with all the work we do to our gardens, any plans on moving?

[KennyRE317]

a bunch of our friends have recently, within the last few years, purchased homes and everyone starts talking about what type of work they still need to do and what they'd like to do down the line .... one thing that's rarely ever mentioned is the yard. my wife talks about all the work i've personally done to the yard and how much time i've invested in the garden, she always jokingly says that this is why we'll never move even though we're both in our 30's. Fortunately we live in a great neighborhood with great schools for our son, in a home we won't outgrow and the only real fault is the smaller yardspace but in general she's pretty much right on target. If we did do a bunch of interior remodeling i don't think i'd have near the attachment to the home as i do now.

I'm wondering who else feels the same way about all the work you've done to your yards that it'd be so hard to leave. would you leave? who's staying in their homes up to their last days? Even if i wanted more tropical i'd probably end up buying a piece of property in Hawaii as a vacation home rather than pickup and permanently move. perhaps things will change when i get closer to retirement but i'm still quite awhile away from that point

planting a small palm now and having it take 10 years to trunk and when it finally does would you go?

Edited September 18, 2014 by KennyRE317

[Palmdude]

I've had lots of gardens, I always sort of miss them when I move but by that point there's usually a lot of garden and I'm sort of relieved not to have to take care of it anymore then I go somewhere else and do it all over again. I do always wonder what a garden would look like if I had it for like 20 years or so.

[Mauna Kea Cloudforest]

Why would you want to move if you are creating your own little Shangri La? This is totally understandable.

[KennyRE317]

Why would you want to move if you are creating your own little Shangri La? This is totally understandable.

for a better climate

[Jim in Los Altos]

Half the fun in having my home and garden here where it is is the shock value it has since most people who I invite to see it or others who just come upon it are kind of in awe because it's SO different from what is typical around here. To me, this hobby or passion would not be as satisfying if I were in Hawaii or South Florida. I like surprising people and listening to their reactions. It's one of the reasons I spend a ton of time and sometimes money with things like Halloween displays. My plan is to stay here 'til the very end.

[SailorBold]

I just assume keep it.... and roll it. I could be happy anywhere even as a renter as long as I could plant a palm or some other cool plant !

[_Keith]

I am building my current garden to "retire and expire" in. God willing, I will be able to keep that commitment.

[Rafael]

I have spent too much € and time in my yards i cant imagine moving from any of my 2 houses. Besides that the best is yet to come, palms will grow and increase the pleasure to own them. I have already thought about selling my first house (which i am paying to the bank) but i will never be able to do it, it would be frustrating to watch a stranger taking (or not) care or changing the yard...

[Justin]

I had always assumed I'd stay in my Vista home forever, and I suppose I still might. But I will say I don't feel nearly as attached to it now as 5-10 years ago, and part of that is because I don't actually go in the yard near as much as I used to. For me personally, building the garden is fun, whilst maintaining the garden is more of a chore. In the past 3.5 years, I've probably planted 150-200 palms in Pahoa, and 1 in Vista.

[Matt in OC]

I'm planning on staying in this house for a long, long time and my garden is pretty young. I've gotten to start from scratch in several ways.

That being said, I've thought about how I would feel if we moved to a bigger/better house and/or climate. I realized that, for me, the fun is really in the work. I love seeing palms get bigger. I love planting and the design part of it. Maybe I'll feel different once I actually finish (if ever) and have more specimens, but for me, the work is the fun.

[_Keith]

I have spent too much € and time in my yards i cant imagine moving from any of my 2 houses. Besides that the best is yet to come, palms will grow and increase the pleasure to own them. I have already thought about selling my first house (which i am paying to the bank) but i will never be able to do it, it would be frustrating to watch a stranger taking (or not) care or changing the yard...

I'm planning on staying in this house for a long, long time and my garden is pretty young. I've gotten to start from scratch in several ways.

That being said, I've thought about how I would feel if we moved to a bigger/better house and/or climate. I realized that, for me, the fun is really in the work. I love seeing palms get bigger. I love planting and the design part of it. Maybe I'll feel different once I actually finish (if ever) and have more specimens, but for me, the work is the fun.

[Pip]

I plan on staying in my house for a very long time. I'm currently a full time student so lack the funds to make my garden happen quickly. But I enjoy what I have managed to achieve so far

[KennyRE317]

I am building my current garden to "retire and expire" in. God willing, I will be able to keep that commitment.

i'm with you on this one

[Tassie_Troy1971]

Half the fun in having my home and garden here where it is is the shock value it has since most people who I invite to see it or others who just come upon it are kind of in awe because it's SO different from what is typical around here. To me, this hobby or passion would not be as satisfying if I were in Hawaii or South Florida. I like surprising people and listening to their reactions. It's one of the reasons I spend a ton of time and sometimes money with things like Halloween displays. My plan is to stay here 'til the very end.

Jim you hit the nail on the head as this is what it is like for me as most Tasmanian gardens are based on Either English roses , camileias , or NZ flax and yuccas so an extensive palm garden is quite a novelty for visitors . No way i would ever move

[Walter John]

Circumstances change, priorities change, moving house is part of life. Starting your garden all over is an opportunity to do it differently,maybe better with learning from mistakes. A lot more fun.

