New member

[Michel]

Hello to everyone.
My name is Michel.I live in South-West France by 43°N.My location is 80kms/50 miles far from the Atlantic Ocean to the West (Biarritz,Basque Coast) and the same distance from Spain to the South.
The climate is mild oceanic,similar to the Christchurch area in NZ.
The existing micro climates in South-West France are also comparable to the Washington and Oregon states ones.
I grow palmtrees and others exotics outdoors for 18 years.
I test plants known to resist to at least -8°C/18°F,temperature we had one time in december 2001.The historical lowest temperature is not precisely known but could be -13°C/9°F.During a normal winter we get -4°C/25°F one or two times. Every winter there are one or two snow falls too,generally not long lasting .
About 40 palmtree species are thriving,many of them are small,some are protected in winter, during freezing cold nights only.
I grow all the common cold hardy palms,Phoenix, Trachies,Waggies,Sabals,...plus less common palms like Dypsis decipiens,Livistona saribus,Brahea nitida,B aculeata,B brandegeei,and in a near future I will plant Juania australis.
I will be pleased to compare your experiences,good and bad, to mine,and get or give usefull informations.
Michel.

[PlanesandPalmsGuy]

Hello Michel, I live in Murphysboro, Illinois, United States(37deg. N). My area is zone 7a, so I am limited on what tropicals I can grow. I grow Rhapidophyllum hystrix(Needle Palm) and Sabal minor(Dwarf Palmetto). I am experimenting with Sabal x texensis which is a cross between a S. minor and a S. lousiana. Its said to be as cold hardy as S. minor, so I am going to give it a try. I have not tried any Trachy's in my area, but I am going to next spring. I kept a Livistona chinensis(Fountain Palm, Chinese Fan Palm) alive last winter with protection, but I have since then removed it. How well does R. hystrix and S. minor fair in your area?...I'm pretty sure France is not recognized for hot humid summers, which R. hystrix and S. minor thrive in since their native to the southeastern U.S. The R. hystrix seems to produce the most growth with day time highs between 85-95deg. F(26-33C). Have you tried growing any C. humilis or S. palmetto in your area?

[Michel]

Hello PlanesandPalmsGuy
I have Rhapidophyllum hystrix and Sabal minor for years in my garden.
Despite they are slow growers,they are doing well and look good.S. minor add 2 or 3 new palms during summer and mature seeds.
R.hystrix stem growth is moreless 2 inches a year.The old palms last very long ,4 or 5 years before yellowishing
I don't usually water the plants in summer as we have enough water brought by storms and Atlantic rains, except during droughts that doesn't happen very often.Our summers are humid but not hot,I experienced they were warm enough to allow palm trees like sabals to thrive.
I grow S.palmetto too,a very slow grower when young,building a massive socket for 10 years.It speed up 3 years ago,since it began to have an erect stem and to flourish.Its stem is now 2 feets high and increases from at least 6 inches a year.
I grow also S.bermudana,mexicana,domingensis,rosei.
C.Humilis is becoming popular here.I have a big "ordinary humilis" and a small cerifera.
Michel

[PlanesandPalmsGuy]

I know var. cerifera is the Blue variety of the Mediterranean Fan Palm. Sabal palmetto grows very fast in the southeastern U.S., especially in Florida, where it can reach up to 40ft(13m) tall. the S. palmetto is very common in the southern U.S. along with Butia capitata(Pindo Palm, Jelly Palm). I am germinating some S. palmetto seeds, which I collected from St. Augustine, Florida back in June of this year. I know they probably won't fair too well here, but they may make good potted plants . Do you grow any citrus, cacti and succulents, or bananas?

[Jay-Admin]

Welcome to the forum Michel.

I'm happy to be seeing members post and share their experiences from around the world.

Regards,
Jay

[Michel]

Thank you Jay for your welcome message.
I am glad to see that exotics enthusiasts share the same kind of madness all over the world.
I am a member of the French chapter of the International Palm Society called Fous de Palmiers,that means mad of palm trees.

Yes Planesandpalmsguy,I grow all that.
I have Poncirus,satsumas,C.ichangensis,C. junos,and an undetermined orange tree from seed.
I have in pot a kumquat,abitter orange and a C. meyer.I leave them outside in winter,on a sheltered terrace.
I am looking for hardy citrus,hybridised with Poncirus.
I grow also outdoors a selection of hardy cacti and succulents:20 opuntias,20 agaves,a few cereus,aloe,yucas,and others like hesperaloe,puya,dickia.
The only banana tree I have got is a Musa basjoo,very common here and easy to grow.The plants become very huge and look nice as we don't have much wind.

Michel.

[PlanesandPalmsGuy]

I also have a Musa basjoo. Yes, M. basjoo can grow very large, up to 15 feet here. M. basjoo dies to the ground during the winter in my "kneck of the woods" and returns in the spring.

[ianrmch@yahoo.co.nz]

Hi Michel
I'm interested that you grow plants that are known to be cold hardy to minus 8 Celsius.Just wonder if you had to do lots of research to come up with a list or whether there is a website I could have a look at?
Also does your triangle palm stay outside all winter and if so is it in the ground or in a pot?
I have three plants in pots outside that have survived several winters,
Queen Palm (Syagrus Romanzoffianum),Phoenix Roebelleni and Cycas Revoluta plus this present winter Macrozamia Communis.
Cheers Now
Ian Mc

[Michel]

Hello Ian.
In fact I used several sources,mainly books,other collectors,specialized nurseries,and also personnals tests.
Hardiness prediction is not an exact science,there are many factors interacting with the temperature parameter.Nevertheless it's an usefull indication.
To me the best site to find reliable and detailed informations on cold hardiness for palms and cycads is the Cold Rating Database http//www.crdb.net
You ask me about triangle palm.I think you mean Dypsis decaryi.I don't grow this palm,not hardy enough,but it's cousin Dypsis decipiens.
It is planted outdoors in the ground and I just put a piece of cloth on it during the coldests nights,enough to obtain a few degrees gain,so I don't really know the cold limit.It survived to -9°C in California,but it is California.
I think it could possibly not be damaged whith temperatures reaching -3 or- 4°C during an all night.
I hope it helps.
Cheers

Michel.

[New member]

Hi Michel
That websit crdb looks good.Of course you're right about Dypsis Decipiens.
I have a couple of reasonable sized D Decaryi and one small pot of D Decipiens bought on special from a hardware store.Will keep my eyes open for more of this species and could possibly try outside with "Microclimate" frost cloth.