TROPICAL PALMS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN CLIMATE

[Mia]

My dear palm friends ,
 

I wonder what all kinds of tropical palms can be planted in a Mediterranean climate, successfully and grow well. 
I am new in palm world but I fell in love at first sight with this beautiful world of palm trees. So I would definitely like to add some new species. 
 

Thank you in advance … looking forward to see your answers 

 

[PalmatierMeg]

I suspect CA palm growers might be able to help you and I hope some chime in. Truly tropical palms, i.e., coconuts, Adonidia, Pinanga and similar have trouble surviving in a Mediterranean climate. Tropical palms require high daytime temps, 25-30+C and very warm nights over 20C. They are cool sensitive as well as cold sensitive and cannot tolerate long periods under 20C. They do not photosynthesize under 10C and cold rain will kill them, as will hot dry wind and low humidity.

[Mia]

Oh, ok … Thank you Meg 

[Mia]

I found something https://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/576 

[Silas_Sancona]

11 minutes ago, Mia said:

I found something https://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/576 

Palm Bob, aka Geoff Stein occasionally checks in here ..Regardless, the article you cited, is a great jump off point as far as which palms to research for your area. He also put together a related site ( Palms for California ) detailing more options for California growers you might want to look through as well..  While i'm sure conditions where you're located are a bit different than in CA. there are  plenty of great options that could work for you ..some common,  some rarer..  Some straddling the gray area definition of " Tropical " 

[Mia]

17 minutes ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Palm Bob, aka Geoff Stein occasionally checks in here ..Regardless, the article you cited, is a great jump off point as far as which palms to research for your area. He also put together a related site ( Palms for California ) detailing more options for California growers you might want to look through as well..  While i'm sure conditions where you're located are a bit different than in CA. there are  plenty of great options that could work for you ..some common,  some rarer..  Some straddling the gray area definition of " Tropical " 

Thank you! 
Yes We are near the Sea , our summers are very hot, and i mean very, with low humidity,  during the whole year temperatures are higher but still we have some lower temperatures during winter time. I am having some tropical plants like strelitzia Nicolai in the garden , they are doing fine, but I do cover them for few days maybe during year… 

But when I see your beautiful tropical pics here I just want to have one or two… they are all beautiful.. I believe I can find something 

[kinzyjr]

@Mia

Since you're in Croatia, the folks talking about growing conditions in Greece and Sicily in the weather forums will probably have some insights you'll find interesting.  Here are a few threads to start:

https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?/topic/68701-can-cocos-survive-in-lindosrhodes-in-greece/

https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?/topic/71570-in-depth-analysis-of-the-athens-riviera-climate-and-palm-potential/

Welcome to PalmTalk!

[Silas_Sancona]

32 minutes ago, Mia said:

Thank you! 
Yes We are near the Sea , our summers are very hot, and i mean very, with low humidity,  during the whole year temperatures are higher but still we have some lower temperatures during winter time. I am having some tropical plants like strelitzia Nicolai in the garden , they are doing fine, but I do cover them for few days maybe during year… 

But when I see your beautiful tropical pics here I just want to have one or two… they are all beautiful.. I believe I can find something 

Thanks.. Will say there are plenty of  people who would consider many of the non palmy stuff i grow/ photograph as non - tropical.. if the definition of what is  tropical is confined to a wet, hot steamy jungle ..where it rains all the time, and never gets close to freezing in the winter..  Obviously,  that's just one flavor of the " tropical " parts of the world..  Anyway,

Here's a pretty decent ( ..but not perfect. Individual winters can be warmer or cooler than the averages listed on the map ..or any map. ) map that may help others who should chime in to offer up ideas kind of see where your climate zones are..   Think the data is from 2012.  Brown = Zone 9A.. -6.7C to -3.9C  Darker Red = 9B... -3.9 to -1.1C , Pinkish = 10A.. -1.1C to + 1.7C.. Anything above 9B opens up a lot of possibilities palm- wise.. though you should be able to grow plenty of interesting things if you're in a cooler area.  If you're able to grow Strelitzia nicholi  w/ out too much trouble, there should be some neat palms to  try growing.

