Carpoxylon macrospermum planting location?

[Kostas]

Hello!

I got a Carpoxylon macrospermum to try growing in my garden and I would like your advise on planting location. Sunny/shady,canopy or not(no canopy means frost at my place and most probably some damage,but it depends on how sensitive it is and how much it's affected from that damage). How much sun can they handle as 30-50cm tall plants?

What's the secret of success with this species in areas getting a couple nights of below 0C temperatures?

Thank you very much in advance!

[virtualpalm]

Mine took 28F with only a little leaf spotting. It can tolerate full sun even at a young age, but frost would be very bad so bright light under a high canopy would be best.

[Kostas]

Thank you very much Jody! That is great to hear!!! Your Carpoxylon is an inspiration!

I have a spot in mind fitting those criteria,getting a good amount of sun while under tallish Trachycarpus canopy and soon Bismarckia canopy(which will reduce the light for some years but as both grow taller,sun will increase again)

Is Carpoxylon more sensitive to frost than Dictyosperma album var. rubrum or about the same?

Thank you very much in advance!

[virtualpalm]

I don't know for sure about the rubrum variety, but Carpoxylon is more sensitive than typical Dictyosperma.

[Kostas]

Thanks Jody! I asked because Dictyosperma doesn't seem too much affected from frost,just spots as a young palm so far. More sensitive than Cryosophila warscewiczii or Pritchardia schattaueri? Than Veitchia joannis?

[Peter Pacific]

Hi Kostas, I have a few of these in the ground in full sun and they're fine, as long as you give them enough water. The ones at Nong Nooch were in full sun too and were gorgeous. Good Luck.

Peter

[Zeeth]

Thanks Jody! I asked because Dictyosperma doesn't seem too much affected from frost,just spots as a young palm so far. More sensitive than Cryosophila warscewiczii or Pritchardia schattaueri? Than Veitchia joannis?

I had Dictyosperma go undamaged through 2010, so I think that Carpoxylon is likely much more tender. I know Matt Bradford has had luck with Carpoxylon in California, so you might be able to do it.

[MattyB]

In my climate I found that Carpoxylon could not take full all day sun, even after several years of trying to acclimate it. So, I grew up a canopy above it. It takes several hours of full sun, just not all day. So, if you have a tall tree on the west side of it so that it goes into afternoon shade that would probably be ideal.

[Kostas]

Thank you very much for your replies Peter,Keith and Matty! Much appreciated information!

Keith,great to hear Dictyosperma did great for you through the bad winter of 2010! How cold did it see back then?

Peter and Matty,that sounds quite good for sun tolerance! The spot I have in mind is part day sun during the noon-afternoon and after Bismarckia grows a bit more,only early morning and late afternoon sun till Carpoxylon emerges from the olive trees to the east,at which point it will have morning sun. At this spot it shouldn't get frost(has Trachycarpus canopy) but it may be exposed to cold eastern winds once it emerges from the olives,though these are not common. It will always have overhead canopy from Trachycarpus and Bismarckia.

Another spot I have in mind gets morning-early noon sun but has no overhead canopy at the moment(I am growing canopy though since I started the garden but the main trees are primary rainforest trees and thus slow.....). Pritchardia schattaueri and Dictyosperma album are within a few meters,also without canopy,and they have been doing great(just spot from frost) but Veitchia joannis defoliated as a young palm(non acclimated though) even in this past mild winter. This spot will eventually be quite sheltered and under tall canopy but for now no canopy(maybe just a little from tall native plants("beautiful weeds")and from a banana that should grow big this summer) and frost happens. Don't know what's best but I may go with the first spot unless you say otherwise.

Here is a photo of my Carpoxylon macrospermum!

[Kostas]

And here it is, planted in the ground!

Hope it does well and survives long term!

[Patrick Palms]

I am right in thinking that Carpoxylon grows easily in zone 10b taking odd winter lows of 10b ?

[Kostas]

Yes,definitely!

[LilikoiLee]

Aloha Kostas,

We have three growing in our garden which is on the hot and dry side of the Big Island. They were 4' - 5' when we planted them in late 2009. All three are planted in very little soil. The first one is basically sitting on the roots of a giant silver oak tree where there are no more than 6” of soil. The middle one is in approximately a foot of soil. We were able to plant the third one in an area that has a rich soil fill. Tallest is now 15'. The shortest in about 12'

Two of the three are in bright sun. The other one is under the Oak tree and in semi shade. The average temperature here is about 82 degrees in the day time. Our annual rainfall is about 40” inches so I water them every couple weeks. They've only been fertilized once.....about a year ago.

None of them has ever had a problem; they are very hardy, totally majestic and one of our favorite palms. Go for it!

Here’s a picture of one of ours.

Mike and Lee

[comic097]

Hello!

I got a Carpoxylon macrospermum to try growing in my garden and I would like your advise on planting location. Sunny/shady,canopy or not(no canopy means frost at my place and most probably some damage,but it depends on how sensitive it is and how much it's affected from that damage). How much sun can they handle as 30-50cm tall plants?

What's the secret of success with this species in areas getting a couple nights of below 0C temperatures?

Thank you very much in advance!

Kostas I have mine under canopy mate, It does get abit of the afternoon sun but not much, I don't recon mine would beable to handle full sun here at the moment, we got down to 3 degrees this year in our winter, and can get upto the 40 degree mark in our summers. mine gets a drink a couple of times a week, so far it seems happy

Edited September 30, 2014 by comic097

[Kennybenjamin]

I am in the same climate as comic has mentioned in the post above. I have 1 in full sun and 1 in a shadier position, the palm in full sun gets burnt every summer and is already showing signs of sun stress 1 month into our spring. The shadier specimen is ( so far ) much nicer than the sun one. Mine are a little larger than comic's picture above.

