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  2. I'm going to work on it with the one in the ground first. Will show results!
  3. GrumpyGrower started following Hydrolega or Pumice   

  4. Hydrolega or Pumice

    GrumpyGrower replied to Patrick Palms's topic in PALMS IN POTS

    Hello, I use pumice but pure pumice as soil is not enough. I'm using it as a part of potting mix. I would add some more parts (for example lava, perlite, seramis...). I made an evaporate test of pure pumice and it was dry really fastly. You would water your palms every day if you used this as only part of potting mix.   I'm actually trying some new combinations of soil. In the photo is mix of Seramis, zeolite, pumice, lava, perlite, Liapor 1-4mm (=baked clay as ceramsite). Evaporate isn't bad, but I will try add some organical part as pinium bark chips. 
  5. kinzyjr gave positive reputation to a post in a topic: coconuts north of clearwater.   
  6. Today
  7. Gonzer gave positive reputation to a post in a topic: Fish emulsion warning!   
  8. Gonzer gave positive reputation to a post in a topic: Fish emulsion warning!   
  9. Phoenikakias gave positive reputation to a post in a topic: Pritchardia hillebrandii blooming like crazy but not setting fruits   
  10. Matt seems to have a special touch.  I should arrange to visit.  Almost got to San Diego this summer but got terminated by a bad cold.   The Ryukyus are pretty tropical, though Taipei, to the west has an odd climate where it gets cold enough for temperate plants to thrive while tropicals never get frosted.  Mine suffered serious leaf damage at 26º associated with assorted other cold insults (2010-11 was unkind to Carpentaria, Archontophoenix, as well as Dypsis decaryi).  I think California's problem would largely be coastal cool foggy areas.  I think Matt would be above much of that. The photo is of a healthy planted Satakentia on a Ryukyu site unlike the forested slopes where it's native.  
  11. waykoolplantz gave positive reputation to a post in a topic: Raphia Sudanica   
  12. I’ve noticed with Pritchardia that the first couple of flowering attempts result in few fruits. A beccariana in the yard produced 2 and a martii produced 3 viable seeds last year, out of hundreds of flowers. All Pritchardias seem to take at least a year for the fruit to mature, at which time they’ve already begun flowering again. Based on what I’ve seen at other gardens, by the third flowering cycle, they finally seem to really start producing. I think yours looks good & healthy. 
  13. waykoolplantz gave positive reputation to a post in a topic: Buying land in Florida   
  14. DennisK gave positive reputation to a post in a topic: Chamaedorea klotzschiana albino seedling   
  15. The trouble with reducing population is that first you have to deal with an aging population. Once you start up the growth machine it's pretty hard to turn off.
  16. richnorm gave positive reputation to a post in a topic: Palm Oil was supposed to save the planet. Instead, it unleashed a catastrophe.   
  17. Brad Mondel gave positive reputation to a post in a topic: Queen after first winter in Virginia   
  18. Brad Mondel gave positive reputation to a post in a topic: Queen after first winter in Virginia   
  19. Weeeee seeeeeee yoooooooou  LOL!  I have loads to say on this whole general topic, but I wont, largely because it goes far beyond the scope of this forum, and  they are "no-nos".   What I will say is that industry is despicable to me, but then again there are many that are.   As for population control, I have thought about this numerous times over the last couple of decades.  There are two ways of doing it:  Controlling birthrates, and basically killing off some large numbers of people.  If it were to be the latter then we get int o who has to go.  Messy proposition all around.  So we're down to one method (provided of course mother nature / mother earth doesn't take matters into her own hands and kills most of us anyway) and that method is controlling birthrates.   Doesn't china do this already?   I find it very hard to imagine where  some countries would be even willing to think about doing something similar.  At the end of the day I think there are certain, reasonably large, portions of the population that just don't care at all.  They hold the view that the earth belongs to us (it doesn't) and we should use up all we can while were here.  I highly doubt that birthrate control would be anymore palpable to them, than curbing/ curtailing / heavily regulating some industries.  For me, I too have done my part as I have no kids.  I left that to my brother who had 4.  I do are, immensely, but for me I can only care so much as there is only so much that I can do personally.  This problem will long outlive me, and probably most of us.  If im lucky I still have a good 30-40  years left on this planet, and I just don't see any of this getting much better as time goes on.   At this point I just try to enjoy my life as much as possible, while trying to live my live in a way that is least impactful as possible to the planet.     Ive heard some say that we are now living in the great golden age of the human species, and that we are near the end of that age.  It sounds funny and bleak to me, but when you think deeply about things for  a long time, I can see where statements like that probably are at least somewhat accurate.  Maybe not for the next few generations or maybe not even 10, but its hard for me to imagine life on this planet 4,5,600 years from now or more. Its hard to imagine there will be much left of it by then that is functional / workable, given the rate at which we are destroying it.   
  20. Quite so. Quite so. The B.alfredii grows as stagnant as a CIDP, however it looks (after a decade) like a coconut. Even after 14-16+ years , (this is fact folks), no alfie outside of habitat has produced seed. The book is still being written on this precious palm. For all we know, it's a prehistoric palm and it might take several decades for it to seed.  Personally, seed or not, I love its look. Even if it takes 1/3 of the speed to grow of that of a Cocos nucifera. The Alfie is one notch hardier.
  21. Ok good report, seems to be a good candidate for my garden ;)
  22. That is one awesome palm!   The girth on that thing is pretty fantastic too.  Looks amazing!  I gotta say though, that is some pretty slow growth. I def agree it looks to be CIDP slow.   Thanks for posting!    (side note)  I was down in your hood probably back in august and thought  that since were practically neighbors now that we gotta have a beer sometime! haha! 

