Florida Freeze of Jan. 2010

[palmsOrl]

Here in Maitland (northern suberb of Orlando) we had 8 nights below 32 F during the recent extended freeze event. Of these, 6 nights were in the 20s (28,28,27,26,25,29). Here are some photos of the damage my palms have received, taken today (sorry about the less than optimal lighting).

Roystonea borinqueana, almost 100% defoliated. I expect it to come back just fine.

[palmsOrl]

My ~25 ft. Roystonea regia (with a decidedly distressed bougainvillea beneath it), planted as a 4 ft. tall baby in 2002. This appears to be at least 50 % fried, but more damage will likely show as time passes. This one will definitely be fine.

[palmsOrl]

My wimpy silver (now ghostly white) Bismarckia that I've had since 1997, before the cold hardy individuals were selected and bred for this trait. It is at least 75 % defoliated. Still, it always comes back in the spring. See closeup of leaf.

[palmsOrl]

My foxtail, which I've also had since 1997, has been doing battle the last few years with this fast growing weedy tree that has grown up around it. It is hard to tell at this point what the extent of the freeze damage to it is.

[palmsOrl]

My D. lutescens next to the Cham. cataractum under a loquat tree. I think the sheets I covered this entire area of the garden with really helped avoid significant damage with these two palms.

[epicure3]

Well, keep the optimism.

[palmsOrl]

My small bottle palm doesn't look bad at all. Though I had the entire crown wrapped in a blanket, the palm still experienced two nights in the mid 20s. I believe these are a bit tougher than once believed.

[palmsOrl]

The bottom half of my Spindle was also covered during the freezes and up close the leaves are mottled (alternating between lighter and much darker green). It will be interesting to see how this evolves.

[palmsOrl]

A tale of two carpies. The first one shown began flowering a year ago and, though a bit hard to tell in the photo, it did receive significant damage from the recent cold spell (as it did last year). The second specimen appears much more cold hardy and consistently comes through freezes with little to no damage. Actually, you will have to take my word for it on the second one, didn't get a photo of it.

[palmsOrl]

My golden Malaysian Cocos always hangs in there during our winters, usually turning yellow and remaining that way until March-April. I had this one wrapped, and up close it looks pretty rough, but yet again I think it will live to see another summer.

[palmsOrl]

My small Gaussia maya looks almost as if it's July, while my large Prestoea acuminata (not pictured) was about 50 % defoliated.

[palmsOrl]

My Archontopheonix cunninghamiana shows its cold hardiness edge in this pic (unprotected).

[Rafael]

Did your palms see any frost?

Curious, your archontophoenix is fine.

Mine, faced similar temps, and is burned, as i show at http://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=21726.

[palmsOrl]

I am almost certain that it did see frost on numerous occasions during this cold event. The lowest temp. in my yard was 25.1 F.

[Natureguy]

Palms,

Thanks for the photos! I have 2 Royals as well. I am hoping and praying for them to comeback. My fear is that my new Royal was weakened from transplant last summer and the other one was hit hard last Jan's freeze. Did your R. regia get hit last year at all? Can royals handle 2 successive freezes like this?

Also, is the A. cunninghamiana planted under a canopy of oaks or other shade trees?

[palmsOrl]

NatureGuy, my R. borinqueana was about 2/3 defoliated last year while my R. regia ended up about 1/2 burned. I believe that as long as these palms are able to grow a full new crown of leaves by next season, they can survive successive freezes.

The A. cunninghamiana isn't under any canopy except possibly a portion of the crown of some queen palms on the other side of the fence. Even now, it is showing few signs of damage, while the rest of my garden is looking worse by the day.

-Michael

[Natureguy]

Michael....

That frightens me then, because my royal last year only put out 3 new fronds all season after the freeze. It was only in the ground for a few months when it got zapped. My new one this year went through a nearly complete defoliation after transplant last summer. Oh well, I lost a lot last year and only time will tell if I am to lose more this year. I thought I planned my plantings well. Apparently I haven't!

Thanks for the info.

Bob

[palmsOrl]

Bob,

Give your palms some tlc and they might surprise you. I am going to treat all of my damaged palms with copper fungicide, to avoid any fungus issues over the next few months.

-Michael

[Natureguy]

Michael,

Thanks for the advice. I am nervous about copper fungicide, but i am going to try H2O2, as has been also recommended in some threads.

Best of luck!

Bob

[_Keith]

Michael,

Thanks for the advice. I am nervous about copper fungicide, but i am going to try H2O2, as has been also recommended in some threads.

Best of luck!

Bob

Why would you be nervous about copper fungicide. It has been used for a couple of centuries. Be more afraid of modern chemicals, which have far less history to reveal the side effects.

[Natureguy]

the reason that i am hesitant in using copper fungicide is that knowledgeable people on previous threads have stated that it can be toxic if not used correctly.

just hesitant about using something that may be toxic if not used correctly! I am sure it is fine.......I don't just don't know and if I lost anything more than I have already lost in the past 2 years of serious freezes, I am hesitant! I am sure it is good. That is all

[Natureguy]

Ok....

So I got over my fear of copper fungicide.... Bought a bottle yesterday. Anyone have any suggestions as to how much to use? I read the instructions and it talks about every plant to use it on, except for Palms. Should I use 4 tsps per gallon? Does anyone have an opinion?

thanks for the advice,

Bob

[bayside mike]

Ok....

So I got over my fear of copper fungicide.... Bought a bottle yesterday. Anyone have any suggestions as to how much to use? I read the instructions and it talks about every plant to use it on, except for Palms. Should I use 4 tsps per gallon? Does anyone have an opinion?

thanks for the advice,

Bob

I read in a different post 1 to 2 tsp.

[gsn]

It depends on the copper fungicide product you purchased?

Some have different amounts(some more ,some less) of active ingredient than others!

[palmsOrl]

The type I purchased is called Phyton, which is supposedly the industry standard for the systemic and contact control of fungus and bacteria. The price certainly reflects this, at $20 for 2 fluid ounces and $332 per gallon! I am using 1 tsp. per gallon for my palms and I'm hoping/wondering if for my palms that are way too tall to treat the crown, I can pour a generous amount around the rootzone and let the systemic action work.

Just to update, many of the palms have manifested much more damage since the above photos were taken. I will post an update within the next few days.

-Michael

[Davidl]

I use 2 tsp myself with the brand I have but I usually make it a little weaker than recommended. I have not killed any palms from using it myself. I would make sure no animals especially birds drink it because its deadly to them.Humans too.

[Matthew92]

Was looking at old Weather Channel videos and found this local on the 8's for Orlando in January 2010- goodness, that was a more significant event for that area than I remembered.

 

 

Edited June 12, 2018 by Opal92

[PalmatierMeg]

I'll never forget that day. We had the same weather. Temps started the day in the 40s then fell to the mid-30s. Ice cold rain fell until late afternoon. Overnight low was a record 28.5F. First in 25 years I saw rain fall when temps were below 50F. I lost 30+ species of tropical palms that year.

[kinzyjr]

4 hours ago, Opal92 said:

Was looking at old Weather Channel videos and found this local on the 8's for Orlando in January 2010- goodness, that was a more significant event for that area than I remembered.

We ducked the snow/ice/sleet storm by a few miles thankfully.

Unfortunately, not everyone in Lakeland ducked the haymaker.  On this thread & page, check out JayW's posts:

http://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?/topic/21494-persistent-cold-air-in-florida/&page=17

Keep in mind that he lived in Lakeland at that time, as well.  In the more urban part of town, my low was 26F (twice).