Why Are These Sabal Palmetto So "Bushy?"

[PalmTreeDude]

Why do these Sabal palmetto at the South Carolina State House (Zone 8a) look so bushy? Is it because they are in full sun?

Photo Source: http://trexrunner.com/2013/01/10/interview-with-the-race-director-columbia-sc-marathon/

 

 

[Zeeth]

That's how Sabal palmetto looks in landscaping when it hasn't been trimmed. Ones in deep forest do tend to be more stretched out though.

[PalmTreeDude]

30 minutes ago, Zeeth said:

That's how Sabal palmetto looks in landscaping when it hasn't been trimmed. Ones in deep forest do tend to be more stretched out though.

I'm used to them being more stretched, but I actually kind of like the bushy look! I wouldn't prune a Sabal palmetto much.

Edited November 18, 2016 by PalmTreeDude

[Ben in Norcal]

Not my favorite palm.

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

Thats what a palmetto looks like and is why they are my least favorite sabal.

[DCA_Palm_Fan]

I love em.   That's exactly what a good healthy Sabal palmetto should look like.  Full crown.   In  more shaded areas they're more open.     I've seen forests of these that were untouched and in full sun and very tree looked like this. The only differences were there were boots on some and most had a decent grey skirt of dead fronds.      

 

Why do so so many dislike this palm?   There's almost no Palm that I don't like.   Just curious.  

[Ben in Norcal]

16 minutes ago, DCA_Palm_Fan said:

I love em.   That's exactly what a good healthy Sabal palmetto should look like.  Full crown.   In  more shaded areas they're more open.     I've seen forests of these that were untouched and in full sun and very tree looked like this. The only differences were there were boots on some and most had a decent grey skirt of dead fronds.      

 

Why do so so many dislike this palm?   There's almost no Palm that I don't like.   Just curious.  

I didn't say dislike, just not my favorite.  They're just not attractive to my eye.   It's definitely the crown; sort of boring and, yeah, bushy.  

There's a few other genus/species that are uglier to my eye (e.g. a lot of Gaussia) - but not many.

[DCA_Palm_Fan]

56 minutes ago, Ben in Norcal said:

I didn't say dislike, just not my favorite.  They're just not attractive to my eye.   It's definitely the crown; sort of boring and, yeah, bushy.  

There's a few other genus/species that are uglier to my eye (e.g. a lot of Gaussia) - but not many.

Well, it was more of a general question.  Not to you or anyone specific. I've seen negative things said about them many times.  Maybe it's because they are to some just the generic southeastern US palms.  To me they're the iconic SE US palms.   

I happen to love them because they were the first ever Palm I had co fact with and the Palm that triggered my love of Palm trees period.   When I was little they reminded me of (more like I thought they were ) truffula trees   Lol. I suppose I can see how some might see them as boring though.  I mean they are literally THE Palm of the southeast and they really are almost everywhere you look in many places.   Ubiquitous would be a word too. 

I guess we all have our least favorites and  I suppose for me my least favorites are caryota. Most of them most of the time just don't even look palmy to me.   Especially when they have fronds up and down most of their trunks.   Idk.  I just don't care for their appearance.   The nicest looking ones to me are the ones that only have several fronds at the very top.  But even then the fronds look funny to me since they're kinda pyramid shaped and very wide.    

[Ben in Norcal]

Funny how tastes change over time - used to feel the same way about Caryota, but no more.

[DCA_Palm_Fan]

1 minute ago, Ben in Norcal said:

Funny how tastes change over time - used to feel the same way about Caryota, but no more.

True that.   

 

Heres a few oivs of typical healthy and pretty darn tall Sabal palmettos in south Florida, with the full crowns sabals should have if healthy and not over pruned.  

[Mr.SamuraiSword]

It couldnt be the sun as the reason they are so bushy.  these palms had no shade and they arent nearly as bushy as the ones at .

[Laaz]

Well grown & well fertilizes sabals...

 

[cm05]

I LOVE when they get that bushy lollipop look, especially when they're tall. If I had one I'd never trim it.

