anyone do a traveler palm in zone 7 or under?

wheelman1976 · Post by **wheelman1976** » Mon Nov 14, 2011 7:30 pm

I was just looking at this palm and it looks pretty cool, read that it can tolerate temps down to 20 degrees and of course it has me thinking if it's possible to get one through a midwest winter with protection. Anyone half experience with one where they had to box it up? Share any experiences!

seedscanada · Post by **seedscanada** » Mon Nov 14, 2011 9:39 pm

I am in 6b/7a. My travellers palm is potted and I put it outdoors from May to September. I bring it in when nights in september get 50 f or cooler. It it about 8 feet tall and six years old, so once it is in it does not go out again till next year. I bring it in because below maybe 45 f a few nights in a row, the older leaves seem to begin losing their green... and get yellowy. Once brought in, these leaves most affected edges brown and dry up. I think the travellers palm (not a palm) is too tender for zone 7 to be planted outdoors.

TerdalFarm · Post by **TerdalFarm** » Tue Nov 15, 2011 2:41 pm

Nice and tall!
We grow ours in a pot as well. It is outside right now but we never let it see anything under 30 F. Call me chicken. W would be furipus if I left it outdoors. Then again, she is from Michigan where it gets really cold....

wheelman1976 · Post by **wheelman1976** » Tue Nov 15, 2011 3:08 pm

TerdalFarm wrote:Nice and tall!
We grow ours in a pot as well. It is outside right now but we never let it see anything under 30 F. Call me chicken. W would be furipus if I left it outdoors. Then again, she is from Michigan where it gets really cold....

"He" is from Michigan.

Once it gets too tall for ceilings do you just bring it in and lay it on it's side for the winter?

TerdalFarm · Post by **TerdalFarm** » Tue Nov 15, 2011 6:01 pm

W (the wife, from Michigan) bought it off ebay from Hawai'i. It came in a tiny ziploc bag and has grown like crazy. I'll take a photo of it tomorrow for you. It is not too tall yet, and our new apartment has a spot with a 20' ceiling where it will go someday.

TerdalFarm · Post by **TerdalFarm** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 3:59 pm

Here is how it looked a few minutes ago.
Right now it is indoors.

<table style="width:auto;"><tr><td><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/T ... site"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-2aJp ... AG0910.jpg" height="800" width="478" /></a></td></tr><tr><td style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right">From <a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/terdalfarm ... ">November 2011</a></td></tr></table>

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 5:03 pm

That beauty has sure grown Erik.
Uncanny how they resemble Bird of Paradise in many ways.

Barb

TerdalFarm · Post by **TerdalFarm** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 5:08 pm

They grow amazingly fast. The same one is on the far left of this photo from early August.

<table style="width:auto;"><tr><td><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/J ... site"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/--aJp ... C_0420.JPG" height="425" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right">From <a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/terdalfarm ... te">August 2011</a></td></tr></table>

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 5:15 pm

Yup, that was the photo of it that I remembered...with the horse cooling off near the house.

wheelman1976 · Post by **wheelman1976** » Wed Nov 16, 2011 5:53 pm

I wish they were a bit more cold hardy... I think I'm gonna pass on this one as an outdoor option for the foreseeable future. It's still looks really cool when it gets big though!

KrisK · Post by **KrisK** » Thu Nov 17, 2011 5:45 am

Wow those are cool ravenala!
How do yall keep them going thru winter?

May I suggest a musella lasiocarpa to the OP? They look similar to BOP and are quite a bit hardier. The inflorescence are nothing alike however. I'm trying one myself outside this year. Here's to getting a bloom next year!

TerdalFarm · Post by **TerdalFarm** » Sat Nov 19, 2011 12:14 pm

Kris,
traveler's palms in OK? Easy! Here is ours (same one in photos above) on February 12 of this year, two days after our low of -30 C.

<table style="width:auto;"><tr><td><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/L ... site"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-uRtl ... AG0579.jpg" height="383" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right">From <a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/terdalfarm ... ">February 2011</a></td></tr></table>

KrisK · Post by **KrisK** » Sat Nov 19, 2011 3:19 pm

Wow crazy growth Erik what do you feed it?
That's a good pic too!

What I really wonder is how do you keep it going indoors? Will they tolerate low light ? I've got a small BOP I got late in the year and I'm not sure how to treat it for winter. It's getting carried in and out depending on he weather. I plan to put it with my other tender tropicals under the lights in my garage. Whatever you're doing is working, do tell!

TerdalFarm · Post by **TerdalFarm** » Sat Nov 19, 2011 3:40 pm

This plant is W's -- she bought it for a few bucks off eBay in a tiny Ziploc bag a year-and-change ago.
It grows crazy fast. I use some miracle gro but not enough to account for how fast it grows. I think I now know why all the ones I see in the tropics are actual trees!

Winter, it gets put close to a window. Doesn't,t grow at all in winter. It is back outside right now. But that is just because I like the looks.

On a side topic, please start a new thread on Musella lasiocarpa (or is it Enseste lasiocarpa now?). I can keep them alive in our winters, sometimes, but they never flowered. I thought of them as Canna but little and with no flowers

I'm sure they'll do better for you.

KrisK · Post by **KrisK** » Fri Nov 25, 2011 5:48 pm

I would start a new post Erik but it would be short, sadly I dunno much about them. I think you're correct and the genus is now ensete. I did see where a red flowering form was discovered this year. I need to cut mine back and protect it. It's been in my windmill palm's hut since the 1st freeze and looks great. The windmill will have to have his hut before too long I think.

TerdalFarm · Post by **TerdalFarm** » Fri Nov 25, 2011 6:57 pm

We're easing nicely into winter so you have at least another week. Heck, I have potted weeping fig, foxtail palm, royal palm, etc outside still....

I could overwinter Musella/Ensete lasiocarpa almost as easily as Musa basjoo but they never flowered or looked like much. Canna were vastly more rewarding for me.

KrisK · Post by **KrisK** » Fri Nov 25, 2011 9:34 pm

O yeah. I'm digging the gradual change to colder temps. I'll leave these guys uncovered as long as I can. I don't worry so much about the temps yet, as I do about the moisture.

PalmsNorth.com

anyone do a traveler palm in zone 7 or under?

anyone do a traveler palm in zone 7 or under?

Traveller's palm