Ceroxylon quindiuense

[Matt in SD]

I have a C quindiuense that I grew from a 2 leaf seedling about 6-7 years ago (gift from Steve in San Diego). It has been trouble free and pretty tough, other than you do have to watch out for spider mites. It's been in the ground for about two years now in light shade, always looks perfect. It's a good 15g sized plant now. This photo is about a year old. Really seems like an easy grow in SoCal as far as I can tell.

[pogobob]

Very overlooked palms for California, probably due to the fact that they are pest magnets in greenhouse culture and heat sensitive. They grow troublefree outside and will be a great addition to our new garden in Oceanside.

[Bags]

Mine did not make it one summer. We had a few days around 90F in August 2008 that killed it.

Some of large Ravaneas have a similar look to Ceroxylons, being large palms with upright fronds, and they seem to perform better in SoCal. If anyone has seen Dypsis Dean's SoCal yard they know what I mean. Aaron

[Jim in Los Altos]

Mine did not make it one summer. We had a few days around 90F in August 2008 that killed it.

Some of large Ravaneas have a similar look to Ceroxylons, being large palms with upright fronds, and they seem to perform better in SoCal. If anyone has seen Dypsis Dean's SoCal yard they know what I mean. Aaron

Aaron, My C. quindiuence has experienced many 90+ degree days and has seen a maximum of 107F on a freak weather day three years ago and has never looked stressed. It may be that you had extremely low humidity along with the heat when yours croaked. You might try planting one in an area surrounded by lots of foliage and overhead canopy and a wind break would help if you have Santa Ana winds.

[Mr Rare]

[i have had good success with growing Ceroxylon in Vista, Ca. I have four species planted out and the largest are quindiuense. These have been in the ground for ten years and have leaves approx. 8~9'tall. I have been told that they speed up once a trunk is formed . I am hopefull I am only a few years from several forming trunks. Most are in very bright light to full sun.

Jeffry Brusseau

" Cuesta Linda"

[JasonD]

To be honest, I don't know where I got this photo. It may have been from a colleague who visited Colombia.

[AJQ]

I have a "Quindy" and I am debating whether to plant it out or not??

I had it indoors a while where it was reasonably warm and grew well but then seemed to get Mealys after about a year, so I have had it in it's pot outside for a year now including winter unprotected and "Nuked it" with Provado Bug Killer. I had to give regular applications of this and could not really do this indoors.......

It seems to have survived outside OK i think it is a "small 5 Gallon but fully pinnate, although not as large as some of the ones I see posted here????

So do I plant it as I think the moist humid coastal conditions here would probably be more beneficial to bringing it in doors again, with the risk of more Mealys attacking it? I guess the Provado and colder temps may well have seen them off?

I know Rafael had problem with meals on his Quindys in Portugal but his temps there are probably a lot higher than mine, which may explain why his Mealy problem was worse than mine?

I think my Temp range here is probably OK however, I was surprised find that my Average rainfall was not as much as I thought. only 900mm a year a opposed the 1800mm that supposedly Ceroxylons prefer ??? It surely is wet enough here anyway.

SO BIG Question is if I plant it what soil would be best, I have rich Clay / Loam.

Regards Andy.

[richnorm]

SO BIG Question is if I plant it what soil would be best, I have rich Clay / Loam.

Regards Andy.

Andy, they do fine here on heavy clay so your soil is the least of your challenges!

cheers

Richard

[AJQ]

Thanks for the Info Richard, I'll go ahead and plant it shortly then.

Regards Andy.

[Mandrew968]

Such a cool Genus! I am glad to hear the Kiwis are growing these palms, as they should--IMO this genus should be grown where ever it can be.

[JasonD]

As long as you can protect it from temperatures below 28F it should be pretty happy with foggy, drizzly, cool, moist, clay-soil conditions. Get your hands on a Ceroxylon parvifrons, the highest-altitude species, for a hardier and faster-to-trunk species.

[Rafael]

I have a "Quindy" and I am debating whether to plant it out or not??