Plant Maps data of Croatia:

Edited April 15, 2022 by Silas_Sancona
edit

[Mia]

21 minutes ago, kinzyjr said:

@Mia

Since you're in Croatia, the folks talking about growing conditions in Greece and Sicily in the weather forums will probably have some insights you'll find interesting.  Here are a few threads to start:

https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?/topic/68701-can-cocos-survive-in-lindosrhodes-in-greece/

https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?/topic/71570-in-depth-analysis-of-the-athens-riviera-climate-and-palm-potential/

Welcome to PalmTalk!

Thank you, great I will check it out ! 

[Mia]

21 minutes ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Thanks.. Will say there are plenty of  people who would consider many of the non palmy stuff i grow/ photograph as non - tropical.. if the definition of what is  tropical is confined to a wet, hot steamy jungle ..where it rains all the time, and never gets close to freezing in the winter..  Obviously,  that's just one flavor of the " tropical " parts of the world..  Anyway,

Here's a pretty decent ( ..but not perfect. Individual winters can be warmer or cooler than the averages listed on the map ..or any map. ) map that may help others who should chime in to offer up ideas kind of see where your climate zones are..   Think the data is from 2012.  Brown = Zone 9A.. -6.7C to -3.9C  Darker Red = 9B... -3.9 to -1.1C , Pinkish = 10A.. -1.1C to + 1.7C.. Anything above 9B opens up a lot of possibilities palm- wise.. though you should be able to grow plenty of interesting things if you're in a cooler area.  If you're able to grow Strelitzia nicholi  w/ out too much trouble, there should be some neat palms to  try growing.

Plant Maps data of Croatia:

Yes , Nicolai is doing well , so far so good, also bananas( no fruits ) so I am here

[96720]

I’m sure you can grow royal palms we grow them in Phoenix and I’m sure it is much hotter and drier than you!!!

[Mia]

1 hour ago, 96720 said:

I’m sure you can grow royal palms we grow them in Phoenix and I’m sure it is much hotter and drier than you!!!

Yes I think it can work with them. I will try definitely 

[petiole10]

Away from places like Madeira, Azores Islands and Canary Islands, and maybe a few microclimates of sheltered coastal Mediterranean locations, it is hard to envisage anything truly tropical growing successfully for any sustained length of time. However, that said, some tropically accented species are certainly more than possible.

Here in central/southern Portugal I have Chambeyronia macrocarpa (Flamethrower palm) Dypsis leptocheilos (Teddy Bear palm) Red Latan palm,  Kentiopsis oliviformis,  Wodyetia bifurcata, Bismarkia,  Ravenea rivularis,  Archontophoenix cunninghamiana & alexandrae,  Howea forsteriana & belmoreana,  Chamaedorea hooperiana, metallica and seifrizii and one or two other 'less cold hardy' palms in the overall palm collection.

These palms obviously have some individually different requirements - generally in terms of dry vs humid conditions, sun and wind tolerance, and of course the precise degree of cold tolerance. Indeed on the opposite side of the spectrum, in the summer extreme heat tolerance can be a factor for a few.  However the overall climate here leaves plenty of room for tweaking these differences in terms of positioning, shelter, watering, most tender specimens that have been potted and can be moved around (or even taken inside in winter if required very occasionally) etc etc. 

So lots of possibilities for very tropical looking palms if you have the space and flexibility to attend to individual needs as they arise.  Other exotically accented plants like Strelitzia flourish in my garden as well  

I don't have any, but Royal palms as mentioned are a possibility with a bit of care and protection when required.

[TomJ]

http://www.marriedtoplants.com/

 

[Mia]

15 minutes ago, petiole10 said:

Away from places like Madeira, Azores Islands and Canary Islands, and maybe a few microclimates of sheltered coastal Mediterranean locations, it is hard to envisage anything truly tropical growing successfully for any sustained length of time. However, that said, some tropically accented species are certainly more than possible.

Here in central/southern Portugal I have Chambeyronia macrocarpa (Flamethrower palm) Dypsis leptocheilos (Teddy Bear palm) Red Latan palm,  Kentiopsis oliviformis,  Wodyetia bifurcata, Bismarkia,  Ravenea rivularis,  Archontophoenix cunninghamiana & alexandrae,  Howea forsteriana & belmoreana,  Chamaedorea hooperiana, metallica and seifrizii and one or two other 'less cold hardy' palms in the overall palm collection.

