Finally a few pics of my palms after winter

mnpalms · Post by **mnpalms** » Thu Apr 14, 2011 4:54 am

I uncovered my palms a couple weeks ago and finally got around to posting a few pics here. Two inground trachies and y. thompsoniana are perfect coming out of winter. They are all now noticeably growing.

<img src=http://i729.photobucket.com/albums/ww29 ... C_0139.jpg>

<img src=http://i729.photobucket.com/albums/ww29 ... C_0144.jpg>

<img src=http://i729.photobucket.com/albums/ww29 ... C_0146.jpg>

<img src=http://i729.photobucket.com/albums/ww29 ... C_0140.jpg>

And one of my y. filamentosas which got no protection at all. This one is more compact with wider leaves. It flowered last year.

<img src=http://i729.photobucket.com/albums/ww29 ... C_0149.jpg>

More pictures of stuff to come as I get the time...

hardyjim · Post by **hardyjim** » Thu Apr 14, 2011 9:23 am

Everything looks great Kory.

This has been a weird spring,it seems a very persistent
front has laid out north of me and while we are in the 60s
I just noticed Tim in Wisconsin is in the low 30s...brutal.

Cameron_z6a_N.S. · Post by **Cameron_z6a_N.S.** » Thu Apr 14, 2011 10:38 am

great work!

wxman · Post by **wxman** » Thu Apr 14, 2011 10:54 am

Great work! Didn't get cooked this year. I'm happy to see that.

hardyjim wrote:Everything looks great Kory.

This has been a weird spring,it seems a very persistent
front has laid out north of me and while we are in the 60s
I just noticed Tim in Wisconsin is in the low 30s...brutal.

Dude, send the warm air up here. What is this? Been like this all spring!

mnpalms · Post by **mnpalms** » Thu Apr 14, 2011 12:31 pm

Thanks guys. Yeah Jim, what a wierd spring weather-wise. We are in the high 40s for highs today and tomorrow with overnight lows just at or above freezing for 2 nights before getting back to the 50s and 60s. It had been 60s and a few 70s up to today. This is why I wait until May 1st to put the bananas back in...

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Thu Apr 14, 2011 1:35 pm

Congrats on a great protection job.
They look super!

And that y.filamentosa doesn't need protection even in zone 4, although it would get some cold burn in z.4 above snow level.

More pics please.
Barb

hardyjim · Post by **hardyjim** » Thu Apr 14, 2011 3:52 pm

Wish I could do that Tim!

May 1 is a good plan!

I just about **** a brick when our earlier forecast was talking about
a hard freeze and possibly snow...and now (today)it was supposed to be in the 50s
and ended up being in the low to mid 70s!

I took a big risk planting all my stuff this early...way to much to cover right now.

I just planted a bunch of different Colocasia/Alocasia and a Ensete glaucum
(snow banana)should be a lot of fun this year...and a lot of watering!

One of my favorite pics of E.Glaucum

http://www.cesketropy.com/Resources/e_glaucum.jpg

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Thu Apr 14, 2011 3:57 pm

Jim,

I wouldn't utter the words "snow banana" too loud.

Barb

DesertZone · Post by **DesertZone** » Thu Apr 14, 2011 5:10 pm

those look

TimMAz6 · Post by **TimMAz6** » Thu Apr 14, 2011 7:04 pm

your plants look great. Nice job protecting. Keep us posted on the Y. thompsoniana........ it may be a Y. rostrata or intermediate form. If it's a full blooded Y. thompsoniana it will bloom this year. If no blooms, it's likely a Y. rostrata.

mnpalms · Post by **mnpalms** » Fri Apr 15, 2011 4:06 am

Thanks for the info about the yucca Tim. I'll definitely get pics up here if/when it flowers. My gut tells me it will flower... Compared with the rostratas I've examined, I'm pretty sure it is a thompsoniana. Though I have only seen a couple other true/known thomsonianas I'm pretty confident about what it is. Strange though, when I bought the thing it was about a third the price of a comparably sized rostrata from any of the online/mail-order sources. I looked at a bunch of both species at a big nursery when I was in Vegas and they sell the thompsonianas for more than rostratas of the same size. The biggest difference between the two types that I've observed is the size of the head. It seems the rostratas are about twice the diameter (longer leaves) and more perfectly round in shape. That and the thompsoniana appears a little more green than blue, mine is really a blue-green. I love the thing, I wish I would have bought a couple more when they were cheap. Plant World had 4' rostratas for about $100 while the thompsonianas that size were around $200. That's more than 2x what I paid when I got mine and mine is/was bigger!

Paul Ont · Post by **Paul Ont** » Fri Apr 15, 2011 4:48 am

Great looking plants!

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Fri Apr 15, 2011 10:33 am

Plant World had 4' rostratas for about $100 while the thompsonianas that size were around $200.

If--and I mean if--four footers were avail in Canada, you'd be lookin' at $300 to $400 I bet.

You've got a gold mine there Tim.

Barb

TimMAz6 · Post by **TimMAz6** » Fri Apr 15, 2011 7:00 pm

Rostrata leaves will be less rigid and thompsoniana leaves will be more rigid. I see both rostrata/thompsoniana in yours......perhaps an intermediate form. A good, inexpensive source of big Yuccas is www.select-seeds.com. There is a minimum order but you be happy!

mnpalms · Post by **mnpalms** » Tue May 31, 2011 4:40 pm

UPDATE!

I know this is the hardy palms section but I wanted to mention that my 5'+ yucca thompsoniana IS GOING TO FLOWER!!!!

It just started to produce the flower stalk and has been growing visibly each day. I'm absolutely amazed, the thing has only been in the ground here in MN (zone 5a barely) for a year and a couple of months. Though it is likely 15-20 years old in actuality, who woulda thought... HERE?!?! It came bare-root, stripped from the desert from the Las Vegas area.

