2018 update of green Malayan dwarf coconut

[Walt]

The YouTube video below is a 2018 update of my green Malayan dwarf coconut palm that I've been growing for about 16 years now. My coconut palm actually fared very well from Hurricane Irma in September of 2017, but it was frond damaged by a frost I had this past February on the coldest night of the winter. I estimate my low temperature that morning (at sun up) was in the high 20s, as Lake Placid Elementary Schools STEM weather station (tied to weather underground website) recorded a low of just over 35 degrees, and I generally run 7-8 degrees colder since I'm in a low spot, and the school is on much higher ground up in town. I had some fear that the coconuts on my palm (that went through the winter) might not be good, but all the ones I've picked and ate were great tasting. They are small in size, but taste great just the same.  The video shows one of the coconut I opened and ate. I gave a neighbor a couple of coconuts and she loved them.

 

[kinzyjr]

I hope to be able to do the same soon.

[John in Andalucia]

Hi Walt, I enjoyed the video. Thanks for sharing!

[sandgroper]

Thanks for the video, very interesting mate.

[Tropicdoc]

My fantasy is to use your method on my beccariophoenix alfredii 

[Walt]

8 hours ago, kinzyjr said:

I hope to be able to do the same soon.

What? Harvest coconuts?  If I hadn't protected this palm in 2010, I wouldn't be harvesting anything -- but ash after I burned my dead coconut palm up!

[Walt]

7 hours ago, John in Andalucia said:

Hi Walt, I enjoyed the video. Thanks for sharing!

Glad you enjoyed it, John.

[Walt]

4 hours ago, sandgroper said:

Thanks for the video, very interesting mate.

You are welcome. It's been a struggle at times to keep this palm alive. My climate is good for growing a coconut palm except for a day or two ever 3-5 years.

[Walt]

1 hour ago, Tropicdoc said:

My fantasy is to use your method on my beccariophoenix alfredii 

What method is that (heating cables and insulation blankets)?

[kinzyjr]

6 minutes ago, Walt said:

What? Harvest coconuts?  If I hadn't protected this palm in 2010, I wouldn't be harvesting anything -- but ash after I burned my dead coconut palm up!

Yes, harvest coconuts. 

I have 4 of them here.  One Malayan Dwarf that has been in the ground for ~7 years and two Jamaican Talls and one Maypan that I purchased at a plant sale.  I protect mine each winter to reduce the amount of crown they have to regrow and keep them alive in the really rough winters as well.

[Walt]

6 minutes ago, kinzyjr said:

Yes, harvest coconuts. 

I have 4 of them here.  One Malayan Dwarf that has been in the ground for ~7 years and two Jamaican Talls and one Maypan that I purchased at a plant sale.  I protect mine each winter to reduce the amount of crown they have to regrow and keep them alive in the really rough winters as well.

As you know, if you've been following my posts over the years, I had to give up trying to protect the fronds. Just no economically effective way to do it. One winter I erected a PVC tarp wall on the N.W. side of the palm. I then trained a 30K BTU kerosene heater on the palm, hoping that the heat blown past the palm trunk would reflect back to the palm off the PVC tarp. It helped some but not near enough. 30K BTU/hour is just not enough. Thus, I've given up on the fronds. I just protect the trunk and meristem with heating cables and heavy blankets.  Then, if you get lucky, we will get a mild winter where the crown doesn't get hurt. But I find if we get a cool winter win no frost, my palm suffers K deficiency and many of the oldest fronds die anyway. 

The two small coconut palms you saw in the video, I plan to build a tent over them using stakes to hold the tent (heavy bed mattress cover). I will then just stick some jugs of warm water inside the tent right before I go to bed. Or, I will put a heat source in the tent. I have lots of old electric skillets for this purpose.

[pj_orlando_z9b]

Nice Walt. Looks great!

[Walt]

36 minutes ago, pj_orlando_z9b said:

Nice Walt. Looks great!

Thanks. Now that the rainy season ended, I'm forced to  hand water around my coconut. I want it to continue taking up as much minerals and water, etc., as possible, as I'd still like to get at least one, hopefully two, more fronds this year. Is your coconut continuing to recover?

