This Palm Tree resource web site is for; the beginning
Palm Tree enthusiast, hobbyists and professionals who have Palm Tree Care
questions, and plant nurseries who want to identify Palm Tree that will
grow in North America to provide their clients with cold hardy palm trees
that can survive the individuals given weather conditions and possibly
warmer or colder microclimates.
"The web site is being developed by a dedicated team
of Palm Tree enthusiasts (non-paid) who want to develop the best Palm
Tree resource on the internet. There will be a lot of work going on here
and our goal is to provide Palm Tree hobbyists and professionals with
a location to provide common palm names and identify the environment the
Palm Tree grows well. The Palm Tree species focus will be North America
including (California, South Carolina, Florida, Texas, Arizona, New York,
Michigan, Canada, Georgia, Colorado, Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia,
Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippipi) and many Palm Tree are grown much further
North.
Palm Tree
Growth in North America
Patrick Malcolm succinctly described the migration of
the Windmill Palm Tree from Europe to the US in the following paragraph
from his article titled:
"From Kew Gardens in England, the Windmill Palm tree
was spread throughout Europe, from the Mediterranean hot climates of Italy
and Greece to a cold hardy testing ground in the landscape gardens of
Switzerland and Bulgaria, where the Windmill Palm trees have remarkably
survived, leaves even remaining green when covered with ice or snow. During
the past seven years, truckloads of Windmill Fan Palm trees have been
transported and planted in Canada and have survived the extreme cold winters
in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, New Jersey, and Michigan."
About the Author:
Written by: Patrick Malcolm. Learn more about Palm and
other Trees by visiting the author's web site: http://www.tytyga.com
Palm Tree Beginning
Windmill Palm Tree
The Palm Tree has been an integral
part of mankind since the discovery of the True Date Palm Tree. And the
Palm Tree still is. Palm Tree planting and growing, depending on the particular
species, provides a living for some of the world's citizens and provides
joyous beauty for other citizens. The majestic Palm Tree species is now
extremely popular for outside palm landscape and container plants. Palm
Tree have pinnate (feather) or fan shape leaves (fronds) providing a variety
of different appearances. A trend in the United States and elsewhere is
the planting and growth of Palm Tree in cooler climate areas. People are
pushing the plant hardiness boundaries and growing Palms further North
in North America than what would have been inconceivable not too long
ago.
Palm Tree Types
David
Chandler, the well known Ezine Article author wrote the
article "The
many Types of Palm Trees" and it reads: "There are
thousands of species of Palm Trees and they are considered to be tropical
in nature, but cold hardy palms may be planted outside without any visible
damage from temperatures as cold as -20°F. You can see this as far north
as Canada and Switzerland. The Palms that survive that kind of weather
may not be considered the most majestic of the species but they are
still a Palm."
I agree with Mr. Chandler, there are a lot of Palm Tree
you wouldn't want to plant and grow in Minnesota (the Canary Island Date
Palm for example) but cold hardy Palm Tree are out their and many are
stunning. There is a lot of conflicting information on Palm Trees on the
internet about where Palms can and can't be grown. If you go to some garden
plant blogs you will see that people are growing and caring for thriving
Palm Tree in far colder landscapes than the USDA Hardiness Zones recommend. I
recommend you go to go to Sun
Palm Trees for a good look at the Palm
Tree Species that will grow in cooler climates.
"Palm trees, like banana trees, give your home and
garden that tropical look, usually found around pools and family recreational
areas. Once established, Palm Trees are relatively maintenance free and
are not significantly bothered by insects and disease."
On the other hand a web site dedicated to healthy commercial
products for Palm Trees quotes,
"Homeowners are presented with unique challenges
when caring for palm trees. To maintain healthy and prosperous palms,
it is essential to understand these challenges and to obtain the tools
necessary to overcome them."
