Sabal Palmetto in Zone 7B ?

[BigBilly]

Is a Sabal Palmetto worth trying is a North Carolina 7B, I've seen some doing pretty well in Area's Like Salisbury and Northern Charlotte.

[Nomad NYC]

Hey, there a plenty of Zone 7B folks here in this forum ( me included ) that are growing Sabal Palmettos Palms!

They aren't the fastest palms to grow,  even down in Florida and other warmer areas of the country (  and they probably take forever to grow even there, I hear.. )

But  I find that they are pretty tough , even as seedlings - probably even more so than Trachy's in my climate, once they get to be a mature size.  And I like how they look, even when small, and  haven't developed a trunk yet.

So if you don't mind waiting years for a nice sized  tree , then go for it!

( Here is a picture of one of my seed grown, in ground Carolina sourced Sabal Palmetto - in South Queens, NYC  )

[BigBilly]

I guess its worth a try

[WSimpson]

Definitely plant one . My Palmetto did better than my Trachys , Birminghams , Butias , and Chammys . Get one from Loyd's in Wilmington , NC where their source for HC Palmettos is from Northern Florida , they say . So far it took 6F like a champ . You can easily protect the trunk too , which is a lot easier than protecting a 20 foot Washy lol .

Will

 

[WSimpson]

[PalmatierMeg]

Go for it. There are varieties of Sabal palmetto that come from colder state,s such as Bald Head Island, NC and Sabal palmetto ‘Mocksville’ (NC) if you can find a reliable source for them. I got a ‘Mocksville’ from Plant Delights a few years back from Plant Delights in Raleigh but they since sold out. Also, try some of the many varieties of Sabal minor. You can landscape a yard with them.

[PalmatierMeg]

I took photos of my Sabal palmetto Mocksville (https://www.plantdelights.com/products/sabal-palmetto-mocksville ). It is reputed to be a cold hardier form of S palmetto and shows morphological differences in leaf form.

I also took photos of some of my variations of Sabal minor. I collect specimens of what I call "uber dwarf" minors, some so small they can live in pots and are easy to protect in-ground.

Sabal minor 'Welfare' from Texas (https://www.plantdelights.com/products/sabal-minor-welfare#:~:text=Sabal minor 'Welfare' is from a very interesting,with many trunked specimens reaching 8' in height.)

Sabal minor 'Chipola Dwarf' (https://www.plantdelights.com/products/sabal-minor-chipola-dwarf#:~:text=Sabal minor 'Chipola Dwarf' is a dwarf form,with 4' long%2C arching spikes of black fruit.)

Sabal minor 'High Springs' (https://www.plantdelights.com/products/sabal-minor-high-springs)

Sabal minor 'Blountstown Dwarf' (https://www.plantdelights.com/products/sabal-minor-blountstown-dwarf ). Two offspring of my original mother palm planted in a box beside the driveway. The one on the right just finished seeding. The one on the left appeared to be dying last year but sent up an alternate growing point and is now thriving although it has not yet flowered.

[Hardypalms]

I have one fully grown in zone 7b north of Atlanta. Planted April 2022. Passed its first winter without a hitch with a low of 6 degrees during the nationwide arctic blast. I protect below 30 with C9 lights, frost clothe and tarp.

i just put all 3 when real cold with rain but often lights and frost clothes are enough. I m at work, can’t take a pic.

Pat

[knikfar]

There are sabals at the Raulston Arboretum, here in Raleigh, that survived a low of 4f during the 2018 cold event. And I don't believe any of those received any protection. I'm grown many here in my yard, also in Raleigh, but they've all been planted within the last two years. I grew most of them myself, from seed I collected from a survivor of the 2018 cold event in Winterville NC, where they experienced a low of 0f and a week below freezing. 

[BigBilly]

10 hours ago, Will Simpson said:

Are they seed grown ? 

[BigBilly]

10 hours ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Go for it. There are varieties of Sabal palmetto that come from colder state,s such as Bald Head Island, NC and Sabal palmetto ‘Mocksville’ (NC) if you can find a reliable source for them. I got a ‘Mocksville’ from Plant Delights a few years back from Plant Delights in Raleigh but they since sold out. Also, try some of the many varieties of Sabal minor. You can landscape a yard with them.