[pj_orlando_z9b]

4 hours ago, Walt said:

Thanks. Now that the rainy season ended, I'm forced to  hand water around my coconut. I want it to continue taking up as much minerals and water, etc., as possible, as I'd still like to get at least one, hopefully two, more fronds this year. Is your coconut continuing to recover?

I've been wondering if I should continue watering as well while the heat is still available. I think I'll fertilize and water well this weekend. Mine thankfully is rapidly growing out from its damage. I lost almost the entire crown and this is it today.

[kinzyjr]

2 hours ago, pj_orlando_z9b said:

I've been wondering if I should continue watering as well while the heat is still available. I think I'll fertilize and water well this weekend. Mine thankfully is rapidly growing out from its damage. I lost almost the entire crown and this is it today.

If the temperature is above 80F, I water mine in the fall and early winter like you and Walt.  If there are night time temperatures in the 50s, I stop watering them unless we are due to have 80s for a week or more.  The extra couple months of rapid growth seems to really help them.

[Walt]

4 hours ago, pj_orlando_z9b said:

I've been wondering if I should continue watering as well while the heat is still available. I think I'll fertilize and water well this weekend. Mine thankfully is rapidly growing out from its damage. I lost almost the entire crown and this is it today.

I can see it's come back more since the last time you posted a photo of it. I water mine everyday to keep the minerals in the ground in solution so the roots can take them up. I'm not going to let the soil dry out. I want to get all the growth I can while the season is still lasting. Lake Placid had a heat index of 107 degrees today. Soil temperatures are high. I may throw some 8-2-12 around my coconut palm tomorrow. 

[Walt]

1 hour ago, kinzyjr said:

If the temperature is above 80F, I water mine in the fall and early winter like you and Walt.  If there are night time temperatures in the 50s, I stop watering them unless we are due to have 80s for a week or more.  The extra couple months of rapid growth seems to really help them.

Yes, I cut back on the water once cold weather sets in and soil temperatures drop. But in January and February, if a cold front moves in and it's a full sun day, I will water the soil around my coconut so that the soil can absorb more radiant heat from the sun (as opposed to dry soil) so that it can re release the heat once the sun goes down. Also, I've got up a couple of times at night during a freeze, and watered the ground all around my coconut with 75 degree well water, in hopes that the rising heat from the well water will mitigate cold/frost damage to the fronds. 

[pj_orlando_z9b]

18 minutes ago, Walt said:

I can see it's come back more since the last time you posted a photo of it. I water mine everyday to keep the minerals in the ground in solution so the roots can take them up. I'm not going to let the soil dry out. I want to get all the growth I can while the season is still lasting. Lake Placid had a heat index of 107 degrees today. Soil temperatures are high. I may throw some 8-2-12 around my coconut palm tomorrow. 

This was the same palm on April 20. Notice the boots removed giving me the first real clear trunk. Great watering strategies. I wish we were neighbors cause I'd ask you just hop over to my yard and water at night too. Lol

Edited October 17, 2018 by pj_orlando_z9b

[Walt]

10 hours ago, pj_orlando_z9b said:

This was the same palm on April 20. Notice the boots removed giving me the first real clear trunk. Great watering strategies. I wish we were neighbors cause I'd ask you just hop over to my yard and water at night too. Lol

It's made a good recovery and trunk development in that amount of time. If you get through this winter without damage your palm should have a full crown sometime next year.

