that I've been asked for a lot from abroad, especially in Latin America. I'm sharing just my five Juania australis palms. I hope to receive more seeds of this species and genus soon. From CONAF Chile, the park ranger tells me it's false that this palm dies. It's a myth. And if they have died, it's due to poor care, or even small palms exposed to terrible heat. And you already have your rare Juania australis.

Yeah, a Royal Palm would have a long bright green crown shaft on its trunk beneath its canopy of fronds. $500 sounds reasonable for a Majesty that big but starting out with a vigorous younger one would probably make more sense.

Congratulations! I got my spring order from Floribunda about 10 days ago. My container garden was decimated by Ian and last winter's nights in the upper 30s. For future orders I am sticking to Floribunda and sellers I know on PT. TIP: If a palm seller peddles stuff with outdated scientific names or cutesy meaningless monikers consider red flags raised high. 'Nuff said.

One of my Royals is almost ready to get her first ring

Bactris gassiapaes, Chambeyronia watermelon and a rather well dressed moth.

A great chamaedorea variety to have this one, right at home on jungle floor in the understory of the garden. If you create the palms habitat in the garden they certainly reward you for that microclimate, and thus chamaedorea is right at home!

Well, here are a few photos…..only took me three years to post. It certainly didn’t turn out to be the ‘weeping’ form, but nice nevertheless. Huge inflorescence for such a small palm. Tim

An easy palm to grow for that cool subtropical to warm subtropical climate. I have dozens of chamaedoreas throughout my garden, they are just that good for the understory.

The latys are coming alive!….

A couple plants/palms I saw today in London specifically at zsl.

In regards to planting small palms, from little things big things grow!

Dave, I’ve always been a “plant them even when they’re tiny” kind of guy. Many of my big honking palms were planted as 2 or 3 inch seedlings directly to the ground. Here are just a few of them… @Jim in Los Altos. I have done that as well and been ok. I was just curious how others have done it . Some of them stay in pots for a while just because I am deciding on final spot or don’t have time to dig the hole. Harry ‘These two came home from Maui with me in 4” pots . Pritchardia H. above and Chambeyronia M. below . Planted within a week of coming home .

A bit small but i call it a victory, my freeze damaged spindle i thought was a goner has survived the trunk cut and started a new spear! the white petiole seen above it is about 4 inches tall with no leaves, and was at the cut a week or so ago. hopefully it survives summer and a few fronds so it gets strength before winter🤞

Harry, all but one are planted as of today. One more to go into the ground. I rarely keep any palms potted for long. I don’t like to wait until summer. I did put the Pinanga coronata palms into a big decorative pot however.

An interesting and beautiful ecological interaction that we were able to observe during our last visit to the reserve, was this group of Pygmy fruit eating bats (Artibeus phaeotis), modifying and using a leaf of Sabinaria magnifica as their daytime roost. Sabinaria is possibly an important resource for this bat species in the area.

It’s a great palm and so easy to grow from seed. Your little ones would be from my group of 4 (3 males, 1 female) which pumps out about 300-400 seeds a year now. Germination is close to 100% when I’ve tried although I gifted all of the seed set this year.

A couple of common Brahea down on my hill. Harry Mr. Elephant , Brahea Edulis This Brahea Armata is about 3-4 years younger than the Edulis . A much slower growing palm.

Silver Copernicia hospita in 7 Gallon Pot-$125. Pick up in Satellite Beach. All my Copernicia’s survived the 27F Freeze here. Beachpalms@cfl.rr.com

New frond on my smaller one.

This one is E. Arenarius x Latifrons. I harvested a pup about 3 years ago you can see behind it and there is another pup on it right now. All 3 flushed at the same time almost like they were talking to each other and said LETS GOOOO!!

Given the cold snap and freezing rain there are many palms in the area that suffered damage. Lots of bruised fronds in larger California or California Fan dominant hybrids while many very young Calis spear pulled with a few dying. My Mexican Fans are making a comeback but they did suffer spear rot and are pushing out dwarfed fronds now. I’ve said it before but Washingtonia DESPISE frozen precipitation and freezing rain probably the most. So worth saying again! Happy Summer!

Chamaedorea liebmannii is a girl (I think)!