My ground yuccas have flowered here and I thought that was pretty cool for MN, but a large trunked yucca???

I'll begin a new thread in the yucca section soon and post pictures every step of the way. Very, very cool in my opinion!!!

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Tue May 31, 2011 6:37 pm

stripped from the desert from the Las Vegas area.

That is very cool indeed.
Look forward to seeing the progress pics.

Barb

mnpalms · Post by **mnpalms** » Wed Jun 01, 2011 4:03 am

Just so you know, it wasn't me who stripped it from the desert in the Vegas area... I bought it through the internet early last spring and the seller did indicate that it was not nursery grown, rather taken from the wild. He was located in Vegas so I assumed that's where it grew originally. I wish he had more for sale though! I'll get a new thread going and post some pictures soon I promise.

Meanwhile my trachies are doing great and the bananas are moving. With the exception of a setback a couple weeks ago (nasty hail storm) the bananas are finally in high gear again. The trachies are simply bullet-proof though, they don't seem to mind heavy snow, golf ball size hail, extreme cold, etc.

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Wed Jun 01, 2011 12:14 pm

It'll be great to see some pics of it planted, mnpalms.

trachies are simply bullet-proof though, they don't seem to mind heavy snow, golf ball size hail, extreme cold,

I appreciate my Trachies more and more.

Especially when each year I learn something new about what my tropical palms DON'T like!
I swear the buggers have seasonal hissy-fits.

Barb

TerdalFarm · Post by **TerdalFarm** » Wed Jun 01, 2011 1:58 pm

2011 has also made me appreciate Trachycarpus more than ever. It was the palm I first knew, as they are common in Portland, Oregon, where I grew up.
I have killed a few since moving to OK in 1997, but lost none this winter so I like to think I'm starting to know a bit more about how to care for them.

mnpalms · Post by **mnpalms** » Sun Jun 05, 2011 8:55 am

FYI: I just posted a couple pics of my y. thompsoniana beginning to flower in the yucca section. I'll keep that thread updated as it progresses.

BILL MA · Post by **BILL MA** » Tue Jun 07, 2011 10:50 am

Your palms and yucca look really good Kory!!! Sorry I didn't comment before I haven't been on this board for a while. Glad you had better luck this year.

Bill

sashaeffer · Post by **sashaeffer** » Fri Jul 15, 2011 5:17 am

mnpalms, what if any did you use for a heat source?

hardyjim · Post by **hardyjim** » Sat Jul 16, 2011 8:51 am

Kory

Do you have some other pics of your yard???

I would like to see how the Trachys and Basjoo are doing-

zomble · Post by **zomble** » Sat Jul 16, 2011 9:37 am

Great looking palms!!

2011 has also made me appreciate Trachycarpus

I love the Trachicarpus 'f'. I just bought a new one after losing one in winter -13. I think it was on its last legs anyway and winter finished it off.

mnpalms · Post by **mnpalms** » Mon Jul 18, 2011 5:08 am

sashaeffer wrote:mnpalms, what if any did you use for a heat source?

I use a Thermocube (on at 35f and off at 45f) attached to one string of C7 and one string of C9 clear Xmas lights. Also in the enclosure is a 12.5 watt CFL bulb which is always on. The setup does not burn much power at all. This system is capable of keeping the temp inside the enclosure 45f+ above outside temp during the winter (only when needed though) so our usual bottom temps of -15 to -20F are no problem. My palms have been exposed to low/mid teens (f) before/after covering without any problem too.

Jim- I'll get updated pics up here as soon as possible.

Zombie- nice trachy! I'd get it in the ground asap unless you plan to keep it potted this year. You are quickly running out of summer establishment time...

sashaeffer · Post by **sashaeffer** » Mon Jul 18, 2011 5:11 am

mnpalms

Any pics of your palm with winter protection?

Scott/Omaha

mnpalms · Post by **mnpalms** » Mon Jul 18, 2011 9:19 am

Here's a couple from last winter which were still on Photobucket. The planter is triangular, not square fyi. 2x2 pine frame with 1x4 pine supports, and a plywood top. Old bed conforters covering the whole frame, 1/4" bubble wrap insulation covering the outside sealed in with duct tape. Then a tarp (old boat cover) thrown over it for good measure. I insulate around the outside with leaf bags also. This is more than adequate in my z5a climate. I don't think you would need near as much in Omaha. You could probably get away with a tent style greenhouse with one string of C9's and a Thermocube. I used to live in Omaha many years ago and definitely liked the winters there better than here in MN!

<img src=http://i729.photobucket.com/albums/ww29 ... C00766.jpg>

<img src=http://i729.photobucket.com/albums/ww29 ... C00768.jpg>

sashaeffer · Post by **sashaeffer** » Mon Jul 18, 2011 9:40 am

THANKS mnpalms!

Last two winters weren't fun. The one palm I want to get into the ground I'm just leaving in a bucket I transplanted it into (little larger) than the 5 gallon one it came it. I have the whole thing buried in the ground but will pull entire thing out in December? and put in garage to over winter. Garage is insulated, sometimes heated, then may plant directly into the ground early spring 2012. So I'm getting tips and ideas on how to build a structure till then.

Again, Thanks.

zomble · Post by **zomble** » Mon Jul 18, 2011 12:30 pm

mnpalms, thanks,

I am over the excitement now

All thats left is how to best protect it in a possible -13 like we had last year. I triple wrapped the whole plant on the Revoluta but the fronds came out yellow...not good...but Its flushing at the minute.

Yes I will be keeping the Trachicarpus in that pot for this year. I would have planted all my tropical plants but I am waiting for the right bungalow to come up.

Should'nt be too long.