Jump to content
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT LOGGING IN ×
  • WELCOME GUEST

    It looks as if you are viewing PalmTalk as an unregistered Guest.

    Please consider registering so as to take better advantage of our vast knowledge base and friendly community.  By registering you will gain access to many features - among them are our powerful Search feature, the ability to Private Message other Users, and be able to post and/or answer questions from all over the world. It is completely free, no “catches,” and you will have complete control over how you wish to use this site.

    PalmTalk is sponsored by the International Palm Society. - an organization dedicated to learning everything about and enjoying palm trees (and their companion plants) while conserving endangered palm species and habitat worldwide. Please take the time to know us all better and register.

    guest Renda04.jpg

Frankston Palm Garden Victoria Australia


Sir Oxylon

Recommended Posts

Hi,

This is my first post on PalmTalk. I am a palm nut from southern Australia in the Melbourne suburb of Frankston. Frankston is next to a bay and I am about 1.5 km (1 mile) from the water. We have hot summers- at least a couple of days around 40 degrees C (104 F) but averaging high twenties (around 80 F). Coldest temperatures in winter is between 0 and 4 degrees C (32F-39F) but averaging around 8 degrees C (46F). The main limiting factor to growing tropical palms here is the low winter maximum daytime temperatures with average July maximums of 13degrees C (55F).

My current residence is my first house (I am 28). Wanted to start early so that I might see my palms get to maturity. It is on a reasonable sized residential block of 1050 square metres (1/4 acre). I plan to fit as many palms as possible into the backyard and on both sides and leave some of the front for Australian natives. I have been collecting palms for several years but most of my plants are still in pots and are small. I focus on temperate palms but do love to venture into the marginal side of things. I recently built a heated glasshouse (photos attached) and my plan is to get marginal palms large in there (it is steamy on sunny days) and then try them out in the garden with the idea (optimistic thinking) that they will be more resilient to cold then. I also use the glasshouse to germinate seeds and raise seedlings.

I have a few plants in the ground. I have pics of some of my larger things. Plant 1=Parajubaea coccoides, Plant 2=Oraniopsis appendiculata, Plant 3=Ceroxylon ventricosum (inspiration for my username), Plant 4=Sabal minor and Plant 5=Rhopalostylis baueri in flower,.

Daniel

Glasshouse1.JPG.7b8f2fd8495c5f29e5df0dbbGlasshouse2.JPG.e693e707c9bc9f6d87f2abc7Parajubaeacoccoides2016.JPG.f4e598b93ec4Oraniopsisappendiculatum2016.JPG.3dc3a9f574bfaf23960d_Ceroxylonventricosum2016.JSabalminor2016.JPG.7a7c8a9f7f1524f87be60Rhopalostylisbaueri2016.JPG.9c848e8a80d3

  • Upvote 10
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to Palmtalk Daniel!

There are a few Melbournites here, and a few ex Melbournites too! Good to see you growing this stuff...keep posting photos...

Daryl

 

Gold Coast, Queensland Latitude 28S. Mild, Humid Subtropical climate. Rainfall - not consistent enough!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Mate, that is a great hot house, you should be able to get things going down there that would not usually make it past the seedling stage. You get a lot of cold wind down there in winter.  And whenever I go down to Frankston in summer I am amazed at how hot it is compared to Sydney and for how many consecutive days without relief. In Sydney we always get the cool change at night, But you don't. I look forward to seeing how your garden progresses. Good work.

Cheers Steve

It is not dead, it is just senescence.

   

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to Palmtalk. It won't be too long before those natives growing around the front make way for even more exotics.

 

Regards Neil

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks.

I have met two Melbournites on palmtalk-JLE and Miccles. It was Miccles old garden in Seaford that inspired me to buy in Frankston (originally from the north-west of Melbourne where much colder). I visited it once when I worked as a gardener at Melbourne Uni. Never thought you could grow things like Wodyetia, Pritchardia and Veitchia in Melbourne and yet there they were looking great. Couldn't believe it. He did a sensational job on that garden.

I am in a built-up residential area in Frankston which cuts out some of the wind that the coastal fringe and Frankston city centre experiences. My plan is to plant densely to try to ameliorate cold wind as well. The hothouse is heaps of fun. Seedlings are growing quickly in there at this time of year. I wet the floor every morning to create high humidity as well. Had to rub the camera lens today to get a clear shot. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Neil,

Our native flora does includes palm and cycad species;)

The plants there currently do offer some great colour in winter-I have Isopogon cuneatus (purple) and Banksia ericifolia (red) flowering at the moment.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to yet another Aussie palm nutter........ great to see what you are doing down there. I was last in Frankston almost exactly 30 years ago when I joined the Australian Navy.