[Mr. Coconut Palm]

Walt,

Great video and your palm is looking good.  Post a couple of still photos of it here in case some people can't watch the video.  My Green Malayan is really recovering rapidly from the 6 freezes we had this last winter.  It is now the largest one, and only one of two survivors from last winter that I know of here in Corpus Christi.  I will post photos of it next month when I fertilize my palm again.  I fertilize mine 4 times per year in February, in May, in August, and again in November with MicroLife Ultimate 8-4-6 All Organic Biological Fertilizer with over 70 minerals and micronutrients!  It is the highest quality fertilizer I have found in the 34 years I have been growing palms and tropical plants, and if you go ALL ORGANIC, it really strengthens up palms and other tropicals to make it through the winter better, increasing their cold hardiness by as much as 2F to 3F over growing them without organic fertilizer and organic pesticide.  Also, going ALL ORGANIC makes fruits and vegetables much more nutrient rich and strengthens the trees and plants roots, and makes them more drought resistant too.  Over time, you end up using 40% to 50% less water over conventional fertilizers and pesticides!  By going ALL ORGANIC, you actually build up the health of the microbes and bacteria in the soil, and when you have healthy soil, you have strong, deep, healthy roots, and thus much stronger healthier trees and plants, whereas, the synthetic chemical fertilizers and pesticides actually sterilize the soil over time, killing the beneficial microbes and bacteria, and adding sodium to the soil, thereby drying out the soil more, and thus causing increased watering needs.

John

[Walt]

19 hours ago, Mr. Coconut Palm said:

Walt,

Great video and your palm is looking good.  Post a couple of still photos of it here in case some people can't watch the video.  My Green Malayan is really recovering rapidly from the 6 freezes we had this last winter.  It is now the largest one, and only one of two survivors from last winter that I know of here in Corpus Christi.  I will post photos of it next month when I fertilize my palm again.  I fertilize mine 4 times per year in February, in May, in August, and again in November with MicroLife Ultimate 8-4-6 All Organic Biological Fertilizer with over 70 minerals and micronutrients!  It is the highest quality fertilizer I have found in the 34 years I have been growing palms and tropical plants, and if you go ALL ORGANIC, it really strengthens up palms and other tropicals to make it through the winter better, increasing their cold hardiness by as much as 2F to 3F over growing them without organic fertilizer and organic pesticide.  Also, going ALL ORGANIC makes fruits and vegetables much more nutrient rich and strengthens the trees and plants roots, and makes them more drought resistant too.  Over time, you end up using 40% to 50% less water over conventional fertilizers and pesticides!  By going ALL ORGANIC, you actually build up the health of the microbes and bacteria in the soil, and when you have healthy soil, you have strong, deep, healthy roots, and thus much stronger healthier trees and plants, whereas, the synthetic chemical fertilizers and pesticides actually sterilize the soil over time, killing the beneficial microbes and bacteria, and adding sodium to the soil, thereby drying out the soil more, and thus causing increased watering needs.

John

Thanks, John. Sound like your organic palm fertilizer is working for you. I use as close to what Dr. Tim Broschat of the University of Florida recommends, that I find available in my area. I can't find 100% slow release, so I just fertilizer more often but less per application.  http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ep516

[GottmitAlex]

As always, just spectacular, Walt!!

You're against all odds with your coco only on certain days. However, your coconut has been victorious. 

When you mentioned that on ocasion, you water the roots in order to pull through the forecasted freeze.  I don't have that possibility here because, it doesn't freeze, although, it remains cool for a while and if I just water the cocos haphazardly during the winter here, I'm pretty sure their roots will rot. Evidently your coco has past that stage. You don't seem to worry about root rot. Is it because of its age? Its root development, et al?  Or does the sun bake the soil two days after the freeze?

 

[Walt]

17 hours ago, GottmitAlex said:

As always, just spectacular, Walt!!

You're against all odds with your coco only on certain days. However, your coconut has been victorious. 

When you mentioned that on ocasion, you water the roots in order to pull through the forecasted freeze.  I don't have that possibility here because, it doesn't freeze, although, it remains cool for a while and if I just water the cocos haphazardly during the winter here, I'm pretty sure their roots will rot. Evidently your coco has past that stage. You don't seem to worry about root rot. Is it because of its age? Its root development, et al?  Or does the sun bake the soil two days after the freeze?

 

Alex, my soil temperature in the winter months (as long as it's mostly sunny) stay warm. I ran a soil temperature report for the month of February 2018 at this website (https://fawn.ifas.ufl.edu/) and the soil averaged about 74 degrees for the month. I think the coldest the soil got was one night only, down to 58 degrees. On some days the soil warmed up well into the 80s at 10 cms depth.