These palms obviously have some individually different requirements - generally in terms of dry vs humid conditions, sun and wind tolerance, and of course the precise degree of cold tolerance. Indeed on the opposite side of the spectrum, in the summer extreme heat tolerance can be a factor for a few.  However the overall climate here leaves plenty of room for tweaking these differences in terms of positioning, shelter, watering, most tender specimens that have been potted and can be moved around (or even taken inside in winter if required very occasionally) etc etc. 

So lots of possibilities for very tropical looking palms if you have the space and flexibility to attend to individual needs as they arise.  Other exotically accented plants like Strelitzia flourish in my garden as well  

I don't have any, but Royal palms as mentioned are a possibility with a bit of care and protection when required.

Thank you so much, i will check your palm list and see what can I add to my garden. I will definitely try with Royal. When it comes to Royal I saw only 1 in my area, it’s survived winter pretty much ok. So it’s very promising 

[Mia]

15 minutes ago, TomJ said:

http://www.marriedtoplants.com/

 

Perfect! Thanks 

[petiole10]

1 hour ago, Mia said:

Thank you so much, i will check your palm list and see what can I add to my garden. I will definitely try with Royal. When it comes to Royal I saw only 1 in my area, it’s survived winter pretty much ok. So it’s very promising 

Its worth not forgetting Syragus romanzoffiana (Queen palms). They are considered common 'weed palms' by some people - but I love them and have up to half a dozen scattered about my garden.

 

Wodyetia bifurcata (Foxtail palm) is pictured here. I have a few very young trees.

 

And then some of the common cold hardy Mediterranean palms still add their own exotic beauty. Chamaerops humilis (Mediterranean fan palm with its yellow blooms)

 

 

Edited April 16, 2022 by petiole10

[Mia]

5 minutes ago, petiole10 said:

Its worth not forgetting Syragus romanzoffiana (Queen palms). They are considered common 'weed palms' by some people - but I love them and have up to half a dozen scattered about my garden.

 

Wodyetia bifurcata (Foxtail palm) is pictured here. I have a few very young trees.

 

 

Looks beautiful!  Foxtail is excellent  I saw some pictures of adult tree , extremely beautiful. Very luxurious canopy. 

[Mia]

I have Chamaerops humilis , it’s very common here. My third Washington robusta is coming in 10 days, than I will switch to those beautiful “possible  Mediterranean”  palms , starting with Queen palm. Need to search where can I purchase it… but I think it will not be a problem. Definitely I am having new list of priority palms now… 

[ShiYi2022]

On 4/17/2022 at 1:26 AM, Mia said:

I have Chamaerops humilis , it’s very common here. My third Washington robusta is coming in 10 days, than I will switch to those beautiful “possible  Mediterranean”  palms , starting with Queen palm. Need to search where can I purchase it… but I think it will not be a problem. Definitely I am having new list of priority palms now… 

What is the coldest temperature in Croatia at night

[Mia]

11 minutes ago, ShiYi2022 said:

What is the coldest temperature in Croatia at night

It’s 12,-15 degrees in this time at night , at summer it’s about 20-24 degrees at night even hotter sometimes . We had only few days around 1-2 degrees at winter 

[akaranus]

Bok Mia,

Pitanje je kompleksno jer ovisi o mikroklimatu u kojem si, o njemu ovisi pojedina vrsta palme da li će uspjeti...pogotovo marginalne palme, svaka je zeznuta na svoj neki način, suma sumarum, ne vole buru ni mokre noge zimi kao ni sjenu...neke pak tropske ne vole prejako sunce, neke našu zemlju pa zahtjeva posebno gnjojenje itd itd dakle problemi i bez apsolutnog minimuma...Ako si na Šolti-Maslinica mislim da je tamo ok za poigrat se sa 9b zonom palmi ali zapamti da uvijek može naić zima brisalica, kao ona 2017 te koja će to sve lijepo počistit...radi u početku na glavnoj strukturi vrta sa dovoljno otpornim vrstama koje svakako po ljepoti i ugođaju ne zaostaju za tropskim...da krećem ispočetka iša bih sa washingtoniama(sve tri), chamaeropsima(sva tri), phoenix dactylifera, theophrastii, jubea, parajubea, svi sabali, sve butie, sve brahee sa naglaskom na armatu i edulis, zatim syagrusi, hibridi butiagrus, jubutiagrus, tritrinax campestris, nanorrhops ritchiana, livistone chinensis, nitida itd itd, ništa manje velike yucce poput faxoniane, filifere i rostrate nisu manje atraktivne...

