Washingtonia Filifera cold survivors

[Swolte]

After the drought and excessive heat experienced during the summer of 2022 in Central Texas, I was looking for palms that would need no care under such conditions yet also take our crazy winter extremes. Filifera (hybrids) appeared a good candidate as they are adapted to arid/subtropical conditions and, in some instances, survive harsh winters. Thanks to @knikfar and @Sabal King, I was able to get seedlings from Filifera 'survivors' from North Carolina, Austin (parent from @NBTX11?), and Dallas. Each of the parents survived prolonged cold& wet conditions with temperatures around 5F or lower (correct me if I am far off) so I am hoping some of the beneficial genes will rub off.  

Excited that they're all in the ground now!
- NC (already a couple of weeks and is growing very well under these conditions with watering)
- Austin (just planted today, finally!)
- Dallas (planted last week)

I also finally found a growing medium that I think is superior - expanded shale (highly recommended by some Agri profs at Texas A&M and the good folks at Juniper Level Gardens, one of the leading botanical gardens in the US, swears by this stuff). Hard to find, but provides the kind of drainage that will aid with winter survival yet is also able to hold nutrients (as opposed to some rock) and can hold up to 40% of its weight in water (unlike compost, it does not break down meaningfully!). The palms from Dallas and Austin are in a mix of 50% expanded shale with the rest composed of compost, some random coconut shell amendment (I know, sounds sketchy), and native soil. 

Edited August 13, 2023 by Swolte

[Dwarf Fan]

I understand you’re trying to grow Palms that need little to no supplemental water, however transplanting very young Washingtonias during the height of summer heat in Texas seems like asking a but much even from one of the most drought tolerant Palms on the planet. 

One other critique, I have heard advice from more than a few people about rocks and they all say not to put rocks too close to the trunk of your palms due to them heating up from the sun enough to damage roots and to make sure any landscaping rocks are kept back away from the base of the trunk where roots will be near the surface. Some people are extremely cautious and even advocate several feet away from the trunk. As you can see I have my landscaping rocks in closer proximity but still well clear of the base of the trunks.

Here are three different Washingtonia Filibusta volunteers from my mother plant in my front yard they all popped in the dappled shade of the base of my newly establishing C. Humilis. They picked a nice spot as they are growing out of 3 feet of depth of organic in ground soil from the orange big box store. They are hand watered every 3 days for exactly 1 minute and 30 seconds. The drainage below the soil is excellent as front and backyard are completely sand.

Keep in mind these are NOT transplants they are volunteers from seeds that the wind blew from the other side of my yard. They have NEVER missed their 2x weekly watering in their entire lives and they are only 3 months old:

Edited August 13, 2023 by Dwarf Fan

[Dwarf Fan]

Here is what a transplant that is the same age (3 months old) as the volunteers above that was moved about a month and a half ago because he picked a spot too close to one of his siblings so he was transplanted to a nice spot my backyard that gets dappled sun as well, however this was all done during the sweltering July heat!

I knew from getting my bamboo in ground late in the season the end of spring/early summer that I was going to have to water this guy heavily or he was not going to be too happy, as it turns out I just put him on my bamboo regimen of once in the morning and then once midday 30 seconds of hose nozzle set to spray each time and so far two strap leaves browned and died from the transplant shock but here’s what he looks like now:

3 months old transplanted during summer BUT watered 2x per day and transplanted into 50% Organic Soil/50% fine Padre Island beach sand mix. He has NEVER been fertilized. 

Edited August 13, 2023 by Dwarf Fan

[Dwarf Fan]

Here is their Filibusta Hybrid mother that took ZERO damage from 20 degrees Fahrenheit during Palmageddon.

[Dwarf Fan]

There is a house up for sale on the Island that was “re-landscaped” a week ago and where the dead Queen Palm was, that the absentee owners killed due to never being watered after being transplanted in SUMMER, the landscapers replaced it with a 5 gal or 7 gal W. Filibusta that looked absolutely perfect like it just came straight from the nursery will ALL green fronds. 
 

It was watered the day it was put in by the landscapers and it has never been watered since. No one has been by to water it and it is painful for me to stand by every day I go outside watching this once picture perfect Washingtonia die a slow death due to not being watered regularly in the summer heat but it is not my Palm and not my responsibility.