Andrew,
Airlie Beach, Whitsundays

Tropical Queensland

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to palmtalk wow thats a good size oraniopsis ive got 2 seedlings and so slow im in geelong theres a few people around this way that love pushing the limits, 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Daniel. Welcome to Palm talk. Love the hothouse. You have a good size block but you will be surprised how quickly it fills up.

Cheers

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I wish everyone that first posts on PT would describe their growing conditions as well as you.....well done.....and welcome to Palmtalk

David Simms zone 9a on Highway 30a

200 steps from the Gulf in NW Florida

30 ft. elevation and sandy soil

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks. Everyone.

Andrew hopefully next time you are down I will have a reasonable setup that you can come and see. I imagine Frankston has changed quite a bit since you were here last. There have been several developments in the last few years even. 

The Oraniopsis would be around 10 years old. They speed up when they get to around this age. I also have a couple of seedlings. Good to know there are a few down here. Hopefully there will be a male and female amongst all these plants so in the future (who knows when) we may be able to produce seeds. Geelong Botanic Garden has some great palm plantings. They have the largest Parajubaea's in Victoria I know of. Also nice Arenga engleri and Caryota ochlandra (now maxima). Have these been shown in a post yet? Roraima nursery in Lara often has some interesting stuff. I gave Lyle the owner a Ceroxylon (I think amazonicum) to trial out there.

Palms4Steve running out of room to plant palms in is one of my greatest fears. There is a small property next door that I may need to purchase when it comes up for sale (currently owned by someone older than me). I also have a reserve drainage line behind the yard that may receive some guerrilla plantings.

Alicehunter I find the climate where I am quite interesting so I have studied it in quite a bit of depth. It is quite unusual for our area of Australia. It is one of the warmest places in Victoria (my state) according to average minimum temperatures. Only two weather stations (Rhyll and Point Hicks) with higher average minimum temperatures. 

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Daniel, welcome aboard!

Looks like you're loaded for bear, well-prepared for action.

Today's empty hot house becomes tomorrow's packed to the gills one . . .

Let's keep our forum fun and friendly.

Any data in this post is provided 'as is' and in no event shall I be liable for any damages, including, without limitation, damages resulting from accuracy or lack thereof, insult, or lost profits or revenue, claims by third parties or for other similar costs, or any special, incidental, or consequential damages arising out of my opinion or the use of this data. The accuracy or reliability of the data is not guaranteed or warranted in any way and I disclaim liability of any kind whatsoever, including, without limitation, liability for quality, performance, merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose arising out of the use, or inability to use my data. Other terms may apply.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome Daniel, I'm just up the road in Bonbeach. You're right that the South East generally has higher winter minimums than other suburbs, but it's generally the lack of daytime warmth from May to October that limits what we can grow down here. If you're interested in some of the tropicals that will grow, as a starting point Chambeyronia, Cyphophoenix elegans, Wodyetia x Veitchia and many Dypsis are fairly easy here.

  • Upvote 1

Tim Brisbane

Patterson Lakes, bayside Melbourne, Australia

Rarely Frost

2005 Minimum: 2.6C,  Maximum: 44C

2005 Average: 17.2C, warmest on record.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I usually only associate Canary Island Date Palms with areas around the Bay. Good luck with all your plantings. Didn't think that Frankston being on the water would get an absolute maximum that high, it's higher than ours.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tim Brissy we are pretty much neighbours. There is a nice Dypsis decaryi in a front yard near the Bonbeach station that you can see popping over their front fence from the train line. I have a small Chambeyronia macrocarpa in the ground, a Cyphophoenix alba in the ground, several Cyphophoenix elegans seedlings in the glasshouse, Veitchia and Wodyetia seedlings in the glasshouse (I don't like hybrids) and a stack of different Dypsis. Currently trialing a Dypsis leptocheilos in the ground-good so far. I am sure you are aware of the D. decaryi in front of the Seaford hotel. Are these the best in Victoria? Do you know of any other nice palms in our area?

Tropicbreeze I have a large Phoenix canariensis on the block that was there before I bought it. It is right next to the house and I believe that it was not planted but got there by bird dispersal. They are a naturalized species in Victoria. 

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

We have heaps of phoenix here in geelong which the birds help populate, and also washies i have them.come up like lawn, how big was the oraniopsis when u got it?? Where did u source that from, 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There's actually quite a lot of nice D decaryi trunking specimens popping up in the local area. The seaford hotel ones would be the biggest I know of, although there's a few in Patterson Lakes that are a similar size, as well as the one in Bonbeach as you say and a couple either side of the train line in Aspendale. I havent really seen too much unusual stuff outside of the collectors' gardens, but the is/was a massive Caryota maxima in Patterson Lakes that was flowering last time I saw it, and also a Bismarkia just around the corner there getting quite large too.