[TropicalGardenSpain]

Hi Mia, 

i am in Alicante, Spain and growing some nice palms, have a look at my youtube channel 

tropicalgardenspain 

or instagram 

jamie_richards_88 

what are your lowest temps in winter? Do you get frost? That makes a big difference.

[Mia]

11 hours ago, akaranus said:

Bok Mia,

Pitanje je kompleksno jer ovisi o mikroklimatu u kojem si, o njemu ovisi pojedina vrsta palme da li će uspjeti...pogotovo marginalne palme, svaka je zeznuta na svoj neki način, suma sumarum, ne vole buru ni mokre noge zimi kao ni sjenu...neke pak tropske ne vole prejako sunce, neke našu zemlju pa zahtjeva posebno gnjojenje itd itd dakle problemi i bez apsolutnog minimuma...Ako si na Šolti-Maslinica mislim da je tamo ok za poigrat se sa 9b zonom palmi ali zapamti da uvijek može naić zima brisalica, kao ona 2017 te koja će to sve lijepo počistit...radi u početku na glavnoj strukturi vrta sa dovoljno otpornim vrstama koje svakako po ljepoti i ugođaju ne zaostaju za tropskim...da krećem ispočetka iša bih sa washingtoniama(sve tri), chamaeropsima(sva tri), phoenix dactylifera, theophrastii, jubea, parajubea, svi sabali, sve butie, sve brahee sa naglaskom na armatu i edulis, zatim syagrusi, hibridi butiagrus, jubutiagrus, tritrinax campestris, nanorrhops ritchiana, livistone chinensis, nitida itd itd, ništa manje velike yucce poput faxoniane, filifere i rostrate nisu manje atraktivne...

Hej, 

da i ja sam krenula prvo sa washingtoniama i chamaeropsima , rostrata i dasilyrion, te banana i strelitzije  ( čisto da vidim može li priezivjeti ista tropsko  poput tih sviju vrsta. Živim u Splitu , no vrt se nalazi na vikendici u Ražnju, to je zapravo najisturenija točka ( rt Planka ) na Jadranu. Imamo nekih 1000 kvadrata vrta na raspolaganju , osim autohtonih vrsta kao sto su masline , smokve , i mediteransko bilje, odlučili smo napraviti mali arboretum pa smo počeli saditi i palme , te meksičke vrste biljaka, dakle koje podnose izuzetne sušne uvjete, posto ovdje bude jako jako vruće u ljetnim periodima. Definitvno ću početi saditi polako tropske vrste palmi pa ćemo vidjeti kako ce to ići. Mislim da bi moglo biti uspješno sa pojedinim vrstama. Hvala na podrobnom savjetu, i drago mi je da vidim nekoga tko piše hrvatski ovdje. 

[Mia]

Just now, Mia said:

Hej, 

da i ja sam krenula prvo sa washingtoniama i chamaeropsima , rostrata i dasilyrion, te banana i strelitzije  ( čisto da vidim može li priezivjeti ista tropsko  poput tih sviju vrsta. Živim u Splitu , no vrt se nalazi na vikendici u Ražnju, to je zapravo najisturenija točka ( rt Planka ) na Jadranu. Imamo nekih 1000 kvadrata vrta na raspolaganju , osim autohtonih vrsta kao sto su masline , smokve , i mediteransko bilje, odlučili smo napraviti mali arboretum pa smo počeli saditi i palme , te meksičke vrste biljaka, dakle koje podnose izuzetne sušne uvjete, posto ovdje bude jako jako vruće u ljetnim periodima. Definitvno ću početi saditi polako tropske vrste palmi pa ćemo vidjeti kako ce to ići. Mislim da bi moglo biti uspješno sa pojedinim vrstama. Hvala na podrobnom savjetu, i drago mi je da vidim nekoga tko piše hrvatski ovdje. 

