Oldest Beccariophoenix alfredii in cultivation - 4 feet of trunk

[Sandy Loam]

I assumed that his "fifteen years" comment meant that it was juvenile when planted (?)

[waykoolplantz]

Dr Balasky with Alfredii

[Daryl]

On 1/8/2019, 5:03:33, Merlyn2220 said:

It sure looks like Kennybenjamin's fenestralis has about 4' more trunk than the alfredii in the original post.  It was my understanding that the alfredii was a faster grower, and that the fenestralis was fairly slow.  But that may have been from reading about people growing them in marginal climates, without the benefit of heat and humidity.  We also don't know how old Kennybenjamin's palm was when it was planted.  It would make a big difference if it were planted 15 years ago as a 10' OA palm instead of a seedling...   

In this part of the world, B.fenestralis is the quickest, then B.alfredii, with B.madacascariensis a very distant last!

[Loxahatchee Adam]

Not sure of age or which species, but this is in downtown Lake Worth, FL.  I’m 6’1 / 185 cm

 

 

[waykoolplantz]

Fenestralis

[ZPalms]

Those are massive, really puts in perspective once you see somebody next to it 

[sonoranfans]

Yes fenestralis is reportedly faster generally, though they grow poorly here in sandy soil since they are nutrient hogs.  I had one that had a magnesium deficiency that I was unable to correct, then it got hit with the Dec 2010 28F, 29F two day cold front with frost and never recovered(I removed it).  My uncovered alfredii was burned 90% including spear and recovered rapidly pushing 4 new leaves by late summer.   Alfredii has been reported to be about 2-3 degrees C more cold hardy than fenestralis.  Reports are fenestralis grow faster elsewhere, but not necessarily here.  I appreciate each palm for what it is, an fenestralis is a beauty that is the nutrient and micro fussy palm, the opposite of alfredii, which is not that nutrient sensitive.  Sunlight could also impact the growth of alfredii's, they grow slower with fewer leaves in the crown and a thinner trunk in shade.  The leaves are not longated in shade lik some other palms, my alfie in sun has longer leaves, thicker trunk and more leaves in the crown than (2)  2, 5 hrs of direct sun a day.  They were all planted at the same time as 3 gallons and now the heights are orderd by sunlight exposure, from about 17' to 27' overall.

[Kailua_Krish]

11 hours ago, sonoranfans said:

Yes fenestralis is reportedly faster generally, though they grow poorly here in sandy soil since they are nutrient hogs.  I had one that had a magnesium deficiency that I was unable to correct, then it got hit with the Dec 2010 28F, 29F two day cold front with frost and never recovered(I removed it).  My uncovered alfredii was burned 90% including spear and recovered rapidly pushing 4 new leaves by late summer.   Alfredii has been reported to be about 2-3 degrees C more cold hardy than fenestralis.  Reports are fenestralis grow faster elsewhere, but not necessarily here.  I appreciate each palm for what it is, an fenestralis is a beauty that is the nutrient and micro fussy palm, the opposite of alfredii, which is not that nutrient sensitive.  Sunlight could also impact the growth of alfredii's, they grow slower with fewer leaves in the crown and a thinner trunk in shade.  The leaves are not longated in shade lik some other palms, my alfie in sun has longer leaves, thicker trunk and more leaves in the crown than (2)  2, 5 hrs of direct sun a day.  They were all planted at the same time as 3 gallons and now the heights are orderd by sunlight exposure, from about 17' to 27' overall.

I have the same experience here. Because of the nutrient issues alfredii is a much better grower

[ruskinPalms]

I swear these are almost like Ravenea… they really have the same look to me. 

[ruskinPalms]

And no.. they don’t look like cocos to me. I see plenty of true, full sized, fruiting cocos in my area and these don’t look the same. Sorry. 

[ruskinPalms]

But! They are beautiful!

