Does anyone know where you can buy Washingtonia Filbusta

[palmofmyhand]

from a reputable source? I saw three large ones today in my area and have seen others here and would like to give growing them a try. I believe the Filibusta variety is more hardy than the Filifera but please correct me if I am wrong. I am not actually able to distinguish the difference but I assume the ones I have seen in Augusta are Filibusta. They have survived the snow storms without almost any damage and I would love to try to grow some. The picture below is not the ones I saw today but a different one I saw a few months back.

[SeanK]

Unless you're in Moapa, they're all mixes.

[NC_Palms]

  On 2/7/2025 at 2:44 AM, SeanK said:

Unless you're in Moapa, they're all mixes.

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Seconding this. It is difficult to find any pure washingtonia. 

[Fusca]

  On 2/7/2025 at 12:15 AM, palmofmyhand said:

from a reputable source? I saw three large ones today in my area and have seen others here and would like to give growing them a try. I believe the Filibusta variety is more hardy than the Filifera but please correct me if I am wrong. I am not actually able to distinguish the difference but I assume the ones I have seen in Augusta are Filibusta. They have survived the snow storms without almost any damage and I would love to try to grow some. The picture below is not the ones I saw today but a different one I saw a few months back.

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The hybrid filibusta is likely sold wherever palms are sold.  Filifera is more cold hardy than filibusta but the hybrid is more tolerant of high humidity and grows faster and taller.  Often palms at big box stores labeled as filifera (or robusta) are actually hybrids.  

[palmofmyhand]

  On 2/7/2025 at 2:53 AM, Fusca said:

The hybrid filibusta is likely sold wherever palms are sold.  Filifera is more cold hardy than filibusta but the hybrid is more tolerant of high humidity and grows faster and taller.  Often palms at big box stores labeled as filifera (or robusta) are actually hybrids.  

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thanks, so you think I would need to go to a physical store location to get one then?

[Rivera]

  On 2/7/2025 at 4:15 PM, palmofmyhand said:

thanks, so you think I would need to go to a physical store location to get one then?

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You may want to pick out your palm in person anyway, since you are looking for something specific and can select for whatever physical traits are discernable at a young age and provide indication of genetic expression.

Here in California, W robusta are everywhere, but pure (or at least pure-looking to me) filifera can easily be had from the right sources. I'm not sure if the "Filibusta" hybrid is actually sought out here in northern California, or if it's just a common and incidental hybrid. 

Hope you find what you're looking for.

[palmofmyhand]

  On 2/7/2025 at 6:24 PM, Rivera said:

You may want to pick out your palm in person anyway, since you are looking for something specific and can select for whatever physical traits are discernable at a young age and provide indication of genetic expression.

Here in California, W robusta are everywhere, but pure (or at least pure-looking to me) filifera can easily be had from the right sources. I'm not sure if the "Filibusta" hybrid is actually sought out here in northern California, or if it's just a common and incidental hybrid. 

Hope you find what you're looking for.

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thanks honestly I don’t care which kind of Washingtonia variety as they all look almost the same to me, it is mainly just the cold hardiness factor and ability to grow here in my humid 8b climate. I don’t believe the robusta can grow here but the other varieties seem to do well. Are you able to decipher which variety is the one in the picture I posted?

[Rivera]

  On 2/7/2025 at 6:41 PM, palmofmyhand said:

thanks honestly I don’t care which kind of Washingtonia variety as they all look almost the same to me, it is mainly just the cold hardiness factor and ability to grow here in my humid 8b climate. I don’t believe the robusta can grow here but the other varieties seem to do well. Are you able to decipher which variety is the one in the picture I posted?

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I can't really tell looking on my cell phone. I'm red-green colorblind and would need a good look in person. 

In terms of qualities that don't require a mature plant to observe, robusta show more color (shiny green leaf and reddish petiole) and are obviously less filiferous. A filifera petiole is more green and the leaf overall is a more drab greyish green. I believe this holds true when they're young so you may seek out a plant that shows strong qualities of both species (robusta color petiole and filifera fibers). If it's a popular hybrid in your area, they must be around so I would seek out someone who says they have hybrids and then observe the qualities of the plants for yourself and make your choice.

[Fusca]

  On 2/7/2025 at 6:41 PM, palmofmyhand said:

thanks honestly I don’t care which kind of Washingtonia variety as they all look almost the same to me, it is mainly just the cold hardiness factor and ability to grow here in my humid 8b climate. I don’t believe the robusta can grow here but the other varieties seem to do well. Are you able to decipher which variety is the one in the picture I posted?

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It's a bit hard to tell without a close-up shot of the trunk and leaf bases.  Based on what I see and the likeliness the palm pictured is probably a hybrid.  As @Rivera mentioned the reddish color on the leaf bases is an indication of robusta genes in the mix.  Pure filifera has zero red color and the dull, grey-green colored fronds plus their petiole thorns are not as nasty.  Hybrid filibustas typically have glossy green fronds like pure robusta although not as glossy.  In your area I would try to find one with as thick a trunk as possible - those palms are the hardiest to the cold.  Washingtonia robusta and hybrids are nice palms but they are also a pain to keep trimmed.  Personally I would only plant filifera (if at all) in a residential setting because they don't get too tall too fast and stay manageable.

[PAPalmtrees]

  On 2/7/2025 at 12:15 AM, palmofmyhand said:

from a reputable source? I saw three large ones today in my area and have seen others here and would like to give growing them a try. I believe the Filibusta variety is more hardy than the Filifera but please correct me if I am wrong. I am not actually able to distinguish the difference but I assume the ones I have seen in Augusta are Filibusta. They have survived the snow storms without almost any damage and I would love to try to grow some. The picture below is not the ones I saw today but a different one I saw a few months back.

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It's really hard to find pure Washingtonia Filbusta they're always mixed with normal Washingtonia normally.