I've already planted a sabal minor and trachy

[BigBilly]

On 3/31/2023 at 8:32 AM, Will Simpson said:

Definitely plant one . My Palmetto did better than my Trachys , Birminghams , Butias , and Chammys . Get one from Loyd's in Wilmington , NC where their source for HC Palmettos is from Northern Florida , they say . So far it took 6F like a champ . You can easily protect the trunk too , which is a lot easier than protecting a 20 foot Washy lol .

Will

 

Also Trachys really as hardy as people say ...?

[Allen]

1 hour ago, BigBilly said:

Also Trachys really as hardy as people say ...?

Which is??

[BigBilly]

2 hours ago, Allen said:

Which is??

Trachycarpus fortunei , Are they really 7B hardy ? 

[amh]

On 3/31/2023 at 10:37 AM, PalmatierMeg said:

Sabal minor 'Welfare' from Texas (https://www.plantdelights.com/products/sabal-minor-welfare#:~:text=Sabal minor 'Welfare' is from a very interesting,with many trunked specimens reaching 8' in height.)

Has your Welfare flowered yet?

[Palmerr]

On 3/30/2023 at 10:10 PM, Nomad NYC said:

Hey, there a plenty of Zone 7B folks here in this forum ( me included ) that are growing Sabal Palmettos Palms!

They aren't the fastest palms to grow,  even down in Florida and other warmer areas of the country (  and they probably take forever to grow even there, I hear.. )

But  I find that they are pretty tough , even as seedlings - probably even more so than Trachy's in my climate, once they get to be a mature size.  And I like how they look, even when small, and  haven't developed a trunk yet.

So if you don't mind waiting years for a nice sized  tree , then go for it!

( Here is a picture of one of my seed grown, in ground Carolina sourced Sabal Palmetto - in South Queens, NYC  )

they grow best where its warm lots of rain and calcium rich neutral to alkaline soils (They also do best in poorly draining soil like wet clay that has lots of nutrients sabal does well where i live cause i have clay but in florida or sandy soils sabal palmetto performs less well.

[Nomad NYC]

On 3/30/2023 at 10:10 PM, Nomad NYC said:

Hey, there a plenty of Zone 7B folks here in this forum ( me included ) that are growing Sabal Palmettos Palms!

They aren't the fastest palms to grow,  even down in Florida and other warmer areas of the country (  and they probably take forever to grow even there, I hear.. )

But  I find that they are pretty tough , even as seedlings - probably even more so than Trachy's in my climate, once they get to be a mature size.  And I like how they look, even when small, and  haven't developed a trunk yet.

So if you don't mind waiting years for a nice sized  tree , then go for it!

( Here is a picture of one of my seed grown, in ground Carolina sourced Sabal Palmetto - in South Queens, NYC  )

Ok,  so because no one asked for it.... Here is a year (  and nine months ) update :

This picture taken last weekend, Sunday the 24th. of November.  My Palmetto seedling is growing faster that I expected!  It's seems to now be fully established here in my warmish 7B Zone - New York City now classified officially Köppen climate Cfa ( Hot Summer, Humid Subtropical ).

It would have been bigger this year, but this one was cut down to the ground  by one of the "landscalpers" last fall,  as seen below:

  

The fact that it grew back so fast after this horrible setback was truly amazing! And this is the standard run-of-the-mill Palmetto seed stock from the Carolinas / Georgia. I believe that the Bald Head Island and Mockville variety (  both of which I currently have , but not planted out yet ) would probably do even better in certain places here in the Tri -state area ,  given the right microclimate location.

[MattInRaleigh]

At Juniper Level Botanic Garden in Raleigh, NC, they have a few Bald Head Island Palmettos doing well planted since the early 2000’s I believe. It’s now zone 8A but has been through zone 7 winters. They tend to have less frond damage from cold compared to the average Palmetto from what I’ve read.

One Bald Head Island Palmetto in a xeric garden (very well drained soil for agaves) at the JC Raulston Arboretum did die during the 2018 freeze. One unknown origin Palmetto under high shade of a Loblolly pine did survive. Another Palmetto grown from a specimen in Kingston, NC out in the open did also survive there.

So if it’s in a microclimate such as under a Loblolly pine to protect it from frost or its a hardy form from Bald Head Island, I think there’s a good shot at growing a Palmetto in a southern US zone 7B.

I have a Bald Head Island form at my house in Raleigh but it’s still relatively young. I don’t think I’ll be brave enough to keep it unprotected if it gets below 10 degrees. 😅