It's a majesty, Ravenea rivularis. As for price, I have no idea.

I would just cut it off at the base. Removing 1 frond off a Phoenix palm isn't going to hurt anything. aztropic Mesa, Arizona

Lanonia dasyantha, never a dull moment with dasyanthas!

Thanks Kiwan. I’m fortunate to be in a very mild (for NorCal) microclimate here. Pacific influence, SF Bay buffering, and just enough inland for some good warmth. I just ordered more palms from FB. tonight. I got a suggestion to try Pinanga ‘Maroon Crown Shaft so I ordered a few as well as Chrysalidocarpus ‘Baby Red Stems, Chamaedorea arenbergiana, and Pritchardia aylmer robinsonii. It’s going to be a challenge selecting places for them all! I’ve planted all of the first batch.

Capada palm

This is my old F1 woodii x natalensis I got from Cynthia Giddy who made it in SA. My cycad log says 1985 acquired for $60. Cynthia was visiting Hermione Stover in California and brought with her hundreds of these bare rooted in bundles of 3, like cigars. All had been treated with her signature petroleum dip, so they largely failed. Mine I washed off and soaked and rinsed many, many times, but it still smelled of petroleum. Well, here's the plant today with 3+ feet of trunk growing 20 leaves. You'll notice the characteristic folded- hands leaflets among the lowest leaf bases -- a trait directly brought from pure woodii.

Ceratozamia zaragozae x hildae

Chrysalidocarpus robustus. Monster!

Sometimes Colvillea is late to leaf out. I have seen some variability also between specimens here in my landscape. I have two younger trees, one in the ground, one in a container, that leafed out about a month ago, but the larger one in the ground is just starting to break dormancy. Think about the natural rhythm for the trees in their native habitat, many monsoonal trees (many flowering trees fit that situation) don't even lose their leaves until February-March-April (Colvillea drops them sooner in my experience). Often these monsoonal trees, like Delonix regia, use this drier period to flower (Colvillea being a bit of an odd exception) and then they re-leaf once the rains start (or are about to start), pretty much at the onset of summer when moisture will be more regularly available. Colvillea looks to have a primary distribution in the dry deciduous forests of western Madagascar from roughly the central area (more or less the Bemaraha plateau region) to the northern tip of the island, with apparently scattered distribution further southward, in areas that receive some rain, but north of the spiny forest area in the extreme south/southwest, from about Toliara northward. Kew has a collection made by Missouri Botanical Garden in 1988 made around the Beza Mahafaly Reserve, which is at nearly 24 degrees South. Sources I consulted show that this drier southern distribution receives about 35-45cm (14-18") of rain annually, and the dry season can be 7-8 months. This species also does well in the Florida Keys (about 35" of rain), where I grew it previously, and in Miami (60" of rain), where I saw it in flower, but it's worth remembering that those areas of Florida are on porous limestone and so drainage is generally excellent, and the spring season is usually hot and bone-dry until rains really get going in July. So be patient. But I think the good drainage and seasonal and relatively light rainfall in habitat should be considered when planting. Many years ago I rotted one of these in heavy soil and have kept that in mind since. (They can take plenty of irrigation or heavy rain during the hot season, though.) They love heat and sun and definitely want to move into dormancy in the winter, in my casual observations and experience they are much less likely than Delonix regia to hold any good foliage through winter. Hopefully your area of Greece doesn't see too much below about 27F, that's where I saw damage occur when I attempted to grow the tree as a die-back in southern Mississippi years ago. I think if the tree can get into dormancy and any frosts/freezes occur after it does so, perhaps you can get a bit of extra cold-tolerance. But I would definitely mulch the base of the trunk if a hard freeze is forecast, as this tree can probably regenerate from the lower trunk if frozen back and the soil kept dry.

Copernicia bailyana at Ann Norton:

Chamaedorea microspadix

Definitely not Pritchardia so it can’t be native to the islands. I agree with Sabal yapa. If you ever read that a particular palm species requires full sun to be healthy, take it with a grain of salt. Dozens of my “full sun required” palms are in full shade and are perfectly happy. Many even look better in full shade than in the sun.

Couple more coming in. Encephalartos Green Arenarius is always a great grower for me. Encephalartos Princeps from another grower is the 2nd. -dale