[GottmitAlex]

3 hours ago, ruskinPalms said:

And no.. they don’t look like cocos to me. I see plenty of true, full sized, fruiting cocos in my area and these don’t look the same. Sorry. 

At a distance they do.

 Fenestralis have their drooped leaflets like Kentia palms.  Alfies and Mads (except for their trunks) look like Coconut palms. 

[Plantasexoticas]

On 12/11/2018 at 6:17 PM, redant said:

My biggest fenestralis, the trunk on this is massive, royal palm type of big.

Stunning! how does the care vary between it and alfredii? 

[Plantasexoticas]

On 11/30/2018 at 8:18 PM, Zeeth said:

I'm in West Palm for an interview so I wanted to stop by Pete Balasky's Beccariophoenix alfredii on the way. It's doing well! It's got 4 feet of trunk now, and the trunk is a bit over 60 inches in circumference at 4 feet. Shouldn't be long until it starts flowering. Here are pics:

 

 

The rope on the tree is holding up the Copernicia macroglossa nearby that's leaning away.

Beautiful palm! So good to see one producing a trunk. Those fronds are enormous 

I’m going to need a huge glasshouse to house mine if it ever gets that big in my lifetime. 

[sonoranfans]

Yeah the whole coco look alike thing is questionable.  My largest alfredii with ~ 3' trunk has as many leaves as a neighbors triple coconut with 4' clear trunk.  Also the trunk is 2-3x thicker and the color of BA is a more intense green, not as much yellow as a coconut.  I am finding that a single alfredii is a nice shade palm, it throws almost as much shade as a mature bismarckia.

[redant]

3 hours ago, Plantasexoticas said:

Stunning! how does the care vary between it and alfredii? 

When young they need lots of iron, like lots and lots of iron. Seems as they get older they don't seem to mind not getting an iron fix any more. Past that they seem very easy. The fronds are just massive.

[redant]

Just now, sonoranfans said:

Yeah the whole coco look alike thing is questionable.  My largest alfredii with ~ 3' trunk has as many leaves as a neighbors triple coconut with 4' clear trunk.  Also the trunk is 2-3x thicker and the color of BA is a more intense green, not as much yellow as a coconut.  I am finding that a single alfredii is a nice shade palm, it throws almost as much shade as a mature bismarckia.

Mature ones look damn coconut like to me.

[sonoranfans]

4 minutes ago, redant said:

Mature ones look damn coconut like to me.

yeah their trunks look thin at height but they still seem to have a notably more dense and more upright crown.  At a distance similarities are there but I rarely see a coconut with a crown I cant see thorough.  I used to think phoenix rupicola was a coconut look alike too.   Nothing really looks like a coco to me.  Perhaps the alfredii grow a fuller crown in cultivation than cocos since they are less water needy with a deeper root structure.   I am sure my alfredii has a friendlier environment water and nutrient wise than the madgascar plateau at 4000'.   Alfredii evolved at ~ 3500-4500' elevation in a relatively dry area half of the year(compared to cocos), their roots penetrate deep down to water level near streams.  The higher altitude means water is evaporated more quickly and that and sloped ground means drought tolerance is more critical to survival.  

[OC2Texaspalmlvr]

To me Alfies look like Coconuts on steroids,  much thicker trunks and crown density. Much prettier palm in my opinion. Albeit these observations are done thru pics as i have never seen a large Alfie in person haha. 

T J 

[The Palm Nut]

Here is mine grown from seedling, not long after the first batch of seeds arrived here in Australia according to the lady I got it from.

Not particularly fast grower but to me that is a good thing, I have enough palms 30 plus feet tall. 

Cheers 

[howfam]

On 1/13/2019 at 1:39 PM, Loxahatchee Adam said:

Not sure of age or which species, but this is in downtown Lake Worth, FL.  I’m 6’1 / 185 cm

 

 

Is this palm visible from the street. If so what street is it on? I'd like to see it on street view.