Trying to grow a palm in central texas

[07vette]

Me and my grandma have been trying to plant palms for awhile, but we are concerned that they will die of cold in the first year. My grandma lives in round rock, which is on the border of zone 8b and 9a. But the problem is we are very vulnerable to cold snaps as each year since 2021 has had at least 1 extreme cold snap. We hit about 6 degrees in 2021, then in 2022 we had a lows that were 17, 14, 16, and 17 all in a row. We also hit 11 in 2024, which with all of those freezes combined, there are only maybe a few dozen palms in the round rock area. The only ones I have found is 1 windmill palm and one sabal palmetto left. I'm not sure which palms will survive at her house. 

[DTS]

Try a Needle Palm or a Sabal Minor, those two will fare better in your climate

[N8ALLRIGHT]

Man in 8b/9a I'd go for it.  Plenty of options.  Sabal palmetto and Sabal Mexicana would be my go tos. Wahingtonia filifera would be a fantastic choice as well.  You certainly could do some windmills but I have heard they do better in texas with some shade. Minors and needles for sure. Perhaps a butia but I've heard mixed reviews on them in texas as well.  Hardy cycads,although not palms, certainly could be in the mix. Cycas panzhuiensis and the good old sago( Cycas revoluta) as well as some Dioon edule could help roundout your plants. I'm near KCMO and I have minor, needle and windmill growing.  They're not big yet but I protect in winter(zone 6b) I'd be stoked to have your winters. I Know that you guys have had a string of bad winters,but see if you can source some from survivors. They should be extra ready for winters going forward.  Good luck 

[Ben G.]

I agree with a lot of the comments above. Sabal palmetto or Sabal mexicana are the best bet for a nice trunking palm that you won't need to worry much about.

[NC_Palms]

Im going with Sabal Mexicana or Sabal minor. Both are native (former being once native) to your area and should do well. 

Washingtonia filifera should do well. Sabal palmetto as well.  If you want a pinnate palm, I would try butia odorata or maybe one of the hybrid mule palms (queen x butia)

[Westmtn]

Plant a brahea armata and thank me in 20 years.

[Swolte]

4 hours ago, Westmtn said:

Plant a brahea armata and thank me in 20 years.

Do you have a large one in Austin? If so, picture please!

[DreaminAboutPalms]

On 3/8/2025 at 4:47 PM, 07vette said:

Me and my grandma have been trying to plant palms for awhile, but we are concerned that they will die of cold in the first year. My grandma lives in round rock, which is on the border of zone 8b and 9a. But the problem is we are very vulnerable to cold snaps as each year since 2021 has had at least 1 extreme cold snap. We hit about 6 degrees in 2021, then in 2022 we had a lows that were 17, 14, 16, and 17 all in a row. We also hit 11 in 2024, which with all of those freezes combined, there are only maybe a few dozen palms in the round rock area. The only ones I have found is 1 windmill palm and one sabal palmetto left. I'm not sure which palms will survive at her house. 

I'm guessing that if you're old enough to post on here and still have a living grandma, that your Grandma probably only has a decade or two left of living on her own.

Buy a filifera dominant Washingtonia with a few feet of trunk off Facebook marketplace, plant it near a south facing wall, and watch it explode in growth over the next few years. Without any major freeze events it will be two stories tall within a decade

With sabals your choices are either dropping big bucks on transplanting one in that will grow at a snails pace for a few years as it regrows its roots and re-establishes itself, or growing one from seed which is a slow slow process.

Long term hardiness? Questionable, but we have hybrids here still in DFW that are still going strong after seeing temps at least 5 degrees lower in each winter than what you see, so it's definitely worth trying.

[DreaminAboutPalms]

Mature washingtonia in round rock

[DreaminAboutPalms]

[DreaminAboutPalms]

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[DreaminAboutPalms]

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