I cut way back on watering in the winter unless it's warm weather.  No worry about root rot here, as my soil is sand, and well drained. Further, the soil is relatively warm. Still, I cut back on watering. Little need to water. The only time we get rain in the winter is when a cold front comes through, then it's only maybe 1/4" or so. Some cold fronts we get no rain.

But like I said, if it's sunny the day before a cold front comes through, then I saturate the soil with water so that the soil has more capacity to absorb and store heat (and release that heat at night). Also, during the night, if the temperature were to get down close to, at, or below freezing, I many times will take a garden hose and spray the soil all around my coconut with 75 degree well water. That puts some heat into the soil, and it rises up into the palm fronds. I've used a pocket thermometer and thermocouple and could detect the heat rising up. Did my watering efforts help? I don't know, but a little more heat is better than no heat, I say.

But other than the above freeze watering, I cut watering way back during the winter, as there's little need then.

[Walt]

Today I had to drive up to Sebring for doctor's appointment. I was about 30 minutes early so I decided to drive a few blocks away to check on two coconut palms I have been tracking for well over 10 years.  While these palms got some cold damage in 2010, they survived -- and they are planted on the N.W. side of the building, the coldest side.

Below are some Google street scene photos. The first one is a Google street view from January of 2008 (when Google was still using crummy low resolution cameras. The second photo is a Google street view from May of 2018. The third photo is one I took today (November 1, 2018) with my cell phone.  I had to take the photo from a different angle than the Google photos, as the sun was directly into my cell phone camera.

 

[GottmitAlex]

Awesome Walt!!!!

Those coconuts are true to form.

Thank you

[kinzyjr]

1 hour ago, Walt said:

Today I had to drive up to Sebring for doctor's appointment. I was about 30 minutes early so I decided to drive a few blocks away to check on two coconut palms I have been tracking for well over 10 years.  While these palms got some cold damage in 2010, they survived -- and they are planted on the N.W. side of the building, the coldest side.

Below are some Google street scene photos. The first one is a Google street view from January of 2008 (when Google was still using crummy low resolution cameras. The second photo is a Google street view from May of 2018. The third photo is one I took today (November 1, 2018) with my cell phone.  I had to take the photo from a different angle than the Google photos, as the sun was directly into my cell phone camera.

Every time I end up in Sebring I take a small detour just to check those out.  Thanks for sharing!

[Walt]

9 hours ago, kinzyjr said:

Every time I end up in Sebring I take a small detour just to check those out.  Thanks for sharing!

How did you stumble upon those coconut palms? About one mile away on Tubbs road (see link below) are four coconut palms. I stumbled upon these on Google street view about a year or so ago, and to date haven't made the trip to see them in person.  No doubt these palms get the lake effect benefit of Lake Jackson and Little Lake Jackson very near by.

https://www.google.com/maps/@27.4693001,-81.4587769,3a,52.9y,68.67h,96.38t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s40ag-qAVIBvmc3KErliGEA!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo1.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D40ag-qAVIBvmc3KErliGEA%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D175.00153%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

 

[kinzyjr]

4 minutes ago, Walt said:

How did you stumble upon those coconut palms? About one mile away on Tubbs road (see link below) are four coconut palms. I stumbled upon these on Google street view about a year or so ago, and to date haven't made the trip to see them in person.  No doubt these palms get the lake effect benefit of Lake Jackson and Little Lake Jackson very near by.

I end up in Sebring quite often considering that it's roughly a 90 minute drive.  I have friends that live there, visit Highland Hammock once a year, and have to travel to or through there once in a while for some of my contract work.  Sometimes I go there just to shop since the sales tax is lower (worth it if I'm buying in bulk) and the prices on some types of clothing are usually a little lower as well.

Back when I first moved to Florida 15 years ago, I used to go to Sebring literally every day since I lifted weights at the Sebring Hospital.  At that point, I lived very close to the Highlands county line, though.  I've made a few trips through your stomping grounds on my way to Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, and the Keys.  It was always interesting to me to watch the transition as you travel US-27 from Haines City and Lake Wales to the more developed parts of Sebring near the lakes.  Once you get into town, it's as if you are more in South Florida than Central Florida as you have pointed out many times.

