Palms in the Mist - Sanibel Island, Florida

[piping plovers]

Has been some very heavy fog these past mornings in Sanibel. Some photos of palms around the island.  Been staying right on the Gulf this week and the entire beach and gardens have been enshrouded until late morning. Very common palm types for south Florida but they definitely provide the tropical resort ambiance to this place.

 

These two palms greet us every morning, a wonderful view off our balcony to the Gulf.

 

And a tree (pandanus?) with very unusual fruit:)

[Cindy Adair]

Beautiful photos of a lovely island. Thanks so much for posting them!

[KDubU]

Very nice. I should have bought my house there back 4 years ago when I was looking there for one. Doh!

The only thing I did not like about the island was the red tide due to all the crap coming down from Lake Okeechobee. 

[piping plovers]

Yes, i hear you there.  There is a house I walk by each time I am here and regret not buying it back in 2012 or so.  Oh well, we’ll see what the next opportunities are.  

1 hour ago, KDubU said:

Very nice. I should have bought my house there back 4 years ago when I was looking there for one. Doh!

 

[redant]

Can someone identify these guys?

[Looking Glass]

6 minutes ago, redant said:

Can someone identify these guys?

I wanted to jump on here and say “nice, fat Pseudophoenix Sargentii!”  when I saw these.  
Do you think they could be one of the other Pseudophoenix?  

Edited December 11, 2021 by Looking Glass

[Silas_Sancona]

3 minutes ago, Looking Glass said:

I wanted to jump on here and say “nice, fat Pseudophoenix Sargentii!”  when I saw these.  
Do you think they could be one of the other Pseudophoenix?  

I'm thinking so as well.. though not positive on exactly which one either..  " Chunky " is def. a good look on these, regardless..

[piping plovers]

5 minutes ago, Silas_Sancona said:

I'm thinking so as well.. though not positive on exactly which one either..  " Chunky " is def. a good look on these, regardless..

Thank you.  Walking by those yesterday I was curious what they were as well. Like A pair of teletubbies ;))

 

[Silas_Sancona]

1 minute ago, piping plovers said:

Thank you.  Walking by those yesterday I was curious what they were as well. Like A pair of teletubbies ;))

 

Haha.. Great pictures btw..

Sanibel ..and Thousand Islands are the only two spots  along the West Coast  i never made visits to when i was in FL..  On the list for the next visit. 

What i found interesting while there, was the kind of day you experienced.. Were a couple times i'd drive to a nearby beach from my apartment in Clearwater ..or when headed somewhere on longboat Key when i lived in Bradenton ..and go from 100% wall to wall warm sun, to ..almost California coast - like heavy, dense fog ..with just a hint of a chill in the air  by the time i reached my destination.  Foggy mornings walking around Clearwater Beach, when i first moved to the area in 2009, were oddly intriguing as well.

[donalt]

sargentii palms (buccaneer palms)....actually considered rare species these days because they are extremely slow growing and they were dug up in masse some decades ago and sold off.

takes many years to get those nice fat trunks and height.

[redant]

3 hours ago, donalt said:

sargentii palms (buccaneer palms)....actually considered rare species these days because they are extremely slow growing and they were dug up in masse some decades ago and sold off.

takes many years to get those nice fat trunks and height.

I have several and no where near that fat. 

[Silas_Sancona]

5 hours ago, redant said:

I have several and no where near that fat. 

Don't recall any of the ones at Kopsick showing signs of getting chubby like these either in the time i was able to observe them in person ( ..on and off between 2011 and early '16 )

Not snail's pace slow either.  Pretty reasonable amount of growth between when i first noticed them, ( June of '11 ) and when i saw them again after the move to Bradenton. ( Dec. '13 )

[Looking Glass]

6 hours ago, redant said:

I have several and no where near that fat. 

The 1st one I ever saw in a friend’s yard was a “fat” variation like this.  Made me love these palms instantly.  They are so variable though.  No two seem to look alike.  You can see ones around here that are small and thin little palms.  Then you see tall and thin, tall and fat, short and fat, weird and misshapen, and all sorts of variations out there.  The various subspecies all have their own look also.  

I always liked the look of fat white ones best….  Over the faster Navasana ssp. look.  

Here’s a video where they talk a little about the Fat Boy variation from Sanibel a little……

 

Edited December 12, 2021 by Looking Glass

[piping plovers]

1 hour ago, Looking Glass said:

They are so variable though.  No two seem to look alike.  You can see ones around here that are small and thin little palms.  Then you see tall and thin, tall and fat, short and fat, weird and misshapen, and all sorts of variations out there.  The various subspecies all have their own look also.  

Yes, the 2 I photographed today( I think are sargentiis) have a different appearance,. See photos below.

11 hours ago, donalt said:

sargentii palms (buccaneer palms)....actually considered rare species these days because they are extremely slow growing and they were dug up in masse some decades ago and sold off.

Interesting backstory on the palms.

2 hours ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Not snail's pace slow either.  Pretty reasonable amount of growth between when i first noticed them, ( June of '11 ) and when i saw them again after the move to Bradenton. ( Dec. '13 )

The ones I photographed few days ago, chubby ones, seemed to have grown a bit since seeing them precovid travel Annoying placement nearby a treacherous curve on the bike path as when the lower leaves were intact they were not yielding as one regains bicycle balance brushing past them.