[hbernstein]

Why would any palm be trimmed, except to clean off the dead leaves?

If a certain palm canopy isn't the right shape, then maybe it's the wrong palm.

Sabal palmetto are my favorite palms, because of the  personal associations they stir up. They're also incredibly tough. Washingtonias are tough, too, but I have no love for them, except in habitat, where they're awesome!

[Mr.SamuraiSword]

Just now, hbernstein said:

Why would any palm be trimmed, except to clean off the dead leaves?

If a certain palm canopy isn't the right shape, then maybe it's the wrong palm.

Sabal palmetto are my favorite palms, because of the  personal associations they stir up. They're also incredibly tough. Washingtonias are tough, too, but I have no love for them, except in habitat, where they're awesome!

I agree with you.  they are often planted on beaches in the east coast and look horrible there usually half dead, worse looking then VB sabals.  Washingtonias are often planted next to tall sabals,royals, bizzies, cocos ect and take away the awe of how tall they due to the washingtonia outgrowing it quickly.  they look fine when they are smaller but get ugly as the skirt of dead leaves appear.  they dont fit in with other florida plants as well.  I never liked them much unless they are small.  they do however look great in their habitat.  I prefer filfera over robusta due to trunk size and appearance but both dont fit in or look very nice on the east coast.  

[PalmTreeDude]

3 hours ago, Mr.SamuraiSword said:

It couldnt be the sun as the reason they are so bushy.  these palms had no shade and they arent nearly as bushy as the ones at .

They kind of have a bushy look too them, and certainly would if they had wind shelter! Those things are very old indeed. The dead fronds are probably blown right off of them as soon as they become loose. 

[PalmTreeDude]

I love Sabal palmetto, the palm that sparked my interest!

[PalmatierMeg]

I like the look - kind of like a puffball on a stick.

[PalmTreeDude]

4 hours ago, PalmatierMeg said:

I like the look - kind of like a puffball on a stick.

They make me happy. 

[topwater]

A well grown palmetto can hold its own with any palm, to my eye at least. Love the full canopy. 

[Las Palmas Norte]

They (S. palmetto) never seem to form a thatch skirt like Washingtonia either, Me, being in a region where growing palms are limited to several species, I like most palms.

Cheers, Barrie.

[Matthew92]

I like to think of Sabal palmetto as the "real" Florida palm. Not fancy, but 100% bulletproof.

I hate when they're over-trimmed so much. Here's a few I've found on streetview that are how they should look.

I call this one a "desert" sabal. Looks really good with the agaves.

[PalmTreeDude]

2 hours ago, topwater said:

A well grown palmetto can hold its own with any palm, to my eye at least. Love the full canopy. 

I can't stop thinking how nice they CAN look!

1 hour ago, Opal92 said:

I like to think of Sabal palmetto as the "real" Florida palm. Not fancy, but 100% bulletproof.

I hate when they're over-trimmed so much. Here's a few I've found on streetview that are how they should look.

I call this one a "desert" sabal. Looks really good with the agaves.

They are like the symbol of the south east! Nice palms! 

[DCA_Palm_Fan]

On 11/19/2016, 8:47:47, PalmTreeDude said:

I can't stop thinking how nice they CAN look!

They are like the symbol of the south east! Nice palms! 

 

They are every bit as ubiquitous to the southeastern United States as washies are to CA and other parts of the southwest. 

[RR soFLA]

Palmettos are sturdy, long lived and have beautiful smooth curved fronds. This one is growing on the property here, would never trim.

[DCA_Palm_Fan]

8 hours ago, RR soFLA said:

Palmettos are sturdy, long lived and have beautiful smooth curved fronds. This one is growing on the property here, would never trim.

Very nice!   That curvature you speak of is called costapalmate.  That's my favorite shape for a fan  palm frond.    

[RR soFLA]

yup, heard of that

[Dave-Vero]

Those Columbia, South Carolina Sabals have been well fed and watered.  They're well inland of their native range, so have survived severe cold, but are managing to look happy anyway.  Could they thrive in Atlanta?  