NO IT'S NOT, it's depressing and sad. Lol

[Really full garden]

I have moved many times in my life and have had gardens in several countries.I always look forward to the next thing.I don't look back. I sometimes think it would be nice to downsize.It is difficult to maintain two large gardens even when I have gardeners to help.

[Mandrew968]

Half the fun in having my home and garden here where it is is the shock value it has since most people who I invite to see it or others who just come upon it are kind of in awe because it's SO different from what is typical around here. To me, this hobby or passion would not be as satisfying if I were in Hawaii or South Florida. I like surprising people and listening to their reactions. It's one of the reasons I spend a ton of time and sometimes money with things like Halloween displays. My plan is to stay here 'til the very end.

Jim, I get that same response and it is a satisfying one--Don't know why you think because I am in South Florida that we wouldn't get that--despite living in a prime place to grow palms, most people think it begins and ends with a coconut tree. What my garden has to offer would 'wow' most any plant lover, especially if you are into palms.

My biggest responses though, are 'why do you wanna live in a jungle?' or 'where is all of your grass?' or, ' I don't like palms'. Which is why I don't like people

[Mandrew968]

a bunch of our friends have recently, within the last few years, purchased homes and everyone starts talking about what type of work they still need to do and what they'd like to do down the line .... one thing that's rarely ever mentioned is the yard. my wife talks about all the work i've personally done to the yard and how much time i've invested in the garden, she always jokingly says that this is why we'll never move even though we're both in our 30's. Fortunately we live in a great neighborhood with great schools for our son, in a home we won't outgrow and the only real fault is the smaller yardspace but in general she's pretty much right on target. If we did do a bunch of interior remodeling i don't think i'd have near the attachment to the home as i do now.

I'm wondering who else feels the same way about all the work you've done to your yards that it'd be so hard to leave. would you leave? who's staying in their homes up to their last days? Even if i wanted more tropical i'd probably end up buying a piece of property in Hawaii as a vacation home rather than pickup and permanently move. perhaps things will change when i get closer to retirement but i'm still quite awhile away from that point

planting a small palm now and having it take 10 years to trunk and when it finally does would you go?

My wife says we will never move--we too have the nice neighborhood and are close to family. I say I won't be content until I have a tropical mountain top like Pedro, Dean or Cindy. I tell my wife we will rent our place out--by that time, the garden will be stable and everything pretty maintenance free for the tenants, meaning look but don't touch!

[waykoolplantz]

no plans to leave this

[Kim]

Circumstances change, priorities change, moving house is part of life. Starting your garden all over is an opportunity to do it differently,maybe better with learning from mistakes. A lot more fun.

NO IT'S NOT, it's depressing and sad. Lol

[Capnrey]

I'm planning on staying in this house for a long, long time and my garden is pretty young. I've gotten to start from scratch in several ways.

That being said, I've thought about how I would feel if we moved to a bigger/better house and/or climate. I realized that, for me, the fun is really in the work. I love seeing palms get bigger. I love planting and the design part of it. Maybe I'll feel different once I actually finish (if ever) and have more specimens, but for me, the work is the fun.

I'm in the same boat. My husband and I are DIYr's and we do have a project house. INSIDE and out. I decided to give the Oblingata a try inside.

[Mandrew968]

no plans to leave this

Mike, so you're not planning on leaving the best private palm garden in maybe the Continental United States??

[Peter Pacific]

What a touchy subject. We bought two acres of sand in 1995 but didn't do much with it until about 2001, starting with a couple of coconut trees. Bump thirteen years, lots of cash, 200 plus species of palms, recently buying the two acres adjacent to us, I would hate to sell. But, you never know what life will throw at you. I am still planting Copernicia and Coccothrinax seedlings and by the time my Corypha macropoda flowers I will only be 120 years old! So, yes, hopefully I can stay here. We still keep a condo in Florida with a tiny courtyard but everytime I'm there I can't wait to get back to my garden!

[jeevesjank]

"Any plans on moving?"

ahhh god that cracked me up

You might as well ask me; "Any plans on gauging your eyes out with a rusty bottle opener?"

[Jim in Los Altos]

Half the fun in having my home and garden here where it is is the shock value it has since most people who I invite to see it or others who just come upon it are kind of in awe because it's SO different from what is typical around here. To me, this hobby or passion would not be as satisfying if I were in Hawaii or South Florida. I like surprising people and listening to their reactions. It's one of the reasons I spend a ton of time and sometimes money with things like Halloween displays. My plan is to stay here 'til the very end.

Jim, I get that same response and it is a satisfying one--Don't know why you think because I am in South Florida that we wouldn't get that--despite living in a prime place to grow palms, most people think it begins and ends with a coconut tree. What my garden has to offer would 'wow' most any plant lover, especially if you are into palms.

My biggest responses though, are 'why do you wanna live in a jungle?' or 'where is all of your grass?' or, ' I don't like palms'. Which is why I don't like people

Andrew, I know what you mean. You can still have the wow factor where you live of course but where I live, palm diversity barely exists. I'm sure in South Florida you can go for a one mile drive and see hundreds of palms. I might see two or three and if I try REALLY hard I still won't see anything other than queens, Washies, canaries, or Trachies even if I drive several miles.