[Walt]

On 11/2/2018, 8:39:55, kinzyjr said:

I end up in Sebring quite often considering that it's roughly a 90 minute drive.  I have friends that live there, visit Highland Hammock once a year, and have to travel to or through there once in a while for some of my contract work.  Sometimes I go there just to shop since the sales tax is lower (worth it if I'm buying in bulk) and the prices on some types of clothing are usually a little lower as well.

Back when I first moved to Florida 15 years ago, I used to go to Sebring literally every day since I lifted weights at the Sebring Hospital.  At that point, I lived very close to the Highlands county line, though.  I've made a few trips through your stomping grounds on my way to Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, and the Keys.  It was always interesting to me to watch the transition as you travel US-27 from Haines City and Lake Wales to the more developed parts of Sebring near the lakes.  Once you get into town, it's as if you are more in South Florida than Central Florida as you have pointed out many times.

Then you are familiar with the coconut palms at the Lake Grassy Inn & Suites. I've been tracking these palms for many years. The east side of Lake Grassy, IMO, has the most coconuts, royals, and other zone 10+ palms on residential properties than any other subdivision in Highlands County. The tallest coconut palm I've found in Highlands County is also in this subdivision. 

Lake Grassy Inn & Suites:  https://www.google.com/maps/@27.2535432,-81.3407804,3a,41.3y,74.64h,100.59t/data=!3m5!1e1!3m3!1sVEqhLxYR-093Kn6wxFWnyQ!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DVEqhLxYR-093Kn6wxFWnyQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D135.15704%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100

[Cluster]

Hello Walt,

Thanks for the update, your coconut looks amazing especially considering what it has been through. I am really curious how the offspring will fair, do you really notice the one in shade growing a lot slower? In any case it seems to be a good trade off, at least it won't get as much cold during your could spells! 

I really like the videos you are putting every year and seeing how much you have worked hard to keep that coco alive and now having offspring and cocos to drink and a very beautiful palm, must feel awesome and rewarding.

Regards,

Pedro

[kinzyjr]

2 hours ago, Walt said:

Then you are familiar with the coconut palms at the Lake Grassy Inn & Suites. I've been tracking these palms for many years. The east side of Lake Grassy, IMO, has the most coconuts, royals, and other zone 10+ palms on residential properties than any other subdivision in Highlands County. The tallest coconut palm I've found in Highlands County is also in this subdivision. 

Lake Grassy Inn & Suites:  https://www.google.com/maps/@27.2535432,-81.3407804,3a,41.3y,74.64h,100.59t/data=!3m5!1e1!3m3!1sVEqhLxYR-093Kn6wxFWnyQ!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DVEqhLxYR-093Kn6wxFWnyQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D135.15704%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100

I'm familiar with this group of palms.  When talking about solid places to grow 10a/b palms, Sebring and Lake Placid often get overlooked, in my opinion, because of the temperatures recorded at Archbold.  If there wasn't a 13F low staring people in the face when they research the area and knew of the microclimate variations in that area, you'd have a lot of new palm-loving neighbors.

[Walt]

17 hours ago, Cluster said:

Hello Walt,

Thanks for the update, your coconut looks amazing especially considering what it has been through. I am really curious how the offspring will fair, do you really notice the one in shade growing a lot slower? In any case it seems to be a good trade off, at least it won't get as much cold during your could spells! 

I really like the videos you are putting every year and seeing how much you have worked hard to keep that coco alive and now having offspring and cocos to drink and a very beautiful palm, must feel awesome and rewarding.

Regards,

Pedro

Hi, Pedro. Thanks for the kind comments.  My more shade grown coconut offspring (from my mother green Malayan dwarf) seems to be growing at a fairly normal rate. It's probably a little slower in growth rate, but not noticeably slower, at least compared to my mother palm. My green Malayan dwarf has always been a slow grower, even in full sun, at least compared to other coconut palm varieties I've watched grow in my area.