I can swing by and post pics every week if you would like to see proof that even Washingtonia hybrids simply cannot survive after being transplanted in Texas heat during summer without some serious supplementary water to get deep roots established. 

I have been told regular waterings are necessary for all palms during the first 9 months to 1 year after transplant regardless of drought tolerance capabilities within the species.  
 
Case Study: Washingtonia transplant drought tolerance Week 1: 

Edited August 13, 2023 by Dwarf Fan

[Swolte]

Awesome, thanks for sharing and the tips!

Let me clarify just so I don't look reckless. I do agree with you! Not pictured, but I do have a shade cloth for the summer for those exposed seedlings protecting them from afternoon sun (it just doesn't look nice for pics lighting and view). I obviously water the seedlings regularly (because our water sucks, as little as I can get away with) until they are established. I also keep them in their original soil, causing minimal root disturbance when transplanting. In other words, their conditions don't differ very much from where they were nursed (Sabal King has a nice shaded set up outside in Texas, though he probably waters more frequently and his water is undoubtedly better).

The rocks, unfortunately, are for the beetle problems we have here. They make it easier to spot burrows and I hope it also has a deterring effect. Note that it looks like they are all big sized chunks, however, its actually a fine layer of decomposed granite with a few chunks of limestone (these interlock nicely and get really hard). Given Washies grow from cracks in streets in dry climates, I figured the rocks won't be too much of a problem. I have been growing palms like this for years and experienced no problems with it, i.e., palms dying (I rarely kill palms) but maybe its not a bad idea to keep them extra shaded in these type of summers! 
👍

Edited August 13, 2023 by Swolte

[Dwarf Fan]

15 minutes ago, Swolte said:

Awesome, thanks for sharing and the tips!

Let me clarify because I do agree with you! Just so I don't look reckless. Not pictured in all, but I do have a shade cloth for the summer for those exposed palms protecting them from afternoon sun (doesn't look nice for pics). I obviously water the seedlings regularly (because our water sucks, as little as I can get away with) until they are established. I also keep them in their original soil, causing minimal root disturbance when transplanting. 

The rocks, unfortunately, are for the beetle problems we have here. They make it easier to spot burrows and I hope it also has a deterring effect. Note that it looks like they are all big size chunks, however, its actually a fine layer of decomposed granite with chunks of limestone (these interlock nicely and get really hard). Given Washies grow from cracks in streets in dry climates, I figured the rocks won't be too much of a problem. I have been growing palms like this for years and experienced no problems with it, i.e., palms dying (I rarely kill palms) but maybe its not a bad idea to keep them extra shaded in these type of summers! 
👍

Okay thank you for the clarification, I wasn’t sure how extreme you were being with the water rationing test on your Palms, especially after seeing those pics you posted of your Trachy! 😳 

I was wondering if you were doing some kind of torture test like the guys that throw their guns out of helicopters and then run them over with a truck in the muddy rain to test limitations under extreme conditions!

Good to know all your little Washies are on a regular watering schedule and that the rocks near the trunk has haven’t been an issue in your experience. Carry on. 👍

Edited to add: That reminds me I need to grab some shade cloth for a C. Radicalis that I just got from Phil it is already taking damage even though I tucked her next to my tallest Bamboo and she is getting dappled sunlight that move to Texas sun after starting off her life in a San Diego greenhouse is already providing to be a bit too rough for her.

Edited August 13, 2023 by Dwarf Fan
Reminded me I need to grab some shade cloth on Monday

[Swolte]

11 minutes ago, Dwarf Fan said:

Okay thank you for the clarification, I wasn’t sure how extreme you were being with the water rationing test on your Palms, especially after seeing those pics you posted of your Trachy! 

Hah, yes, I understand. My bad. I won't let any palm die and I only torture-test the established ones. I do feel bad now having shared these pics. Its probably akin to showing pictures of ones undernourished kittens on a cat enthusiast forum. Cruel. Anyway, once lower fronds start to die with some speed, I will intervene.  

Edited August 13, 2023 by Swolte

[MarcusH]

56 minutes ago, Dwarf Fan said:

Here is their Filibusta Hybrid mother that took ZERO damage from 20 degrees Fahrenheit during Palmageddon.

The vast majority of Filibusta I would say over 90 percent survived Palmaggedon 2021 and it got down to 13F . They're almost as cold hardy as Filiferas.  

