Fastest growing palms?

[Zeeth]

I'm not sure if this has been asked a lot, but which species of palm are the fastest growing? The top 2 I always hear are Washingtonia robusta and Syagrus romanzoffiana, but are there any that are faster?

[street124]

pigafetta is my fastest.

[Moose]

JC - without question. Bo's fastest growing palm as well!

Ron.

[garrin]

My fastest palm by far has also been Pigafetta, followed by Actinorhytis. For less tropical climates I would agree that Washingtonia robusta is the speedy one. For the high elevation or maritime perpetually cool climates, Ceroxylon parvifrons grows like a stalk of bamboo (perhaps a little exaggeration there) once a trunk starts to form. I have seen C. parvifrons in its cold habitat in the Andes which were perhaps 5 m. tall, and shooting so fast that the first leaves are still healthy and green on the trunk clear down to ground level!

[DoomsDave]

The answer depends on where you are.

Here, in Cali, it's queens and washies, no two ways.

Pigafettas croak.

But, in the tropics, the Pigs rule!

[Zeeth]

Right now we're moving to Ellenton, fl. It's SW Fl, 10a, so Pigafetta most likely won't make it. It's right about as north as coconuts will grow long term.

[Jose Maria]

Just like Dave said; it depends on where you are.

Here in the south of Costa Rica, I am convinced african palmtrees ,Elaeis guineensis, are the fastest growers of all palms. They have been taken care of during one year in a nursery, where a lot of loving care is dispensed, and less than two years after transplant some of the new varieties have already fruitbunches.

The next runner up is coconut, the Malayan dwarf. But these receive nowhere near the love and care of the african pálms, they have to fend for themselves....so the competition is not fair here.....

[Tyrone]

Outside the tropics, the Syagrus rommie is fastest without a doubt, except for the Foxy Lady and the red form Hyophorbe indica which are lightening fast. From seed I'd say that the red form Hyophorbe indica is the fastest thing I've ever grown. From delivered seed to 10ft in the ground and clear trunking in 3 and a half years!!!!!!!

Best regards

Tyrone

[Don Little]

I disagree with Queen and Washies for non tropical climates as the fastest even as they do grow extremely fast. My Caryota urens puts them all to shame growing almost double the speed of my queens.

[virtualpalm]

I don't have a Pigafetta (I have lost each one I that I have tried), but I have grown all the other species mentioned and nothing compares to Acrocomia aculeata here in the subtropics. My largest one grew from a mere 4'OA to near 40 feet in 10 years. It started flowering at 6 or 7 years at around 30+ feet tall.

Jody

[Al in Kona]

Of the palms I have I'd say Pseudophoenix ekmanii is the fastest by far! Oh no, sorry I meant the slowest! Did you think I'd lost it for a moment?

Actually I'd say the Faxy Lady is one of my fastest growing palms and Syagrus botryophora (but only after it once gets its true pinnate leaves. Prior to that it is slow). My Carpentarias are fast too. Clinostigma samoense is pretty fast too. Pritchardias are often considered rather slow growers but Pritchardia pacifica is fast. Mine got tall fast!

[bgl]

The top 3 for me:

Pigafetta elata - 7 ft of trunk per year

Clinostigma sp. 'Hawaiian hybrid' - 5 ft of trunk per year

Actinorhytis calapparia - 4 ft/yr

Clinostigma samoense and C. ponapense are both about the same, between 2.5 and 3 ft of new trunk per year

I know Carpentaria is reasonably fast as well, but must admit I never paid much attention to the few I have. An educated guess: around 3.5 ft/yr.

And, as a comparison, Bismarckia nobilis and Dypsis lastelliana, just a tad more than 1 ft of new trunk per year.

[Palmy]

Hmm, the Syagrus x Butia is the fastest for me. That thing is so robust. I got a seedling and by the next year it was this huge robust palm, around 5 feet tall. That's fast for the bay area.

[Walter John]

Apart from Piggie rockets, you've got Carpentarias, Veitchia joannis in loamy soil in sub tropics, foxy ladies, Chamaedorea plumosa, Livistona decora, Dypsis cabadae x madagascariensis hybrids are speedy, the list goes on.