It is gratifying and satisfying growing a mature coconut palm in my 9b climate (although it's for all intents and purposes zone 10+ 363 days a year). I just wish I had a climate that I didn't have to protect a coconut palm from being killed by a freeze, or I would have many more varieties of them. For many winters I've protected various zone 10+palms during bad freezes, wrapping trunks with heating cables and insulation coverings, but they now are too tall, and I'm getting too old to further protect them. I do plan to continue to protect my coconut palm, at least for a few more years.

 

[Walt]

17 hours ago, kinzyjr said:

I'm familiar with this group of palms.  When talking about solid places to grow 10a/b palms, Sebring and Lake Placid often get overlooked, in my opinion, because of the temperatures recorded at Archbold.  If there wasn't a 13F low staring people in the face when they research the area and knew of the microclimate variations in that area, you'd have a lot of new palm-loving neighbors.

Yes, Archbold is a temperature anomaly, and not representative of Highlands County at all, certainly not lake side and high ground locations. Other outlying, low lying locations do get cold compared to the lake areas and high ground areas, but not as cold as Archbold. On the coldest radiational cooling nights my property runs warmer than Archbold, but still much colder than lake and high ground locations. I used to say 15 years ago at this forum that there is no substitute for large bodies of water in central Florida to moderate nighttime low temperatures to where zone 10 palms and shrubs, etc., can grow long term.

My neighbor a few blocks from me, her backyard backs to a 3 acre pond. Years ago I gave her some A. alexandrae and A. cunninghamiana palms that I grew from seed. This past winter all of my archontophoenix palms I have growing in the open were frost burned, but none of her palms were, due to the warming effect of the pond water. These photos were taken back in September. This past summer she planted a small coconut palm (shown in photo1, 2, and 3 below) she bought at Lowes. I look forward to seeing how it fares compared to mine.

[kinzyjr]

4 hours ago, Walt said:

Yes, Archbold is a temperature anomaly, and not representative of Highlands County at all, certainly not lake side and high ground locations. Other outlying, low lying locations do get cold compared to the lake areas and high ground areas, but not as cold as Archbold. On the coldest radiational cooling nights my property runs warmer than Archbold, but still much colder than lake and high ground locations. I used to say 15 years ago at this forum that there is no substitute for large bodies of water in central Florida to moderate nighttime low temperatures to where zone 10 palms and shrubs, etc., can grow long term.

My neighbor a few blocks from me, her backyard backs to a 3 acre pond. Years ago I gave her some A. alexandrae and A. cunninghamiana palms that I grew from seed. This past winter all of my archontophoenix palms I have growing in the open were frost burned, but none of her palms were, due to the warming effect of the pond water. These photos were taken back in September. This past summer she planted a small coconut palm (shown in photo1, 2, and 3 below) she bought at Lowes. I look forward to seeing how it fares compared to mine.

Lakeland is similar to what you describe, just to a lesser degree.  Near our urban core, on the eastern slopes of our hills, and around lakes, we can get away with a lot more than the outlying areas.  During the Jan. 2010 freeze, the bottom temperature here was 26F.  That's not great, but it's still a zone 9b temperature.  Just a few miles out, JayW recorded 16.7F during the same event.  Leu Gardens is another example of the microclimates that exist in Central FL.  Down where you're at, the effect is amplified since you tend to run a little warmer during the day than here or Leu, and the freezes tend to get to you about an hour or two later.  That extra half a degree of latitude definitely matters.

[Walt]

1 hour ago, kinzyjr said:

Lakeland is similar to what you describe, just to a lesser degree.  Near our urban core, on the eastern slopes of our hills, and around lakes, we can get away with a lot more than the outlying areas.  During the Jan. 2010 freeze, the bottom temperature here was 26F.  That's not great, but it's still a zone 9b temperature.  Just a few miles out, JayW recorded 16.7F during the same event.  Leu Gardens is another example of the microclimates that exist in Central FL.  Down where you're at, the effect is amplified since you tend to run a little warmer during the day than here or Leu, and the freezes tend to get to you about an hour or two later.  That extra half a degree of latitude definitely matters.