[Dwarf Fan]

8 minutes ago, Swolte said:

Hah, yes, I understand. My bad. I won't let any palm die and I only torture-test the established ones. I do feel bad now having shared these pics. Its probably like showing pictures of my undernourished kittens on a cat enthusiast forum. Cruel. Anyway, once lower fronds start to die with some speed, I will intervene.  

LOL! Thanks for the dark, yet hilariously funny analogy you win the internetz today Swolte! 😂

7 minutes ago, MarcusH said:

The vast majority of Filibusta I would say over 90 percent survived Palmaggedon 2021 and it got down to 13F . They're almost as cold hardy as Filiferas.  

That is good to know, I have no doubt she could’ve easily taken 13°F and survived, I just hope it never gets that cold here! 🥶

[Swolte]

Its possible the Filibusta are even better adapted to temperature extremes. Mine did better than the Filifera and Robusta through the 2021 winter and the heatwaves. Looks great now (no water!). Washies are one of the most drought tolerant palms. 

 

[Robert Cade Ross]

1 hour ago, MarcusH said:

The vast majority of Filibusta I would say over 90 percent survived Palmaggedon 2021 and it got down to 13F . They're almost as cold hardy as Filiferas.  

Cries at a filifera or multiple that perished in this planting friendswood Tx closer to 9B 

[Meangreen94z]

18 hours ago, Cade said:

Cries at a filifera or multiple that perished in this planting friendswood Tx closer to 9B 

There’s a lot more to factor in then zone . Like filifera or filifera leaning Washingtonia doing terrible in soggy clay or high rainfall areas. Filifera have survived -15°F in dry conditions 

[jwitt]

37 minutes ago, Meangreen94z said:

There’s a lot more to factor in then zone . Like filifera or filifera leaning Washingtonia doing terrible in soggy clay or high rainfall areas. Filifera have survived -15°F in dry conditions 

Those -15f numbers came with wet, then froze and then melted. Sunny and dry after the melt though.  

In fact, reports out of the region at the time(2011) were the palms that did not releaf were the ones not watered or irrigated. 

Personally, I think the dry helps put filifera into a hibernation, and that hibernation allows the severe cold survival. 

And yes, soil!

 

Edited August 14, 2023 by jwitt

[knikfar]

On 8/13/2023 at 12:17 PM, Swolte said:

After the drought and excessive heat experienced during the summer of 2022 in Central Texas, I was looking for palms that would need no care under such conditions yet also take our crazy winter extremes. Filifera (hybrids) appeared a good candidate as they are adapted to arid/subtropical conditions and, in some instances, survive harsh winters. Thanks to @knikfar and @Sabal King, I was able to get seedlings from Filifera 'survivors' from North Carolina, Austin (parent from @NBTX11?), and Dallas. Each of the parents survived prolonged cold& wet conditions with temperatures around 5F or lower (correct me if I am far off) so I am hoping some of the beneficial genes will rub off.  

Excited that they're all in the ground now!
- NC (already a couple of weeks and is growing very well under these conditions with watering)
- Austin (just planted today, finally!)
- Dallas (planted last week)

I also finally found a growing medium that I think is superior - expanded shale (highly recommended by some Agri profs at Texas A&M and the good folks at Juniper Level Gardens, one of the leading botanical gardens in the US, swears by this stuff). Hard to find, but provides the kind of drainage that will aid with winter survival yet is also able to hold nutrients (as opposed to some rock) and can hold up to 40% of its weight in water (unlike compost, it does not break down meaningfully!). The palms from Dallas and Austin are in a mix of 50% expanded shale with the rest composed of compost, some random coconut shell amendment (I know, sounds sketchy), and native soil. 

This is awesome! Thank you for the mention. The NC palm I sent you shouldn't have a problem living a very long life in your climate.

[Xerarch]

On 8/13/2023 at 4:54 PM, Dwarf Fan said:

That reminds me I need to grab some shade cloth for a C. Radicalis that I just got from Phil it is already taking damage even though I tucked her next to my tallest Bamboo and she is getting dappled sunlight that move to Texas sun after starting off her life in a San Diego greenhouse is already providing to be a bit too rough for her.

I have a handful of C. radicalis in ground here, they get shade a good part of the day but do get some direct sun in the afternoon, they're doing great.  Yours should be fine once acclimated