Some palms in Bokeelia, FL (Pine Island)

[dwfl]

Hello all, I know everybody loves photos... So, as my first post on this forum, here are some palms growing in Bokeelia, FL (northern half of Pine Island). 

 

First is Ptychosperma waitianum. Looked flawless until getting blasted by some cool wind over the winter. Leaf tips turned browned but that's about it. Really pretty palm. Thank @Mike Evans for these babies.

 

 

You can see a smaller one growing to the left in this photo (just about to open a new leaf). 

The larger one has a small sucker at the bottom:

 

 

Next up are my coconut palms. I have 15 coconut palms total but only about half of those produce heavily. Anybody want to help me get these coconuts down?? Coconuts are beautiful palms and fun to grow but once they get 40ft tall it's a pain in the you know what to get the coconuts down if you want them at the stage for good drinking. I've started a row of Fiji Dwarfs to avoid this problem in the future. 

 

Old Dypsis lutescens with a couple cocos in background

 

Next up are a couple of species from my neighbors property:

Areca catechu - this palm has been in-ground about 15 years. Wasn't very happy in the 2010 winter but pushed on through it. Looks a bit tattered coming out of the cold fronts but always beautiful for the rest of the year. Lots of seedlings underneath. It now towers above the mature fruit trees around it. 

 

Last but not least, a row of Borassus flabellifer - very hard to capture with a camera how massive some of these are.  

 

[RedRabbit]

Thanks for sharing the pics! I've yet to visit Pine Island unfortunately. I've seen a lot of pictures from Bokeelia and it looks solidly 10b. It only got down to 36f this winter which isn't too bad considering it was slightly colder than average.

[5150cycad]

Welcome to the forum. Thanks for posting your pictures, especially the borassus flabellifer, that thing is a monster. 

[PalmatierMeg]

Welcome to PalmTalk. You are a nearby neighbor. I worked on Little Pine Island Wetland Mitigation Bank for 17 years. Pine Island is significantly warmer than Cape Coral. This past winter I reached an ultimate low of 34F. Seeing that tall Areca catechu gives me hope my young ones may ultimately survive in the ground. I have two young Borassus flabellifer but had no idea those huge ones were there.

[Cindy Adair]

Hi dwfl!

Excellent photos! 

I love Ptychosperma waitianum with its consistently striking new leaf color and interesting leaflets. Even though I live far away in PR I get to FL several times a year.

I love the climate (and cheap land) in my area, but so many FL plant related activities and Floridians I count as friends.

Glad you decided to post here.

[dwfl]

  On 4/9/2018 at 4:30 AM, RedRabbit said:

Thanks for sharing the pics! I've yet to visit Pine Island unfortunately. I've seen a lot of pictures from Bokeelia and it looks solidly 10b. It only got down to 36f this winter which isn't too bad considering it was slightly colder than average.

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Red, it was definitely colder than usual this winter. Some areas of the island can be a degree or two colder or warmer depending on where the property is in relation to the cold wind direction. Generally, closer you are to the water here from the direction the wind is coming the better. The nice thing is the ultimate low temperature usually only lasts for a few minutes (usually some point around 8am) and climbs back up fast rather than staying low a lengthy period of time. If you ever come down for a visit feel free to shoot me a PM!

 

  On 4/9/2018 at 4:53 AM, 5150cycad said:

Welcome to the forum. Thanks for posting your pictures, especially the borassus flabellifer, that thing is a monster. 

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Thanks 5150. I used a wide angle lens on the Borassus photos but it really doesn't do them justice. The base on some of them are so wide you'd need 4 people arms spread hands held to give it a group hug. Really cool to see them in person. They're starting to flower. 

 

  On 4/9/2018 at 1:15 PM, PalmatierMeg said:

Welcome to PalmTalk. You are a nearby neighbor. I worked on Little Pine Island Wetland Mitigation Bank for 17 years. Pine Island is significantly warmer than Cape Coral. This past winter I reached an ultimate low of 34F. Seeing that tall Areca catechu gives me hope my young ones may ultimately survive in the ground. I have two young Borassus flabellifer but had no idea those huge ones were there.

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Thanks Meg. Yes, I've tried growing A. catechu in Cape Coral before at a relatives house and they always fried and turned to newspaper if left out exposed to multiple cold fronts. Have you tried a Dwarf variety? Probably a better option as they would be easier to place in a protected location maybe near a south wall to give a windbreak from the northwest/northeast cold fronts. The dwarf variety would be easy to give some extra protection for a cold morning if/when needed by throwing a blanket or frost cloth around it. I have a 4ft dwarf now in a 15gal that has done very well and will be putting it in the ground in a few weeks. 

 

  On 4/9/2018 at 2:26 PM, Cindy Adair said:

Hi dwfl!

Excellent photos! 

I love Ptychosperma waitianum with its consistently striking new leaf color and interesting leaflets. Even though I live far away in PR I get to FL several times a year.

I love the climate (and cheap land) in my area, but so many FL plant related activities and Floridians I count as friends.

Glad you decided to post here.

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Thanks Cindy! It is a beautiful little palm. I have some good friends in PR, a couple that have farms/nurseries in Las Marias and Mayaguez. Unfortunately Hurricane Maria has set people back, some much more than others. My friends there are being resilient and now replanting. I hope you are well and doing the same! 

[dwfl]

Really nice Carpoxylon macrospermum at a friends house a few streets over. 

[PalmatierMeg]

  On 4/9/2018 at 3:13 PM, dwfl said:

Thanks Meg. Yes, I've tried growing A. catechu in Cape Coral before at a relatives house and they always fried and turned to newspaper if left out exposed to multiple cold fronts. Have you tried a Dwarf variety? Probably a better option as they would be easier to place in a protected location maybe near a south wall to give a windbreak from the northwest/northeast cold fronts. The dwarf variety would be easy to give some extra protection for a cold morning if/when needed by throwing a blanket or frost cloth around it. I have a 4ft dwarf now in a 15gal that has done very well and will be putting it in the ground in a few weeks. 

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I do have several potted A.c. dwarfs and am germinating them from reliably sourced seeds. I leave the smaller palms outside in the back yard in full sun, bring them onto the lanai when weather turns cooler. I keep them on wheeled dollies so I can roll them indoors when temps fall below 45F. Supposedly, the dwarf varieties are cold hardier than standard A.c. but I take no chances with these darlings.