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Coconuts and other tender palms in S. Texas


Xenon

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First the coconuts...

These were taken at a motel in Brownsville (about the same latitude as Miami)...

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with me for scale (I'm 5' 5")

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As you can see, they are still recovering from an arctic blast of February 2011 (afternoon high failed to reach above freezing one day). Luckily, this winter was mild; Brownsville had a very brief dip to 35*F and South Padre did not drop below 40*F.

Nearer the coast, in Port Isabel...

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Edited by Xenon

Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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Now on to the island of South Padre, which is about 30 miles east of Brownsville.

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Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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Some didn't fare as well as others....

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this would've been the tallest coconut on the island if it were alive...

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Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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I was very surprised to see this huge trio of Adonidia!

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smaller double

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these Wodyetia are going to look very nice...

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Even the McDonald's here are tropical!

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Edited by Xenon
  • Upvote 1

Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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Bottle palms...

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Ravenea rivularis (sorry for the blur)

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Thrinax radiata

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Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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Given the survival of those coconuts they could do much better then all those washies I see in the background.

"I was very surprised to see this huge trio of Adonidia" My Adonidia fared much better then my coconuts during our bad cold spell.

Jupiter FL

in the Zone formally known as 10A

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Royal Palms are becoming increasingly common, they seem to be even more popular with new development then Queen palms! They can now be found on almost every street on S. Padre and are also quite common in Brownsville (I even saw some huge newly planted Royals along some public streets).

at UT Brownsville

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there were tons of giant Royals on campus, but couldn't get anymore pics due to time constraints...

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On the bay

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Some huge ones at a hotel on SPI

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Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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Given the survival of those coconuts they could do much better then all those washies I see in the background.

"I was very surprised to see this huge trio of Adonidia" My Adonidia fared much better then my coconuts during our bad cold spell.

This is how the area really looks like lol

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Washies washies washies washies washies washies sabal sabal sabal queen queen royal

:) Jonathan

Edited by Xenon

Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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Very nice. I think once the coconuts or Adonidias reach certain size they stand a better chance. What was the lowest temperature those coconuts experienced?

Frank

 

Zone 9b pine flatlands

humid/hot summers; dry/cool winters

with yearly freezes

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Very nice. I think once the coconuts or Adonidias reach certain size they stand a better chance. What was the lowest temperature those coconuts experienced?

28*F but I think the duration below 32*F did more harm (ocean couldn't help much)...first time SPI dropped below 30*F since 1989.

Feb 2011 History Data for Port Isabel

Jonathan

Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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Thanks for sharing the pics. Have you ever seen a fruiting coconut there?

Yes, 2 summers ago, the first palm on post #2 (didn't know about the others back then). Although it was also after a cold year (32*F), so there weren't many. But I have heard from an email acquaintance that the same palm has set fruit several times. I remember him saying it bore "dozens" of nuts after a normal winter.

Here is an older thread with pics of fruiting coconuts: Coconut Palms in South Texas

The Golden Malayans pictured are no longer there.

:) Jonathan

Edited by Xenon

Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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Jonathan,

Great pix of the cocconuts on SPI. I did not know that there were so many on the island. If you are still at SPI, you can find a red mangrove at the observation deck overlooking the stand of black mangrove just before you leave the island and hit the Queen Isabella causeway. It is growing up against one of the wooden support beams the the observation deck stands on.

Clay

Clay

South Padre Island, Zone 10b until the next vortex.

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Jonathon,I grew up inthe Texas Valley.At that time there were mainly Millions of Washies,Queens and all sorts of Phoenix.The only place to see anything different was at the zoo in Brownsville.The Fort Brown Hotel also had a really lush garden.

El Oasis - beach garden, distinct wet/dry season ,year round 20-38c

Las Heliconias - jungle garden ,800m elevation,150+ inches rainfall, year round 15-28c

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Jonathan,

Great pix of the cocconuts on SPI. I did not know that there were so many on the island. If you are still at SPI, you can find a red mangrove at the observation deck overlooking the stand of black mangrove just before you leave the island and hit the Queen Isabella causeway. It is growing up against one of the wooden support beams the the observation deck stands on.

Clay

Was actually going to go fishing on that observation deck lol, must go see it next time (probably froze back anyway). Thanks for the info!

:) Jonathan

Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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Jonathon,I grew up inthe Texas Valley.At that time there were mainly Millions of Washies,Queens and all sorts of Phoenix.The only place to see anything different was at the zoo in Brownsville.The Fort Brown Hotel also had a really lush garden.

Hmm, I didn't see many Phoenix at all (except pygmy dates). I heard most of the old CIDPs died of a disease...

:) Jonathan

Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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How were the sea grapes doing? I went there during late spring of 2011, and all of the trees were defoliated and coming back from the roots. (on South Padre Island)

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How were the sea grapes doing? I went there during late spring of 2011, and all of the trees were defoliated and coming back from the roots. (on South Padre Island)

The ones in the medians as you enter SPI are looking good, maybe just a little shorter then when I saw them in 2010. There was a tree form sea grape at a bank that only froze back to the main trunk; anywhere where there was a little protection helped a lot too. Same goes for Scheffleras and Delonix regia.

:) Jonathan

Edited by Xenon

Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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