[bubba]

Got to say Street's Piggie. That thing is fast by the pictures!

[epicure3]

JC - without question. Bo's fastest growing palm as well!

Ron.

What's a JC?

[Kim]

I think Moosie aka Ron is addressing street124 aka JC in post #2.

IF I could grow a Pigafetta, I'm sure it would be fast, but in my limited garden, the Archontophoenix myolensis is the speed queen.

[kylecawazafla]

JC - without question. Bo's fastest growing palm as well!

Ron.

What's a JC?

Jubaea chilensis

[kylecawazafla]

In Gainesville, Caryota urens is probably the fastest one as well!

[Borgy230]

for me, its Archontophoenix maxima, and ptychosperma furcatum! the furcatum has grown probably 4+ feet a year, the archontophoenix is around 4-5ft per year!

[sonoranfans]

I disagree with Queen and Washies for non tropical climates as the fastest even as they do grow extremely fast. My Caryota urens puts them all to shame growing almost double the speed of my queens.

The speed of queens is extremely variable with water and fertilizer. I have seen the under watered and underfed ones look quite a bit slower. I have one that gets the extra benefit of being near several roses(more frequent watering and fertilizer), and it has gone from 10'-30' overall in just under 5 years(5yrs at the end of the summer). Thats 4'+ per year in overall height. And yet my neighbors queens have grown less than 2' a year in that time. He tries to grow them in high pH soil(no sulfur) with 1/2 the water and rarely adds the necessary micronutrients or more than 1 fertilization a year. Washingtonia robustas grow very fast here and are not picky about the nutrients or soil. They might not be as fast as queens initially, but once they hit 8' or so, they outpace the queens to 40', and then onto to 60'.

[DoomsDave]

The top five speed racers:

(In no particular order)

Archontophoenix, except for purpurea.

Washies, especially robusta

Caryota urens

Syagrus noodlesromanoffianum and

Trachycarpus fortunei! (What???!)

[Gileno Machado]

For my climate, during the wet season, the bigger the seed is, the faster the seedling will be. Coconuts are the fastest growing palms at early stages...

Exceptions: Borassus (slow); Pigafetta, Clinostigma, B. nicobarica and Carpentaria acuminata (very fast growing palms).

[osideterry]

Archo' alexandra and cunninghamiana, and Caryota urens are the fastest for me.

Livistona decora and Parajubaea torallyi torallyi are better than I expected, growing much faster than Caryota obtusa planted a similar size.

I don't think Foxy Lady, or straight Wodyetias and Veitchias are remotely as fast here as Florida and Hawaii.

Edited June 10, 2009 by osideterry

[epicure3]

For me, it's probably Veitchia Arecina or Foxy Lady. While they no-grow in winter, their summers make up for it. They grow faster than any palm I have that keeps growing through the winter.

[mnorell]

Not far from here, in St. Francisville, Louisiana, there are two Livistona decora on US61 that I have watched for the last several years as they went from relatively small plants to mammoth individuals. There are decently tall Washy robustas here, and they do grow at a good clip, but I don't think I've ever seen any grow as fast as those two decoras. A healthy Trachycarpus fortunei grows probably as fast as most Washingtonias here. On my own property the prize so far goes to Phoenix sylvestris 'robusta.' from a very small plant to a huge 10'+ shuttlecock of leaves in 4 years. No trunk yet but nevertheless it's a whopper!

[Frank]

Here in New Smyrna Beach, FL (about 1 1/2 hrs from Orlando), there is no question that Archontophoenix cunninghamiana has been, by far, the fastest growing palm for me. A. alexandrae has not performed the same way. It beats Washingtonia robusta, Syagrus romanzoffiana, and Roystonea regia by a lot. I have not tried Pigafetta.

Frank

I'm not sure if this has been asked a lot, but which species of palm are the fastest growing? The top 2 I always hear are Washingtonia robusta and Syagrus romanzoffiana, but are there any that are faster?

[edric]

Some of you may have already seen this photo, these Hyophorbe indica two red, and three green, are 24 months old from seed, the tallest one stands six foot four, from soil elevation to tip of frond, Ed

[tjwalters]

I suppose it depends on how one defines "fastest." I've had Chamaedorea metallica go from seed to seeding in 4 or 5 years. While it doesn't get very big, it certainly grew up fast. I've heard Licuala triphylla will mature in 3 years.