Kerrie Badertscher,
of the Colorado State University Cooperative Extension, Horticulture wrote
in her published article Growing
Palms Indoors
"Are the fronds of your indoor palms turning
brown from the tips up? The first step is to examine the roots. Slip the
pot off of the plant and examine the root structure. If the roots fully
engulf the potting media and even wrap around the inside of the pot, the
palm should be transplanted into a larger container (two inches larger
than the previous one). If the roots have not expanded to the edge of
the container, then it might be that too much water has been applied on
a too frequent basis. Most palms (parlor, Neanthe bella and dwarf mountain
types) need to dry out between watering. If your palm plant is a fishtail
palm, then it needs to be kept moist at all times. So knowing the type
of palm plant is important."
You are never too far North for growing and caring for
indoor potted Palm Tree.
The
Palm Tree Proves Both Right
From my experience they are all right.
I have seen Palm Tree handle cold spells well below suggested cold tolerance
zones and I have seen once very healthy Palm Tree die off quickly.
David
Chandler brought up another interesting point in his aforementioned
article "The
many Types of Palm Trees". David wrote that there were 2 types
of Palm Tree and paraphrasing Mr. Chandler
the first is the Cold Palms (Northern Palms). "Afghanistan
palm - Pakistan Palm and Mazari Palm - This palm may be the coldest hardy
in the world, according to authoritative doctors on the subject of Palms.
Their fruit is also edible and very popular to eat in that impoverished
nation. The tree grows very slowly and thrives in desert conditions." The
article further mentioned the Dwarf Palmetto, Needle Palm Tree, Windmill
Palm Tree and Saw Palmetto in that class of Palm tree. The other half
was the Adapted palms (Southern palms)
The Southern Palms I believe Mr Chandler
refers to are some of the most majestic of the Palm Tree Species. This
type of Palm Tree includes my favorite, the Canary Island Date Palm, as
well as the True Date Palm Tree, Mexican and California Fan Palm trees,
Texas Sabal Palm, Mediterranean Fan and Pindo Palm Tree and I will mention
the Sago even though it is not in the Palm family but a lot of people
believe it is.
A Palm Tree owners manual called; "A
Manual for Growing Palms Outdoors in the Southeast - Compiled
by the Members of The Southeastern Palm and Exotic Plant Society is
a must read for anyone growing Palm Tree in cooler areas. It has valuable
information for Palm Tree care guidelines including tips on planting,
protecting and growing Palm Trees. One Quote from the book especially
rings true about the current culture to push the envelope growing Palms
up North.
"The good news is that palms are for the most
part, deaf and dumb. There are palms happily growing all over the Southeast
in places where they're "not supposed to grow." By choosing
the right types of palms and following a few simple rules, growing palms
can be much easier than growing many common landscape plants. In this
booklet, we'll offer our best advice on how to do these things." expresses
how savvy we have become caring for Palm Trees.
The Palm Tree will continue to Grow North
As this graphic shows, the temperature
has risen over the past 16 years and it has impacted the climate and USDA
Plant Hardiness Zones. If Al Gore is right, we might be able to grow beautiful
Canary Island Date Palms in Minnesota. The following graphic was taken
from data from 1990 to 2006. Hit Play and you can see the changes
and how they may impact the Palm Tree movement into once cooler climates.
Palm Tree in North America
This site is for all Palm enthusiasts or folks dedicated
to Palm Tree growth and care in a professional capacity. The remainder
of the site will provide information to assist with selecting a right
Palm Tree for your climate and growing conditions, how to plant and care
for the Palm, especially in cold winter months. Detailed Palm Pictures
and Descriptions will be accompanied by the Palms cold hardiness.
The Cold Hardy Palm Trees
Below are 12 common types of Palm Tree that
grow in North America. There are many factors that
determine the successful planting and maintaining of a species. Microclimates
and and other environmental factors determine if a garden or landscape
hardy palm will survive in hardiness zones lower than the USDA recommends.
Palm tree protected by other trees and shrubs will tolerate the cold winter
environment easier than if exposed to the full force of the winter cold.
How a Palm Tree handles the winter is partially predetermined by the palm
itself: its age, its height, its slight hereditary differences selected
out over time by the conditions of its environment, and the health of
the Palm at the time of a winter cold snap.
Click
picture for close up view of Palm Trees photos
Click
picture for close up view of Palm Trees photos