I had it indoors a while where it was reasonably warm and grew well but then seemed to get Mealys after about a year, so I have had it in it's pot outside for a year now including winter unprotected and "Nuked it" with Provado Bug Killer. I had to give regular applications of this and could not really do this indoors.......

It seems to have survived outside OK i think it is a "small 5 Gallon but fully pinnate, although not as large as some of the ones I see posted here????

So do I plant it as I think the moist humid coastal conditions here would probably be more beneficial to bringing it in doors again, with the risk of more Mealys attacking it? I guess the Provado and colder temps may well have seen them off?

I know Rafael had problem with meals on his Quindys in Portugal but his temps there are probably a lot higher than mine, which may explain why his Mealy problem was worse than mine?

I think my Temp range here is probably OK however, I was surprised find that my Average rainfall was not as much as I thought. only 900mm a year a opposed the 1800mm that supposedly Ceroxylons prefer ??? It surely is wet enough here anyway.

SO BIG Question is if I plant it what soil would be best, I have rich Clay / Loam.

Regards Andy.

Hi Andy,

Concerning to meals, i cant see them anymore where they were thriving (at my main house, near the beach).Maybe winter has killed them. Or not...

Meanwhile, i have another space (you can check it here: http://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=31527) where i have planted ceroxylon alpinum (pinnate leaves, but still small) and parvifrons (seedling). The soil has lots of old pieces of sandy concrete and other old rocks, from the old houses there, and has also some clay, but still is a good draining soil.

I am glad you still have the quindio, mine are gone, due to the mealy bug, which has also affected too many other palms.

REGARDS, RAFAEL

[KiwiPalmGuy]

Hey Guys. I know this is an old thread. How are those Ceroxylon parvifrons's  of yours doing? It would be good to see some updated pictures. I have just ordered 5 seeds and hoping to receive them soon. I am in New Zealand (Wellington), so hoping they will do OK down here. Any tips on germination? 

[richnorm]

1 hour ago, KiwiPalmGuy said:

Hey Guys. I know this is an old thread. How are those Ceroxylon parvifrons's  of yours doing? It would be good to see some updated pictures. I have just ordered 5 seeds and hoping to receive them soon. I am in New Zealand (Wellington), so hoping they will do OK down here. Any tips on germination? 

Welcome to Palmtalk.  There is a fantastic specimen at the botanic gardens in New Plymouth that has seen snow!  Should do well in Welly but are extremely hard to find and to my bitter experience often mis-labelled, even as seed.  Where did you order the seeds from?  cheers Richard

[KiwiPalmGuy]

23 hours ago, richnorm said:

Welcome to Palmtalk.  There is a fantastic specimen at the botanic gardens in New Plymouth that has seen snow!  Should do well in Welly but are extremely hard to find and to my bitter experience often mis-labelled, even as seed.  Where did you order the seeds from?  cheers Richard

Hi Richard, thanks for the pointer to the botanical garden in New Plymouth. I will definitely pay it a visit next time I go through there. 

I ordered my seeds from a garden center in the UK that specializes in rare palm seeds.  

[SoulofthePlace]

I am in the Azores with a weird climate that has lack of heat/cold. I had 14 germinated seeds of CQ@RPS this summer and placed them into small pots with soil. Used some nursery pots and some juice containers with multiple holes drilled, of course. Placed them next to a south facing concrete wall. Lost about 3 and other 3 did not grow above soil level yet. June was much warmer (25-27C) than July (18-23C) this year. Have 8 nice little "seedlings" so far of about 1/4" tall. Thought sun has damaged them so I covered them partially with a "green gardening fence net" for partial shade.

Edited July 28, 2018 by SoulofthePlace
Back in the USSR

[Darold Petty]

Ceroxylons don't tolerate full sun as seedling plants.  They have evolved to grow up though a dense forest canopy. This is why they have a shuttlecock profile initially and only develop a hemispherical crown upon maturity.   Photographs of Ceroxylon in Colombia show mature palms, but no juveniles, as the original forest has been destroyed for cattle pasture.

Here are photographs of intact habitat of C. vogelianum in southern Ecuador on a section of the Inca Trail still in use by the local residents.

[SoulofthePlace]

Photo of the CQ seedlings. The quality of SONY DSC-F717 camera ($1000) which does not seem to be able to take upclose photos.