Good luck with the Wodyetia and Veitchia, I've never been able to have any success with these two but it can be done.There's one large Wodyetia in Patterson Lakes which is the last survivor from a group planting about 10 years ago. You can see from the photo that it's not as robust as a specimen in the tropics but it doesn't look too bad and has outlasted many Howea on that property.

 

IMG_1054.JPG

  • Upvote 1

Tim Brisbane

Patterson Lakes, bayside Melbourne, Australia

Rarely Frost

2005 Minimum: 2.6C,  Maximum: 44C

2005 Average: 17.2C, warmest on record.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 hours ago, coops 3214 said:

"and also washies i have them.come up like lawn,"

I can't tell the difference between a washi and our native Livistona, do you have a washi planted close?

Cheers Steve

It is not dead, it is just senescence.

   

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/30/2016, 6:28:15, Alicehunter2000 said:

I wish everyone that first posts on PT would describe their growing conditions as well as you.....well done.....and welcome to Palmtalk

well said David!!

Carlsbad, California Zone 10 B on the hill (402 ft. elevation)

Sunset zone 24

Link to comment
Share on other sites

welcome to palm talk!!! :) 

Carlsbad, California Zone 10 B on the hill (402 ft. elevation)

Sunset zone 24

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Washingtonia filifera is also now regarded as a naturalized species in Victoria, as well as Trachycarpus fortunei. You can see naturalized T. fortunei in the Dandenongs in the Sherbrook section and on the left side of the Mount Dandenong Tourist Road just above Upper Ferntree Gully.

The Oraniopsis from memory was about a foot tall in a 12 cm pot perhaps. A friend bought it for me from a nursery in Julatten near Port Douglas in QLD. I should probably take some of the canopy away from it so that it gets a little more light at this time of year but advice for Oraniopsis: they are scared of the light! They are very cold hardy-I had the plant pictured in a pot under shadecloth at Sunbury for a while and it went through below zero temperatures not a scratch. When it shifted to Frankston I originally placed the pot in a spot that received pockets of summer sun for brief periods of time. The parts of the frond exposed to the sun burnt to white in less than a week-left a mark exactly where the sun was illuminating over the leaf. I highly recommend planting in full shade in places with summers in the temperate zone. Probably a different matter in the tropics.

I will post some more pics tomorrow.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, Sir Oxylon said:

Washingtonia filifera is also now regarded as a naturalized species in Victoria, as well as Trachycarpus fortunei. You can see naturalized T. fortunei in the Dandenongs in the Sherbrook section and on the left side of the Mount Dandenong Tourist Road just above Upper Ferntree Gully.

The Oraniopsis from memory was about a foot tall in a 12 cm pot perhaps. A friend bought it for me from a nursery in Julatten near Port Douglas in QLD. I should probably take some of the canopy away from it so that it gets a little more light at this time of year but advice for Oraniopsis: they are scared of the light! They are very cold hardy-I had the plant pictured in a pot under shadecloth at Sunbury for a while and it went through below zero temperatures not a scratch. When it shifted to Frankston I originally placed the pot in a spot that received pockets of summer sun for brief periods of time. The parts of the frond exposed to the sun burnt to white in less than a week-left a mark exactly where the sun was illuminating over the leaf. I highly recommend planting in full shade in places with summers in the temperate zone. Probably a different matter in the tropics.

I will post some more pics tomorrow.

 

 

Im finding them difficult to get past seedling size, are u keeping yours constantly wet/moist??

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just keep Oraniopsis moist. If  too wet they may get fungal attack/rot. I have two seedlings in a glasshouse doing fine where they are kept moist with no great fluctuations of temperature. Most importantly keep them shaded. It would be a real nuisance to spend years nursing them to any size to have them die in a week because they received too much sun.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I imagine our growing conditions would be very similar Rafael. My garden receives 700 mm (27.5 inches) of rain per year on average with most in winter and spring and my soil is deep acidic sand with clay below.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Rafael said:

Welcome Daniel! Your climate is similar to mine, slightly warmer. Stay tuned to the sp i am growing ;)

How do u find the speed of growthof the oraniopsis compared to the ceroxylons??

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ceroxylon is easily quicker than Oraniopsis. The C. ventricosum pictured is larger than the Oraniopsis and would be about 5 years old germinated from seed in Melbourne. I find the other Ceroxylon a similar speed (I have C. amazonicum, C. quindiuense, C. peruvianum, C. echinatum, and C. alpinum as well). Ceroxylon is a really good genus for the Melbourne area. I find they don't mind the heat or the cold. They are reasonably easy to germinate as well. I germinate them in moist sphagnum at around 20degrees C. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here's a few more pics of palms I have in the ground. Pic 1= Cyphophoenix alba (syn. Veillonia alba), Pic 2= Burretiokentia vieillardii, Pic 3=Rhopalostylis sapida (don't know what form/where it is from), Pic 4= Dypsis leptocheilos.

