Cycas cairnsiana

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

Here are a few select cairnsiana that i put to the side for myself showing great color.  These have been overhead watered for the last six months and haven't lost any color.  They are also under 40% shade.

[Palmzilla]

Looking happy! 

[5150cycad]

Those are really blue for being so young. Is that common with this species or are they the select seedlings out of a bunch?Those are going to be show stoppers down the road. I need to get one of those in my garden. 

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

They were all the same color when i pulled them. I just pulled the three larger ones. Like encephalartos the more sun they get the better they look. 

[Tracy]

On 12/8/2016, 6:05:42, TexasColdHardyPalms said:

Here are a few select cairnsiana that i put to the side for myself showing great color.

Is this something you will be able to grow outside there in Mansfield?  What sort of lows will they take?  While I have seen the thouarsii x cairnsiana grown here in Southern California, I haven't seen straight cairnaiana grown here.  Anyone share there experience growing this cycad out of habitat?  According to the PASCOA website they don't like humidity.

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

There isnt a lot known about the cold hardiness of cairnsiana, but ill figure it out in the next few years.

[5150cycad]

23 hours ago, Tracy said:

Is this something you will be able to grow outside there in Mansfield?  What sort of lows will they take?  While I have seen the thouarsii x cairnsiana grown here in Southern California, I haven't seen straight cairnaiana grown here.  Anyone share there experience growing this cycad out of habitat?  According to the PASCOA website they don't like humidity.

Palmzilla used to have some huge trunking ones. Not sure if he still has them or not.  Pretty sure they do fine in Southern California, although I do recall a couple of them had very weird looking flushes. Pretty amazing looking cycas, especially when they are big. Hopefully he will chime in and share his experience.  

[Al in Kona]

I'll share my two that are growing in upslope Kona, Hawaii at about 1,200 ft. elevation.  They probably like being on the drier side of the island altho' our humidity levels never drop very low.  These photos were taken several months ago.  I noticed it was about to flush so I cut off all the old leaves and it now looks like this. Then we had several good rains that seemed to lessen the silver tone somewhat.  The one to the left has always been a bit more silver-blue as the pic shows but it did not flush new growth at the same time as the one on the right.  I mulched them with the needles of the cut off old leaves.

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

1 hour ago, Al in Kona said:

I'll share my two that are growing in upslope Kona, Hawaii at about 1,200 ft. elevation.  They probably like being on the drier side of the island altho' our humidity levels never drop very low.  These photos were taken several months ago.  I noticed it was about to flush so I cut off all the old leaves and it now looks like this. Then we had several good rains that seemed to lessen the silver tone somewhat.  The one to the left has always been a bit more silver-blue as the pic shows but it did not flush new growth at the same time as the one on the right.  I mulched them with the needles of the cut off old leaves.

 

Al the one on the left looks amazing. How old are they?

[Al in Kona]

About 17 years from small seedlings.  After a couple years in getting established I basically  then stopped giving them supplemental water and no fertilizer but I do weed occasionally and mulch them.

 

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

Have either coned yet?

[Palm Tree Jim]

Al,

Those are looking great!