[SoulofthePlace]

On 28/07/2018, 15:45:15, Darold Petty said:

Ceroxylons don't tolerate full sun as seedling plants.  They have evolved to grow up though a dense forest canopy. This is why they have a shuttlecock profile initially and only develop a hemispherical crown upon maturity.   Photographs of Ceroxylon in Colombia show mature palms, but no juveniles, as the original forest has been destroyed for cattle pasture.

Here are photographs of intact habitat of C. vogelianum in southern Ecuador on a section of the Inca Trail still in use by the local residents.

Too bad the juveniles are gone. Reminds me of the low birth rate problem in the west. Hang on to your pets... I am at 6 remaining alive now after receiving 14. Hope to raise all 6 now that I placed them in a more shaded area and one indoors.

[Alberto]

My oldest C. quindiuensis

[Meangreen94z]

Has anyone else confirmed if they are hardier/not hardier than the 28*F mentioned above. I’ve read hardier elsewhere.

[Meangreen94z]

No one?

[Ben in Norcal]

16 minutes ago, Meangreen94z said:

No one?

I can't comment on cold, but your problem (and mine) will be heat.  I've tried many times and seldom to they survive a summer here.

[Jim in Los Altos]

It's not gone below 32F here since 2007 but in 2007 we had a low of 26.5F and my C. quindiuence had not a single damaged leaflet. It was pretty small and exposed too. It's now about 9' tall but still trunkless. It's very lush and happy. Growth is quite slow on these. C. alpinum is much faster for me. 

[Meangreen94z]

Thanks. I’ve read multiple comments that they don’t like heat, but have also seen a few other people claim they’ve handled above 100*F in dry areas. Maybe they’re confused on what they have?

[Ben in Norcal]

14 minutes ago, Meangreen94z said:

Thanks. I’ve read multiple comments that they don’t like heat, but have also seen a few other people claim they’ve handled above 100*F in dry areas. Maybe they’re confused on what they have?

Not one Ceroxylon will survive here long term.  Don't listen to anyone who tells you some are more heat tolerant than others (e.g. Amazonicum.)  They're not.  They'll fold sooner or later.

[Ben in Norcal]

18 minutes ago, Meangreen94z said:

Thanks. I’ve read multiple comments that they don’t like heat, but have also seen a few other people claim they’ve handled above 100*F in dry areas. Maybe they’re confused on what they have?

By the way, I hate to dissuade anyone from trying something, so go for it.  But - your summer highs (average) are above mine, and you don't even get the nighttime cooling that I do.  It's a genus that I've pretty much given up on - I'm a crappy enough grower at the best of times!  Every summer I lose at least half of the Ceroxylon I have in pots and in ground. 

One option would be to keep them in pots and move inside in summer.

[Tyrone]

I’ve come to the conclusion that Ceroxylon do not like any sun to hit the pot especially if it’s black which raises soil temps and essentially kills the plant. They need almost full shade in pots when young and likely do better in the ground with a thick layer of moist mulch to keep the roots cool.

[Meangreen94z]

Thanks

Edited June 17, 2019 by Meangreen94z

[Mr Rare]

It has been several years since my last update on this species.

The below two images are both C.  quindiuense growing at Cuesta Linda.

Both palms were planted as five gallon plants approx. twenty two years ago.

Both are situated with a south east exposure and get full sun most of the time.

[SoulofthePlace]

32 minutes ago, Mr Rare said:

It has been several years since my last update on this species.

The below two images are both C.  quindiuense growing at Cuesta Linda.

Both palms were planted as five gallon plants approx. twenty two years ago.

Both are situated with a south east exposure and get full sun most of the time.

You live in a Palmradise.

[pete21]

superb palms, when i think i was in sd, vista, three rivers and mendocino....i missed it

Edited January 11, 2020 by pete21

[LA Palm King]

Those Ceroxylon quindiuense are in Pacific Palisades? Are they visible from the street? Also does anyone know of any other specimens in the LA area? 
I've seen pictures of one in the Huntington Gardens, though the latest pic I've seen of it was from 2008.