Cyphophoenixalba2016june.JPG

Burretiokentiavieillardii.JPG

sapida2016.JPG

Dypsisleptocheilos2016june.JPG

  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah i find all of my ceroxylons are easy growers, how long has your dypsis lepto been in for??

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hardest thing about Ceroxylon is getting them past the seedling age similar to what you say about Oraniopsis-they are close realtives. I have lost some at that age. Once they start going pinnate they are quite hardy for me. They can even take a little sun which really surprises me.

This is the first year the Dypsis leptocheilos has been in the ground. I had it in a pot last year and it was reasonably unscathed by the bad winter we had last year (I had it in a coldframe) so I am being a bit gutsy and giving it a shot in the ground early. If it dies I will give another a shot by growing it up larger first. It will probably be the only one I will try in the ground at this size-the rest I will grow up more in the glasshouse. I have a large D. decaryi that I will put in the ground this spring. The rest of my Dypsis I think I should grow up more first. Gives me time to clean up the weeds in my yard. Other Dypsis I have in pots in the glasshouse: D. lutescens, D. prestoniana, D. nauseosa, D. carlsmithii, D. santelucei, D. tokoravina, D. sp. Dark Mealybug, D. arenarum, D. baronii, D. pembana, D. scottiana, D. faneva, D. paludosa, D. pilulifera, D. basilonga, D. malcomberi, D. robusta and D. angustifolia.  

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow you have a really good variety, that place will be a jungle in about 10 years.

Cheers Steve

It is not dead, it is just senescence.

   

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow you have all the dypsis varieties lol no decipiens in there?? Ive got a 8 ft decaryi in a pot and doesnt get a mark in winter, baronii is bullet proof down here

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dense jungle is the plan gtsteve. Would be wrapped if it happened in 10 years. I think I may need to wait longer than that.

I recently got a D. decipiens. I forgot that one. Will put that in the ground in spring as well. Why don't you put yours in the ground if it is 8 ft? Must be pretty old and would probably grow quicker in the ground. My D. baronii is a reasonable size. Maybe I will put that in the ground too this spring. I get surprised by how much of a bad reputation D. lutescens gets regarding cold hardiness. I have seen D. lutescens in courtyards in Melbourne in winter and besides some brown leaf tips look ok. I might put the D. lutescens in this spring as well (its about 3 ft tall now).  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to a palm nut on Palmtalk :D

Looking forward to seeing your next posts, Daniel, Thanks!

5809129ecff1c_P1010385copie3.JPG.15aa3f5

Philippe

 

Jungle Paradise in Sri Lanka

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 minutes ago, Sir Oxylon said:

Dense jungle is the plan gtsteve. Would be wrapped if it happened in 10 years. I think I may need to wait longer than that.

I recently got a D. decipiens. I forgot that one. Will put that in the ground in spring as well. Why don't you put yours in the ground if it is 8 ft? Must be pretty old and would probably grow quicker in the ground. My D. baronii is a reasonable size. Maybe I will put that in the ground too this spring. I get surprised by how much of a bad reputation D. lutescens gets regarding cold hardiness. I have seen D. lutescens in courtyards in Melbourne in winter and besides some brown leaf tips look ok. I might put the D. lutescens in this spring as well (its about 3 ft tall now).  

Yeah i haven't decided if i will keep the triangle yet, how big is your decipiens?? Yeah lutescens go well down here ive seen a few around as long as there protected from frost

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think D. decaryi are one of the most impressive palms. Interesting architecturally and great colours. If they were really rare they would be one of the most desirable palms. However, their abundance in cultivation seems to taint their image. I feel Archontophoenix in Australia is in the same category. Common but they are pretty nice when grown well. I think if you have room keep it. The D. decipiens is about a foot high but has several leaves.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great collection. Good luck with the D leptocheilos, there was a large one that survived for many years at a local nursery in Carrum Downs but it never looked good. D lutescens as you say can look good when protected. One at my mum's out in the open looks terrible, but my friend has a couple on a North facing wall of a courtyard and they look great.

Tim Brisbane

Patterson Lakes, bayside Melbourne, Australia

Rarely Frost

2005 Minimum: 2.6C,  Maximum: 44C

2005 Average: 17.2C, warmest on record.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think the caryotas are a great fast  palm for down here to get canopy up,  are you growing those?? Tim has tried most of the dypsis from memory i think he would be a good 1 to speak to on what hes had success with since you guys are close, 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have Caryota obtusa in a pot that I will put in the ground in Spring. Would like to get some more. Going to plant Caryota near back fence so that when I need to remove them I can fell them into the park behind me-Wont take out any palms or houses that way.

Tim which Dypsis have worked and which have not?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now



  • Recently Browsing

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...