I don't see inflorescences, so either they've fallen, or they've been trimmed, a tricky operation.

 

[DoomsDave]

Those

are

GORGEOUS

I never appreciated before. If I were ever deported to a place where that was the only palm to grow, I'd love them even more.

 

[pin38]

I think those Columbia sabals look magnificent. They look a little more formal, which isn't always what you want in a palm landscape, but in front of a statehouse (where that's the state tree) it kind of fits.  They look very South Carolina, imo

[Josh-O]

[HurryUp&Grow]

On 11/17/2016, 5:57:41, PalmTreeDude said:

Why do these Sabal palmetto at the South Carolina State House (Zone 8a) look so bushy? Is it because they are in full sun?

Photo Source: http://trexrunner.com/2013/01/10/interview-with-the-race-director-columbia-sc-marathon/

 

 

 

Weird. How come the base of the trunk is necked down like that?

[DCA_Palm_Fan]

1 hour ago, HurryUp&Grow said:

Weird. How come the base of the trunk is necked down like that?

I've always wondered what causes that sort of growth habit.  You see it very often on taller more mature Sabal Palmettos.  I don't think its freeze damage because that  is usually ugly and obvious.  You see Sabal trunks  bit thiner, then thicker a ways up, then slim down again, and the edges of where it changes sizes are rounded.  Almost like it went through an anti-penciling stage, then penciled a little then stopped and grew normally again.  Could be one of any number of environmental factors.   I have always found it interesting and its fairly common. So common that Ive always just considered it of part of just how Sabals look.  I know that there are reasons for it though.

This was discussed a bit before in THIS THREAD.   

[PalmTreeDude]

3 hours ago, DCA_Palm_Fan said:

I've always wondered what causes that sort of growth habit.  You see it very often on taller more mature Sabal Palmettos.  I don't think its freeze damage because that  is usually ugly and obvious.  You see Sabal trunks  bit thiner, then thicker a ways up, then slim down again, and the edges of where it changes sizes are rounded.  Almost like it went through an anti-penciling stage, then penciled a little then stopped and grew normally again.  Could be one of any number of environmental factors.   I have always found it interesting and its fairly common. So common that Ive always just considered it of part of just how Sabals look.  I know that there are reasons for it though.

This was discussed a bit before in THIS THREAD.   

If you have ever seen a tall Sabal palmetto with a small nutrient deficient head, once it gets better the area of the trunk is a little thinner than the rest once it has grown past it.

[DCA_Palm_Fan]

7 minutes ago, PalmTreeDude said:

If you have ever seen a tall Sabal palmetto with a small nutrient deficient head, once it gets better the area of the trunk is a little thinner than the rest once it has grown past it.

Yep. And that would be the cause of the penciling I mentioned. 

[Keith N Tampa (ex SoJax)]

On 11/18/2016, 12:14:59, Mr.SamuraiSword said:

It couldnt be the sun as the reason they are so bushy.  these palms had no shade and they arent nearly as bushy as the ones at .

This grove looks like its drowning, like the water table rose up, maybe due to some nearby construction?  

[Mr.SamuraiSword]

On 12/20/2016, 8:18:03, Keith in SoJax said:

This grove looks like its drowning, like the water table rose up, maybe due to some nearby construction?  

perhaps climate change?  there are larger groves a bit past the ft island beach many more palms there

[climate change virginia]

honesty like palmettos when they are poofy like that they look happy

[Patrick]

On 11/17/2016 at 8:20 PM, DCA_Palm_Fan said:

I love em.   That's exactly what a good healthy Sabal palmetto should look like.  Full crown.   In  more shaded areas they're more open.     I've seen forests of these that were untouched and in full sun and very tree looked like this. The only differences were there were boots on some and most had a decent grey skirt of dead fronds.      

 

Why do so so many dislike this palm?   There's almost no Palm that I don't like.   Just curious.  

I thought their natural growth habit was the three newest fronds near the top  + the spear?

Edited January 20, 2021 by Patrick

[Brad Mondel]

What a beautiful native palm that is hardy and strong. It is a historical image of South Carolina that we should be proud of.