Pod tropsko mislila sam na banane i strelitzije samo, ispravak hahhaha 

[Mia]

11 hours ago, TropicalGardenSpain said:

Hi Mia, 

i am in Alicante, Spain and growing some nice palms, have a look at my youtube channel 

tropicalgardenspain 

or instagram 

jamie_richards_88 

what are your lowest temps in winter? Do you get frost? That makes a big difference.

Oh i will definitely check your pages… lower temperatures are in winter for few days, it’s been here around 1 or 2 degrees not lower , than I was using cover to protect some of fragile species in my garden. It went well with cover , they survived like nothing happened. We don’t have snow or frost here 

[akaranus]

Ražanj kao nomen est omen..tako liti i bude tamo   

Vidi to šta ti prolaziš sad je nas 10tak entuzijasta je prolazilo od 2008 na našem forumu palmapedia koji nažalost nije puno aktivan više ali imaš dosta podataka, gdje su ljudi pokušavali metodom pokušaja i pogreške i ubijali masu palmi ispitivajući svoje klimate, ja prvi( u Kaštelima sam) sam ubia velike howee, ravanee, arhontophoenixe, dypsise i ostale palme 9b zone, zato te i savjetujem da uštediš love i vremena i koncentriraš se na 9a zonu palmi i biljaka sa kojima možeš stvorit čudesa...prija u Zečevu sa tebi sličnijim klimatom je isto sve prošla i yucce su joj se još najbolje pokazale, yucce stablašice poput rostrate, rigide, faxoniane i filifere..s obzirom da u Ražnju imaš brutalne uvjete od vjetrova(jugo, tramuntana) do sunca, te zemlje skoro i nema najbolje je da ideš sa biljakama iz još surovijih klimata poput palmi iz pustinja mexika kao i yuccama, dasilirionima i onda multipliriciraš da dobiješ bujnost i tropski luk....palma/biljka da je ne znam koja vrsta ako izgleda šugavo nakon godinu dvi bi je najrađe izvadia vanka, jer tropski luk je nešto zdravo i bujno bez obzira na vrstu....par slija u mene

[Mia]

12 minutes ago, akaranus said:

Ražanj kao nomen est omen..tako liti i bude tamo   

Vidi to šta ti prolaziš sad je nas 10tak entuzijasta je prolazilo od 2008 na našem forumu palmapedia koji nažalost nije puno aktivan više ali imaš dosta podataka, gdje su ljudi pokušavali metodom pokušaja i pogreške i ubijali masu palmi ispitivajući svoje klimate, ja prvi( u Kaštelima sam) sam ubia velike howee, ravanee, arhontophoenixe, dypsise i ostale palme 9b zone, zato te i savjetujem da uštediš love i vremena i koncentriraš se na 9a zonu palmi i biljaka sa kojima možeš stvorit čudesa...prija u Zečevu sa tebi sličnijim klimatom je isto sve prošla i yucce su joj se još najbolje pokazale, yucce stablašice poput rostrate, rigide, faxoniane i filifere..s obzirom da u Ražnju imaš brutalne uvjete od vjetrova(jugo, tramuntana) do sunca, te zemlje skoro i nema najbolje je da ideš sa biljakama iz još surovijih klimata poput palmi iz pustinja mexika kao i yuccama, dasilirionima i onda multipliriciraš da dobiješ bujnost i tropski luk....palma/biljka da je ne znam koja vrsta ako izgleda šugavo nakon godinu dvi bi je najrađe izvadia vanka, jer tropski luk je nešto zdravo i bujno bez obzira na vrstu....par slija u mene

Predivno! Jako mi se sviđa koncepcija vrta . Da u Ražnju je brutalno, jugo je zapravo najveći neprijatelj, dok bura nas ne smeta toliko jer uvala u kojoj smo je Stivašnica - rt Planka mislim da ti ne poznato gdje je to. Mjesto Ražanj nam je 10 min pješice od vikendice. Znaci u Kaštelima si, roditelji su mi u Kaštel Gomilici , ja sam u Splitu. Trenutno smo svi kako nam obaveze dopuštaju vise na vikendici. Posebno jer smo se uhvatili uređivanja vrta. Poslat cu ti par sličica vrta poslije