Planting Replacement Palms in World's Smallest Jungle, Cape Coral, FL

[PalmatierMeg]

Back last autumn Hurricane Ian pretty much decimated our gardens, including our Back yard Jungle. While we were able to find cold hardier more drought tolerant palms for our unirrigated Garden Lot we could do little to rectify destruction done to our quite tropical jungle going into winter, followed by a hot, rainless spring. Even with irrigation 2x per week (the City sneakily reduced water pressure to its irrigation lines) we knew many palms we tried to install would not make it through dry season. We decided we had to wait 8 months until rainy season.

So, rainy season began with a bang yesterday. In anticipation over the past 3-day weekend we planted over a dozen palms from our Container Garden - ones that survived Ian's wrath which many did not. Many of these palms, mainly Ptychosperma spp, I grew from seeds I bought from a PTer in Australia before Covid and US Custom's crackdown on botanical imports. I don't have scientific names for these palms, just vague descriptions, i.e, "small, solitary Ptycho". I planted a number of them around a Hydriastele beguina 'Obi Isle' I planted under canopy in early 2022. Ian destroyed that canopy but the Hydriastele survived the storm as well as this past winter and spring. I figure it deserves a chance and hope all the Ptychospermas will grow up fast and shield it from the next winter, assuming it survives this summer. In addition, I planted another Ptychosperma and a Chamaedorea klotzschiana strategically around my only Howea belmoreana, which unbelievably, has survived under heavy canopy since the 00s. It survived the loss of my queen palm canopy to wilt in 2015 and was shielded by the growth of my Elaeis guineensis 'whole leaf'. Until a few weeks ago I feared my whole leaf oil would meet the fate of its pinnate siblings but as damage leaves die off it is putting out new green ones. My H.b. survived Ian (as did my Howea forsteriana) but both may really suffer from the swelter this summer without their canopy. I tucked several potted palms close to the H.b. to offer some protection from overhead sun.

First up, several views of our Jungle from the east property line. Among the recent plantings you will see disintegrating stumps of a Chysalidocarpus pembanus and a Syagrus romanzoffiana x flexuosa that died before Ian.

Photos 1 & 2 show the east side of the jungle along with our cat Lizzie who is justifiably proud of her 0.61 acre Paradise

Photos below show how sparse the jungle canopy is post-Ian

At the eastern edge of the Jungle we planted a number of Ptychosperma spp I grew from Australian seeds. They are intended to protect our Hydriastele beguinii 'Obi Isle' from sun year round and winter wind.

Inside the east portion of our Jungle we planted the following:

Pinanga coronata 'Kuhlii' overlooking the canal where it is shielded from wind and benefit from moderating effects of the water in winter. I have another the same size I want to plant soon. Grown from seeds from @NatureGirl

Hydriastele unknown sp grown from seed

Solitary Ptychosperma sp, front left, and Chamaedorea klotzschiana, front right, intended to shield Howea belmoreana (rear) from sun. Both seed grown

Closeup of solitary Ptychosperma sp from Australia

Ptychosperma (I think) sp

Howea belmoreana survived Ian. Frond damage is from hurricane winds. I've had this palm since late 2005 and kept it alive for 18 years by protecting it deep in the jungle from FL swelter

Bonus photo: this variegated Rhapis popped up near the jungle path and looks pristine

Two photos of our Elaeis guineensis 'Whole Leaf' (from @tjwalters) showing new green leaves coming up among storm-damaged older leaves

More east jungle plantings. We needed to get some fast growth once summer rainy season fired up. Not many things are faster than a happy coconut palm. The Maypan planted last fall has grown 2-3x taller since then. The Malayan has almost doubled.

Cocos nucifera 'Maypan'

Cocos nucifera Green Malayan

Also found this unknown potted pinnate palm. Hurricane Ian separated much of my container garden from its ID tags and cat 4/5 winds fatally damaged many potted palms. Any idea what this guy might be? I hope it can survive our dreck soil. Leaf damage = wind damage

 

[PalmatierMeg]

Across a concrete walk down to our dock is the second half of our back yard jungle. It also took a significant hit from Ian, including a large Chambeyronia and a Dypsis sp (Chrysalidocarpus?) sp Malagasy and a Beccariophoenix alfredii (ripped off its growing plate). Those left big openings in the canopy that we are seeking to fill.

First up are some views of our west jungle which faces south overlooking the Isabelle Canal.

I recently peeled off the boots from our largest Satakentia liukiuensis to reveal its striped trunk and purple crownshaft. Some closeups below

Starting last fall we planted smaller palms to replace those that were destroyed

Chambeyronia macrocarpa

Dicytyosperma from @sonorafans

We had some surprising survivors of Ian's wrath

Adonidia merrillii Golden from x4 - This cultivar is much slower growing and less robust than the green form because of reduced efficacy of its compromised chlorophyll

Archonotophoenix purpurea - so slow growing

Carpoxylon macrospermum - like an exposed giant umbrella perched on the ridge overlooking the canal. Coming back strong

Clinostigma savoryanum - so wobbly we had to tie it to a nearby Dypsis sp Malagasy. It did great

Livistona drudei - not a surprise survivor but a very happy one. Ian took out the shade canopy it had hated and sulked in for years - bad placement choice on my part. Now it's growing like a proverbial weed, all new leaves replace storm-damaged etiolated ones

Cocos nucifera overlooking Isabelle Canal. Took a lot of leaf damage. Our huge Panama Tall from Peter in Guatemala never budged.

[Alberto]

Wow, great work. In no time it will be Lizzie' s old time jungle again....

[tjwalters]

Lookin' good.  That E. guineensis is getting big.

[PalmatierMeg]

9 hours ago, tjwalters said:

Lookin' good.  That E. guineensis is getting big.

Yes, it was even more massive before Ian. It has been crucial protection for our belmoreana, esp from winter sun. But it really took a beating from storm winds because it faces south over the canal. A couple months ago when the wind-damaged fronds began dying off I feared it was a goner but new leaves have renewed my hopes. Both my pinnate Elaeis did not survive.

[Merlyn]

5 hours ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Yes, it was even more massive before Ian. It has been crucial protection for our belmoreana, esp from winter sun. But it really took a beating from storm winds because it faces south over the canal. A couple months ago when the wind-damaged fronds began dying off I feared it was a goner but new leaves have renewed my hopes. Both my pinnate Elaeis did not survive.

It looks like it's roaring back so far!  Good thing you didn't give up on it and chop it up.  Maybe some day you'll be able to get "whole leaf" seedlings from it, especially if there's no others in the neighborhood.  That might be difficult with one palm though, as I read they seed male & female at different times.  I wish all 3 of my "whole leaf" seedlings from CFKingFish had survived, but at the time I knew nothing about growing palms from bare root seedlings. 

[Cindy Adair]

I am very glad to see the huge progress you have made Meg!

Your photos show the results (so far) of all the hours of work and dollars spent on restoration. 

Those of us who have had to start nearly over from natural disasters fully recognize your determination. 

We look forward to more updates as your palms grow.

And I wish all of us in hurricane prone areas a no hurricane 2023!

[flplantguy]

I'm sure many on here are thankful for your taking the time to share this with us, myself included.  Your experience is invaluable to me, i just wish we could all learn it without having to lose what we love first.  I've been there in a different kind of way, and rebuilding can be very bittersweet (I lost my very large orchid collection completely).  I will think on this garden space whenever i think on where to place palms.  No bismarks near the house or open to wind exposure being the first one.  Thank you for all your posts as you go through this process (and everyone else who shares their wisdom here).