  23. coconuts north of clearwater.

    DCA_Palm_Fan replied to Mr.SamuraiSword's topic in DISCUSSING PALM TREES WORLDWIDE

    It is pretty amazing to me the very narrow gradient where coconuts just stop/wont/refuse to grow / survive, and, where they flourish here.     Most of those look like crap at best.    Then you have some not too much further south (Gandy Blvd right on Tampa Bay) that were planted im guessing several years back when a business opened there, and they are doing excellent.  There are also great looking and taller ones as far north as  almost clearwater along the coast.  I have  not seen a lot of fruiting going on up there yet though, but there are some fruit on the ones at Gandy Blvd.  There are some in St. Petersburg and surrounds as well, and some do get fairly tall and fruit here and look great. I live about as far south in Pinellas County (Technically within St. Petersburg City Limit) as you can go and not be on an island, and they absolutely FLOURISH here, as if it were Miami.  There are areas down here where there are old, tall to very tall Coconuts that produce seed just as they do in any other pure tropical climate here.  Im about 23 miles or so south of Dunedin.  It is worth noting that I do live on the water and that is where you see the majority of them, especially the large ones.  There are tall fruiting ones in inland areas of Pinellas/ St. Pete that look great too don't get me wrong, just not nearly as many, and not quite as large / spectacular.    The one in the photo below is right at the end of the condo complex I live in. There are quite a few down here, and most are around this size, and they are glorious to see.  To me, St. Pete is basically the northern limit of their range where they will not only grow, but look  good to excellent / perfect.  This one is a prime example of what we can grow here in southern Pinellas / St. Pete, especially on the water.  This one is old, and rather tall, usually loaded with fruit and looks gorgeous!.     

  24. Ficus "lowland" dammaropsis

    Josh-O replied to Josh-O's topic in For Sale

    WOW!!!!! almost sold out. thanks for the strong response and purchases everyone on PT!!!   32 sold and only 8 left. don't hesitate if you want one. this is a holy grail plant that never becomes come available. they will be gone before you know it.    

  25. Buying land in Florida

    NOT A TA replied to NC_Palms's topic in OHANA NUI  -  OFF TOPIC SUB-FORUM

    Want to live in a 10 B zone in S FL? Grow all kinds of cool plants? Landscape in a wide range of challenging micro-climatic conditions. Have other people risk weather related losses instead of you? Earn a good a living without struggling to make mortgage payments for years while waiting for things to grow and building a customer base/reputation? There are areas in S FL where the above average wealth folks live. They're mostly in gated HOA's. A large proportion of the homes have small private courtyards in front of and in back of the residence. These areas are often ignored by everyone.  The "landscapers" (lawn maintenance business) typically don't open the gates or look over the walls unless the home owner asks to have a specific courtyard tree pruned or something along those lines. The rest of the yard is beautiful (to some), the weed free lawn is perfect, no weeds in the planting beds, bushes are sheared to wood stubs, the yard palms are over trimmed (butchered) by the "landscapers", driveways and walks are power washed religiously as are the roofs of the homes. They are examples of over maintenance partly fueled by overzealous HOA inspectors who is some cases actually measure the height of the grass!  Meanwhile the private courtyards are completely unkempt wasted space. Most are either overgrown full of plants that would be referred to as weeds or they're just sprayed with herbicides that kill everything so nothing grows. Yet they could be awesome micro climate gardens. Because they can't be seen from the street (due to walls) by the HOA inspectors in their golf carts the home owners aren't required to do anything with the courtyards. Some of the courtyards are very sunny, hot, and arid due to being on the south side of the home with roof overhangs and gutters that are enclosed by concrete walls that wick moisture from the sand and release it to the atmosphere. While others might never get direct sunlight and be inundated with roof runoff and poor drainage every rainfall. There's all kinds of courtyard areas between the extremes. There's an opportunity for someone to operate a business catering to just these small areas with unusual micro climates. A company could provide landscape design and maintenance of these areas. Think small jungle like habitats or desert type plantings, perhaps waterfalls, ponds, special lighting, etc. etc. etc.   I can foresee people easily spending 5 - 20 thousand to landscape a courtyard and then spending for routine maintenance. These homes are owned by people with $200,000 worth of cars in the driveway because their garage is full of Jet skis, expensive bicycles, motorcycles etc. that they don't feel like keeping in their rented area at a local storage facility with their motor homes, 4 X 4'S, air boats & other "stuff".   They have a cleaning service, a pool maintenance service, an exterminator service, a AC system service, a power washing service, an irrigation service,  a handyman service, heck, I've even seen a service that goes out to homes and removes the lint from clothes dryer ducts!!!! You don't need lots of land or lots of inventory. A truck, trailer, some tools and a small inventory of showy unusual/exotic plants. Everything else you buy as needed, deliver, install, and then maintain. Typical plants you buy wholesale from local growers. For things like lighting, irrigation, waterfalls, ponds, etc you work with outside contractors you hire as sub contractors and make a profit from. There aren't even any rocks here so you can sell rocks!    "I've got a beautiful white marble boulder I bought yesterday on the truck. When I was working in your courtyard I started thinking one like it would really compliment your Betyacancan plant by the Orchid trellis, would you like to see it?" So the customer gets a really cool outside amenity to their home that adds to daily life while also increasing value of the home. You get to design and maintain really cool gardens in S FL extremely varied micro climates where you can grow very exotic and expensive plants while getting paid to do it. If there's a huge frost or hurricane you get paid to fix it instead of losing money.  Once you do a job in a neighborhood, you'll do more because of the "keeping up with the Jones's thing". It's more recession proof than being a grower because the customers aren't affected as much as the general population and construction companies.  Find out who the "niche" hobby growers are in the area and buy from them. We're in neighborhoods all over the place with back yards full of plants we'd love to sell. And we know others who grow stuff we don't. "Want a Jack fruit or Costa Apple tree that'll fruit in a year or two? My next door neighbor probably has some." If I were a young man, I would do this. If you come over to the East side during your next trip to FL, send me a PM and I'll take you to these kind of HOA's and show you what I'm talking about.    