Also, I found these two nearby on the neighboring resort.  Not sure if they are the sargentii palms. These probably would get better care at the resort over the two shown earlier as they are likely under municipal care by the bike path.

 

Edited December 13, 2021 by piping plovers
Spelling

[Looking Glass]

Yup, highly variable.  

I really like this species, especially for Florida.  I often wonder if we should be making an effort to gather seeds from those individuals that don’t display symptoms of Pseudophoenix decline, in an effort to propagate resistance to the disease in future generations.  I also wonder if we should not be propagating the offspring of those with symptoms of the decline for the same reason.   Of course, this depends on the precise cause, which could include growing conditions.  

I have a personal theory that the decline is seen more in individuals planted in shady areas and exposed to more prolonged shaded moisture, but it is just a loose, causal observation at best.   More information is definitely needed.  

Palmpedia lists this palm’s growing conditions as “prefers lightly shaded, moist” areas.   I’m not sure I agree with this.  They seem to like full, exposed Florida sun, and those exposed in sunny, sandy areas often look really healthy and strong.    But then again, what do I know?   I’m relatively new at this.  

Edited December 13, 2021 by Looking Glass

[Silas_Sancona]

33 minutes ago, piping plovers said:

Yes, the 2 I photographed today( I think are sargentiis) have a different appearance,. See photos below.

Interesting backstory on the palms.

The ones I photographed few days ago, chubby ones, seemed to have grown a bit since seeing them precovid travel Annoying placement nearby a treacherous curve on the bike path as when the lower leaves were intact they were not yielding as one regains bicycle balance brushing past them.

Also, I found these two nearby on the neighboring resort.  Not sure if they are the sargentii palms. These probably would get better care at the resort over the two shown earlier as they are likely under municipal care by the bike path.

 

I'll bet that little path between these two is a more recent addition.. and the bed was un- broken at one time.  They do look a bit funky,  otherwise healthy.. Others you noted before look healthier, to my eye at least tho.  Wonder if the fatties sit in a spot w/ more shell / degraded limestone in the soil, compared to these?

Would imagine all of them are at fruiting age, but that the resort / city removes any inflos.  that develop.  Ones at Kopsick were seeding at about the same size. ( a couple smaller ones there too. ) Squirrels,  ..and likely nearby Palm Talk members.. I see you!   always managed to get to them before i did, lol..

[Manalto]

Thank you.  Your photos are wonderfully moody.

[piping plovers]

1 hour ago, Silas_Sancona said:

I'll bet that little path between these two is a more recent addition.. and the bed was un- broken at one time.  They do look a bit funky,  otherwise healthy.

Good observation, I manage to travel to this resort a few times a year and they are ALWAYS adding new paths, pavers, other garden improvements.  Fussily maintained but they do a great job for the guest experience.  Notice something new each time so probably some root disturbance to these resort palms.  The others on municipal property are pretty much undisturbed it seems.

 

1 hour ago, Silas_Sancona said:

and likely nearby Palm Talk members.. I see you!  

Lol!

1 hour ago, Manalto said:

Thank you.  Your photos are wonderfully moody.

 

1 hour ago, Manalto said:

Thank you.  Your photos are wonderfully moody.

My pleasure.  If only we had these foggy cool breaks in summertime.

[piping plovers]

On 12/11/2021 at 10:41 AM, Silas_Sancona said:

Sanibel ..and Thousand Islands are the only two spots  along the West Coast  i never made visits to when i was in FL..  On the list for the next visit. 

Silas, when you make it over to Thousand Islands someday.  You may want to join one of the nature-focused boat rides offered by the National Park Service.  That location is the southern-most entrance to the Everglades.  I did it years ago.  Reasonable price and so worthwhile.  Just the drive to that super southern part of Florida is an amazing experience with the wildlife and scenery.

[Silas_Sancona]

6 minutes ago, piping plovers said:

Silas, when you make it over to Thousand Islands someday.  You may want to join one of the nature-focused boat rides offered by the National Park Service.  That location is the southern-most entrance to the Everglades.  I did it years ago.  Reasonable price and so worthwhile.  Just the drive to that super southern part of Florida is an amazing experience with the wildlife and scenery.

Funny you mention that. Each time i drove down to Homestead / Redlands to pick up plants, or attend sales in the area,  part of me was tempted to stop at any one of the Air Boat tour places you see between Naples and Miami along the 41 and go for a quick spin.

Unfortunately, boats and i go together like oil and water.  Last boat ride i was on was fishing for Salmon near the Farallon islands, off San Francisco years ago.  Slept through most of the trip, lol.  When awake, will never forget the look of a tiny boat bobbing between swells that were several stories tall ..on a calm day.

[redant]

The fat boys rock!

 

[Manalto]

19 hours ago, piping plovers said:

 If only we had these foggy cool breaks in summertime.

As my father used to say, "If you're looking for sympathy, you'll find it in the dictionary between sh*t and syphilis."  I'm in Mobile, Alabama, my friend. I lived in Newport (66 William Street, one of the NRF houses) and your summers are like our winters!

[piping plovers]

lol, what a nice historic place to have lived in Newport, RI. I should have clarified that I meant when visiting sanibel in the summer, if only we had those cool foggy breaks.  Yes I can’t complain about summers in RI, Cape Cod & the islands.  Many of us Save up our complaints for the winter.:(