I got much colder than you. 30 feet out from my house I recorded my all-time low of 20.7 degrees in my front yard. But farther away from my house and slightly lower in elevation (my house is on the highest part of my property). I recorded 19.7 degrees on 12-27-2010. My buddy who lives on the east side of Lake June (second largest lake in Highlands County), but not lake front, recorded his all time low of 32 degrees that same morning. I actually believe it was a degree or so warmer up in town that morning, because the lake waters had been cooling down from night after night of cold, whereas up in town is warmer due to elevation.

 

My property back to state preserve land on its north border. It's colder on this side of my property. Note the totally fried P. selloums along my property line. In the other photo you can see my fried teddy bear palm, alexander, white bird of paradise and a portion of my coconut palm sticking out behind the loquat tree.

[kinzyjr]

3 hours ago, Walt said:

I got much colder than you. 30 feet out from my house I recorded my all-time low of 20.7 degrees in my front yard. But farther away from my house and slightly lower in elevation (my house is on the highest part of my property). I recorded 19.7 degrees on 12-27-2010. My buddy who lives on the east side of Lake June (second largest lake in Highlands County), but not lake front, recorded his all time low of 32 degrees that same morning. I actually believe it was a degree or so warmer up in town that morning, because the lake waters had been cooling down from night after night of cold, whereas up in town is warmer due to elevation.

 

My property back to state preserve land on its north border. It's colder on this side of my property. Note the totally fried P. selloums along my property line. In the other photo you can see my fried teddy bear palm, alexander, white bird of paradise and a portion of my coconut palm sticking out behind the loquat tree.

I remember seeing some of those pictures on other threads.  Our record low here (at the airport) is 20F.  We've hit that mark at least twice (1985, 1962).  Fortunately, the lowest I've lived in Florida for 15 years, and thankfully, the lowest temperature I've personally seen recorded was 24F.  Those totally fried P. selloums really drive it home.  I got my current residence in 2010 just after the big January freeze.  I've never had philodendrons fried like that.  Minor leaf damage twice, but not a complete defoliation.  I have a mango tree and two avocado trees that survived 2010.  There was a second mango tree at one time, but when I finally closed on the place it was beyond help.

I think I recall seeing some pictures from a CFPACS visit to your place.  You've got some really nice stuff on that big lot of yours.

[Walt]

On 11/4/2018, 5:29:51, kinzyjr said:

I remember seeing some of those pictures on other threads.  Our record low here (at the airport) is 20F.  We've hit that mark at least twice (1985, 1962).  Fortunately, the lowest I've lived in Florida for 15 years, and thankfully, the lowest temperature I've personally seen recorded was 24F.  Those totally fried P. selloums really drive it home.  I got my current residence in 2010 just after the big January freeze.  I've never had philodendrons fried like that.  Minor leaf damage twice, but not a complete defoliation.  I have a mango tree and two avocado trees that survived 2010.  There was a second mango tree at one time, but when I finally closed on the place it was beyond help.

I think I recall seeing some pictures from a CFPACS visit to your place.  You've got some really nice stuff on that big lot of yours.

On my property, location is everything with respect to how badly a palm or plant will get frost damaged. The north side of my property is hands down the coldest side. In my lightly wooded areas, frost is held to a minimum, and most of my zone 10 palms and plants incurred very little cold/frost damage. As you saw, the P. selloums growing along my north property line were totally fried. Selloums in my front yard (shown below) are less damage. But selloums growing back in my wooded area with light overhead canopy weren't damaged at all (see photos below).

[Tropicdoc]

On 10/15/2018, 6:46:51, Tropicdoc said:

My fantasy is to use your method on my beccariophoenix alfredii 

Both! Just wrapped my alfies with heat cable and bubble foil..... might freeze tomorrow night 

[coconuts_dont_growhere_but]

On 10/15/2018 at 6:27 PM, Walt said:

You are welcome. It's been a struggle at times to keep this palm alive. My climate is good for growing a coconut palm except for a day or two ever 3-5 years.

Same here. Also, how did it do in 2019? what about this winter?