  26. Identify help please

    MrClappyHands replied to MrClappyHands's topic in PALMS IN POTS

    Great, thank you. That's what I was thinking, but was hoping for second opinion!

  27. Anti Freeze

    NC_Palms replied to NC_Palms's topic in COLD HARDY PALMS

    I never knew it existed until a few weeks back when It was I saw an advertisement 
  28. Brian F. Austin started following Butia x Parajubaea Cocoides   

  29. Erythrina humeana seed

    Marius replied to Marius's topic in Freebies

    Hi Dave. Not yet. I’ll let you know when they arrive. 

  30. Anti Freeze

    DCA_Palm_Fan replied to NC_Palms's topic in COLD HARDY PALMS

    LOL!   This stuff is STILL around?    I remember when that was the hot topic for a while but wow it was years ago.  This thread gave me a good chuckle for sure!  HA! 
  31. Blasting palm trunks with sprinkler water, as Moose noted, can be damaging.  To some extent, you can remedy that by changing sprinkler heads or otherwise redesigning the system.  

  32. Brahea armata canyons by drone

    Brian F. Austin replied to GMann's topic in DISCUSSING PALM TREES WORLDWIDE

    Great video! I want some of those Brahea seeds. I only noticed 2 or 3 trees growing here in Austin and they are very unique in their silver blue fronds.

  33. Queen after first winter in Virginia

    DCA_Palm_Fan replied to SEVA's topic in COLD HARDY PALMS

    It looks so sad and forlorn with all the snow on it.  I hope it survives for you again.  How many new fronds did it push out this warm season?   As for the snapped new frond, Queens seem to be prone to that with high winds, or at least some do.  Ive seen it quite a few times down here.  I wish that they were not as widely used here because too often they're placed in spaces where they don't do well and are also neglected, and just look like crap.  Then there are the ones that are placed properly in the right soil conditions and taken care of and they look like totally different trees and are gorgeous!   Good luck this winter!  Look forward to seeing how it does!  

  34. Sabal minors in Central OK

    DCA_Palm_Fan replied to Dave_OK's topic in COLD HARDY PALMS

    They look GREAT!!!!   Is that a Trachycarpus that I see in the background? Whatever it is looks very healthy too!  Nice job!  Welcome to PalmTalk! 

  35. Fish emulsion warning!

    sgvcns replied to Gonzer's topic in OHANA NUI  -  OFF TOPIC SUB-FORUM

    Would have killed a coconut
  36. Does anyone that has purchased recently have the latest list?

  37. How Bout a 'Color' thread?

    palmfriend replied to realarch's topic in DISCUSSING PALM TREES WORLDWIDE

    Hello there, one of my young C.macrocarpas... I am looking forward to its growth.   best regards - Lars  

  38. Savannah, Georgia

    Alicehunter2000 replied to GaDawg's topic in COLD HARDY PALMS

    Very pretty area....reminds me a bit of New Orleans with its Southern charm. I could see where Livistonia decipiens, nitida, saribus, australias, chinensis and mules should be planted more to complement these established species.
  39. So I realize this is not a real variety....but I wanted to distinguish what I am looking for as opposed to the regular run-of-the-mill "azul" .  If you have ever visited the coastal area of Florida from Melbourne (Merritt Island) down to Sebastian Inlet, you know that the area has vast areas ofvery silver Serenoa repens. If you look at these stands of native palms you can see that some are even more silver/white than average. I would like to purchase seeds/ plants that exhibit these "Ultra Silver" traits. Thanks
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