Growth rate of Caryota Obtusa/Gigas in Florida?

[moponike]

What is the expected growth rate per year of this palm in Florida?

[Steve the palmreader]

Fast ! in south Florida

 

[moponike]

Is the expected growth rate more than 3 feet per year in zone 10a?

[moponike]

Anyone have experiences with this palm in Florida?

[moponike]

I'll bump this thread to see if anyone knows.

[kinzyjr]

All of the ones I've seen have been humongous, so I'm assuming they will grow at or near your desired 3+ ft./yr.  All of them that I've seen were in areas that could be considered either 9b/10a.  I'm sure that 10a is more favorable as they got some leaf burn around here in January 2018.

[Eric in Orlando]

Here in central FL they don't grow as fast as other solitary Caryota like C. maxima, C. obtusa, C. no, C. rumphiana or C. urens. They are on the slow side as small juveniles for a few years then speed up a bit. The biggest I have ever grown them are about 30ft before they flower. They usually take about 15 years before they start flowering. Elsewhere around here the theme parks have used them and I haven't seen any get over 30-35ft tall. I think our hot climate shortens their lifespan as C. gigas and C. obtusa can reach 60-80ft in their native habitats.

[metalfan]

I have a Caryota urens and a Caryota gigas in containers. They were obtained about 2008-9 so maybe 10 years ago? They are just now getting trunks to about 3 feet and fronds that are about 6 ft. I planted one in the greenhouse, it is about the same. I know it will have to get the chop probably at some point. I keep these in containers because I planted a third one out and it froze in a 22-25F hard freeze. It came back, but was severely set back. I can lug these into my atrium just inside the front door if I have to (its maybe 20 feet) in that sort of weather. I can also keep them up on the porch under cover when its just a frost...they tolerate the lows to about 30F fine as long as they don;t get frosted

[Merlyn]

10 years to 3ft of trunk seems like a long time, given Eric's results at Leu Gardens.  If I recall correctly they reached 30 feet and flowered in 10-15 years there.  I just bought a couple of Obtusa seedlings, I hope it doesn't take 10 years to get to a trunking size!

[redant]

I have one in my front yard. It was actually slow as hell in my white sandy soil. Did nothing for several years until I started using horse poo around it and now it's growing well. I'll post pictures tomorrow. Mines about 8 to 10 years old. It went thru Irma well where the C. NO I had broke off at the base of the trunk.

[redant]

Here is mine

[Merlyn]

Redant that looks great!  I'm guessing around 10-15' of trunk with total frond length (including rachis) around 15-20 feet?

[Eric in Orlando]

They are very heavy feeders when juveniles on Florida's sand soil. Also prone to iron deficiencies. They seem to do better as they get larger. 

[Eric in Orlando]

Specimens from C. gigas seed have flowered when only about 20 ft tall. Plants from C. obtusa seed have flowered around 30ft. I had one C. kiriwongensis and it grew the slowest but was crushed under a falling tree in Hurricane Irma 

[Eric in Orlando]

Here is the largest C. obtusa at Leu Gardens. It was planted in 2004, a 3 gal. Plant about 2ft tall. I expect it to start flowering in the next year. 

[metalfan]

We visited the Butterfly Rainforest at UF this weekend with our kids, they have a gigas that the docent told me was 7-8 years old and it is the size of the photo above. They used to have a GORGEOUS Licuala peltata var sumawongii that was put into the exhibit already large, its gone now, it lasted through 7 winters. He said they don't really heat the exhibit much more than keeping it above freezing in winter,  and over the 7 years every winter it declined more and more. They finally had to remove it and replace it with this huge cycad last year that you can see on the left edge...its way down in a ravine where a pond occupies the bottom of the exhibit. What a waste. But they have a lot of rules they have to follow he said about their plant material.

[redant]

"Redant that looks great!  I'm guessing around 10-15' of trunk with total frond length (including rachis) around 15-20 feet? "

Yeah I'd say base to tip on the new spear about 25 or so ft.

[redant]

  On 12/11/2018 at 6:27 PM, Matt in OC said:

WOW @redant. How old is that?

Expand  

about 8 to 10 years.