I would never ever suggest a full sun position for a palm of your size in our climate, sorry but I have not researched your climate before posting this.

Great palm species though so take care of it!

[KrisKupsch]

I tried three, one in full sun grew until conditions became drier and cooler, it died suffering much leaf burn too. Another in the nursery died in much the same way, being in full sun and when winter arrived and the humidity dropped, it died. The third planted later after realising full sun wasnt working for me, was positioned in part shade with lots of water, planted near my Licuala section, has grown perfectly fine with no damage in winter at all. I understand people say full sun is ok for them, but thats not what I found. Planting my third in part shade was ideal and I dont think the first died from being too dry. I suggest a position where it will receive 20-50% shade for 3 years and when it grows taller will be in the full sun. A good way to loose $ when planting from 300mm pots and they cost $50 each.

[realarch]

Good luck Kostas, I hope it grows well for you.

Full sun in Hilo is a totally different animal. I've got two planted in full sun and they have never shown signs of burn or stress. Our year round high humidity and rainfall must be the difference.

Tim

[Peter Pacific]

Hi Kostas, how are you doing with your Carpoxylons? I have five in the ground, all the seeds were germinated here on the property and I'm not sure if that makes a difference. Two, in very hot full sun in the new garden which is all sand and no canopy, and, are doing ok, but it's been a steady rainy season so we'll see how they fare in the dry season. Three in my garden and of these two are in filtered sun and are doing great and the third that is in a little more sun is smaller with more compact seeds.

Lee, that is a beautiful palm you have there.

Peter

[Peter Pacific]

more compact leaves...not seeds. My edit tab was not cooperating.

[KennyRE317]

In my climate I found that Carpoxylon could not take full all day sun, even after several years of trying to acclimate it. So, I grew up a canopy above it. It takes several hours of full sun, just not all day. So, if you have a tall tree on the west side of it so that it goes into afternoon shade that would probably be ideal.

Matty do you have new photos of your Carpoxylon? i remembered last year when you showed a photo of it it was really starting to move

[aussiearoids]

Mine gets shaded for part of the day and is protected by several large Alcantareas .. was slow to start but now looks great .

Had another only a few meters away that died .

[Kostas]

Thank you very much for all the great information and for sharing photos of your Carpoxylon! They are beauties!

Here is mine entering its first winter in the ground

It grew a new leaf and a spear all these past months and seems more robust than when I planted it. It's still pushing and is about to open the spear now. It gets filtered sun for part of the day and shade the rest of the time and in summer, it was getting some full sun for an hour or two as well and it didn't burn(it was on the verge of light scorching though on the most exposed leaf area). So far so good, but the coming months will be the true test. Hope it passes winter unscathed

[MattyB]

In my climate I found that Carpoxylon could not take full all day sun, even after several years of trying to acclimate it. So, I grew up a canopy above it. It takes several hours of full sun, just not all day. So, if you have a tall tree on the west side of it so that it goes into afternoon shade that would probably be ideal.

Matty do you have new photos of your Carpoxylon? i remembered last year when you showed a photo of it it was really starting to move

Mine is about 7' tall now

[Kostas]

Looking good Matty!

Is the yellowing from sun or cold?

[MattyB]

must be sun because it's been like that all summer

[Stevetoad]

Dude! that l.decora has gone super sonic! last time i saw it it was just starting to trunk i thought and that wasnt long ago.

[Kostas]

Seems unfazed then! Getting to be very impressive!!!

And your H. laugenicaulis behind is getting huge! Awesome!

[Josh-O]

In my climate I found that Carpoxylon could not take full all day sun, even after several years of trying to acclimate it. So, I grew up a canopy above it. It takes several hours of full sun, just not all day. So, if you have a tall tree on the west side of it so that it goes into afternoon shade that would probably be ideal.

Matty do you have new photos of your Carpoxylon? i remembered last year when you showed a photo of it it was really starting to move

Mine is about 7' tall now

As always, looking good Matty!!

[oliver]

Kostas, I have several doing well here in South Texas, but they are in areas where the soil is always wet. The one that gets full sun is bigger. We have had some 33-35F temps in the last 5 years which has not affected them. My only concern for you, going by your pictures, is that you have left your seedling not much room. I think that the walls surrounding it might not be able to handle it if it truly does take off.

[oliver]

My bigger one has an 18" footprint. Almost as big as a Royal palm at that age - if not bigger.

[Kostas]

Thank you very much for your reply and advise Olivier!

Great to hear yours are doing well there! The soil stays wet here too for 9months of the year but during the summer the water table retreats as the rains cease, and i have to irrigate. It was irrigated the past summer but due to root competition with Trachycarpus, maybe it didn't get as much as it would like as growth has been on the slow side for what i would expect. But it was its first growing season, its establishing so it should better fend for itself next summer if it survives ok. I will also up the water a bit for it then.

The patio is 28'' wide(the patio ''walls'' you see only go 20cm down in the soil, they are there for ''looks'', don't hold anything), so based on the footprint of yours and the Carpoxylon specimen i saw in Florida, it should fit but if it doesn't, i will be happy to just widen the patio for it!

[Mike in Nelson]

So this palm can grow outside the tropics then? I was of the understanding it is a strict zone 11?