[Jeff in St Pete]

Here in the south of Costa Rica, I am convinced african palmtrees ,Elaeis guineensis, are the fastest growers of all palms. They have been taken care of during one year in a nursery, where a lot of loving care is dispensed, and less than two years after transplant some of the new varieties have already fruitbunches.

The next runner up is coconut, the Malayan dwarf. But these receive nowhere near the love and care of the african pálms, they have to fend for themselves....so the competition is not fair here.....

Hi Jose Maria, Have you ever grown Pigafetta? They grow so fast here that I believe you can sit and actually watch them grow! I'll see if Marco has any Pigafetta seeds that he can bring to the meeting on Saturday. Some of mine were 3 meters tall (overall height) in two years from germination! They slowed down considerably during the dry season but they are speeding back up again now that we are getting plenty of rain. I've never seen a faster palm.

[edric]

Here in New Smyrna Beach, FL (about 1 1/2 hrs from Orlando), there is no question that Archontophoenix cunninghamiana has been, by far, the fastest growing palm for me. A. alexandrae has not performed the same way. It beats Washingtonia robusta, Syagrus romanzoffiana, and Roystonea regia by a lot. I have not tried Pigafetta.

Frank

I'm not sure if this has been asked a lot, but which species of palm are the fastest growing? The top 2 I always hear are Washingtonia robusta and Syagrus romanzoffiana, but are there any that are faster?

Welcome Frank, I'm from N.S.B. also, Ed

[sonoranfans]

I'm not sure if this has been asked a lot, but which species of palm are the fastest growing? The top 2 I always hear are Washingtonia robusta and Syagrus romanzoffiana, but are there any that are faster?

If you feed and water it enough, syagrus is the fastest, faster than washies. Most syagrus look deprived as growers are skimping on water and nutrients. A healthy syagrus should have 12-15 lush green fronds at 25' high overall. When I see the ones with small crowns, I know what happened. In the case of water or nutrient deprivation, syagrus definitely wont be the fastest.

[bayside mike]

Down here in south Florida, Vietchias win in my opinion.

[edric]

Down here in south Florida, Vietchias win in my opinion.

Hi Miike, do you mean an Adonidia merrillii, they used to be Vietchia, Ed

[gsn]

Down here in south Florida, Vietchias win in my opinion.

Hi Miike, do you mean an Adonidia merrillii, they used to be Vietchia, Ed

Adonidia merrillii is considerably slower than Veitchia arecina,not to sure about the other Veitchia species.

I wouldn't consider Adonidia merrillii fast by any means!

[edric]

Down here in south Florida, Vietchias win in my opinion.

Hi Miike, do you mean an Adonidia merrillii, they used to be Vietchia, Ed

Adonidia merrillii is considerably slower than Veitchia arecina,not to sure about the other Veitchia species.

I wouldn't consider Adonidia merrillii fast by any means!

I agree, my Adonidias are, two years old, and just over two feet, or so above soil, but twice the size of my Hyophorbe v., Ed

[bayside mike]

Down here in south Florida, Vietchias win in my opinion.

Hi Miike, do you mean an Adonidia merrillii, they used to be Vietchia, Ed

Vietchia

Montgomery

,Winnin ,

MacDaniels

[edric]

Down here in south Florida, Vietchias win in my opinion.

Hi Miike, do you mean an Adonidia merrillii, they used to be Vietchia, Ed

Vietchia

Montgomery

,Winnin ,

MacDaniels

Oh, I see, ok, Ed

[FRITO]

Washingtonia robusta is probably our fastrst growing palm here in 8b/9a given full sun things grow fast here if they can take the cold.

queens are marginal and can get set back year to year with a hard freeze.

a healthy good posostioned windmill also can be surprising butnot faster than a Washy.

[chris.oz]

The fastest under ideal conditions, that is one story.

Most of my palms grow in part sun. Except Brahea armata which is in full sun.

My fastest growing palm in terms of the number of leaves per year is Brahea armata.