I'm doing my little part to change that in my client's yards. Every project gets a palm planted regardless of the landscape style and I use Parajubaea, Howea, Rhopalostylis, Jubaea, mules, Brahea, Sabal, Archontophoenix, etc.

With three hundred plus palms and over a hundred species and growing on my property, I'm too attached to consider leaving here pending some sort of disaster like maybe a thousand ton meteorite falling on my house.

They'd be pretty upset too!

[Mandrew968]

Half the fun in having my home and garden here where it is is the shock value it has since most people who I invite to see it or others who just come upon it are kind of in awe because it's SO different from what is typical around here. To me, this hobby or passion would not be as satisfying if I were in Hawaii or South Florida. I like surprising people and listening to their reactions. It's one of the reasons I spend a ton of time and sometimes money with things like Halloween displays. My plan is to stay here 'til the very end.

Jim, I get that same response and it is a satisfying one--Don't know why you think because I am in South Florida that we wouldn't get that--despite living in a prime place to grow palms, most people think it begins and ends with a coconut tree. What my garden has to offer would 'wow' most any plant lover, especially if you are into palms.

My biggest responses though, are 'why do you wanna live in a jungle?' or 'where is all of your grass?' or, ' I don't like palms'. Which is why I don't like people

Andrew, I know what you mean. You can still have the wow factor where you live of course but where I live, palm diversity barely exists. I'm sure in South Florida you can go for a one mile drive and see hundreds of palms. I might see two or three and if I try REALLY hard I still won't see anything other than queens, Washies, canaries, or Trachies even if I drive several miles.

I'm doing my little part to change that in my client's yards. Every project gets a palm planted regardless of the landscape style and I use Parajubaea, Howea, Rhopalostylis, Jubaea, mules, Brahea, Sabal, Archontophoenix, etc.

With three hundred plus palms and over a hundred species and growing on my property, I'm too attached to consider leaving here pending some sort of disaster like maybe a thousand ton meteorite falling on my house.

Jim, I remember when I met Kim at the last Biennial, she was surprised at how prevalent palms are in the landscaping, compared to California. I told her, yes, but they are all the same 20 or so species--Bizzys, latanias, rhobellinis, queens, coconuts, adonidia, and bottles. No one has any sense to think outside the box on landscaping.

So yes, Jim--we have more palms, but I don't feel any connection with any of these home depot lawns. I would say for the amount of palms we can grow compared to the palms you see, we may have less palm diversity than you! lol it really is a shame when we all know South Florida's potential--we could really use some savvy California palm collectors, that's for sure! Jim, I would really be interested to see what your yard would look like if you were my neighbor; I know you would still have the diversity, uniqueness and variety you crave, but no doubt your species and maybe even your theme waould be different and no doubt, equally awesome!

[Jeff Searle]

Certainly no plans for Andrea and I to move. Were here for good. But later, I'll move to a small plot of land, lots of company with an elevation of about 6' less than here. Hopefully later than sooner!

[_Keith]

Certainly no plans for Andrea and I to move. Were here for good. But later, I'll move to a small plot of land, lots of company with an elevation of about 6' less than here. Hopefully later than sooner!

LOL

[Walter John]

no plans to leave this

Mike, so you're not planning on leaving the best private palm garden in maybe the Continental United States??

So glad I got to see this, thanks Mike again, had a wonderful day, no, you're not moving, I won't let you, besides, I wanna come back and see it again sometime, if that's okay with you.

[Tyrone]

Circumstances change, priorities change, moving house is part of life. Starting your garden all over is an opportunity to do it differently,maybe better with learning from mistakes. A lot more fun.

NO IT'S NOT, it's depressing and sad. Lol

You are so right Wal. I miss my Perth garden and the warm summer nights. I always swore that if I ever left the place it would be to NE QLD. Instead I go south. Admittedly it was for family reasons, because at the end of the day people are more important than things.

I'm glad I've got good tenants in my Perth house, but I'm so busy with work etc and getting things going here, that I have very little time to travel back and do a bit of maintenance on my Perth rainforest. Admittedly it's at a stage where it kind of takes care of itself, but I'm expecting to have to go back and unblock a good percentage of my 600 emitters soon.

I've got to stay positive in my new place. Water is certainly not a problem here. Good drainage is a bit of an issue. I've got so much blank canvas it's almost too hard to know where to start. The cold winter nights have been brutal also on my mind as my Perth garden really didn't suffer from frost.

But as others have said, I can create a garden unlike anything in my area. I'm going to go nuts with giant bamboos, trees and of course as many palms as I can fit, which is about 35000.

[palmislandRandy]

no plans to leave this

You're already there

[Darold Petty]

My wife raised her children in our home, I'm a pro remodeling contractor, I have completely rebuilt the structure to my own taste, we strongly prefer to live on a small lot right in town in order to enjoy the symphony, opera, and ballet. I have invested 33 years so far in my tiny garden.

When I leave this home & garden it will be "feet first, in a bag" !