New project down in Miami

[Asere22]

Hello everyone,

This is my first post and wanted to share these two beauties I just bought. I always admired palms and after 3 years of buying a new construction home and you can imagine the trees they plant are not very attractive I’m starting to work on the backyard behind the pool and also the front of the house. Open to all advise hope you enjoy and will continue to add more pictures as progress is made. 

[Rickybobby]

Oh wow awesome choice I’m still struggling to germinate them. Best of luck 

[kinzyjr]

@Asere22 Welcome to the forum!  You have an exciting time ahead of you in a wonderful climate for growing palms and tropicals.

[kurt decker]

Make sure to place your cyrtostachys where is blocked from north and west winds. They are very tropical, sort of borderline plants here, dry north and west winds in the winter are very hard on them. And if we get low temperatures, it is something you would want to protect. I had several friends lose big ones in 2010. They protected them quite well, but just on both ends of that year we had multiple cold events, it just kept beating them and beating them until they succumbed. A lot of people here can give you really good advice on cold protection, but your initial site for planting will be very important. That's a great palm

[Asere22]

1 hour ago, kurt decker said:

Make sure to place your cyrtostachys where is blocked from north and west winds. They are very tropical, sort of borderline plants here, dry north and west winds in the winter are very hard on them. And if we get low temperatures, it is something you would want to protect. I had several friends lose big ones in 2010. They protected them quite well, but just on both ends of that year we had multiple cold events, it just kept beating them and beating them until they succumbed. A lot of people here can give you really good advice on cold protection, but your initial site for planting will be very important. That's a great palm

Thanks for the advice, at which temperatures should I start protecting them. 

[Neil C]

They love loads of water so never let them dry out.

 

Regards Neil

[hbernstein]

Probably the only conditions that will guarantee the plants survival long-term is to grow it as a emergent swamp plant in a pond that maintains a minimal temperature in the upper 70s or 80 degrees in Winter. Warm roots = survival. This is a truly tropical species, that's why you don't see them planted out in South Florida landscapes.

[PalmatierMeg]

I grew potted red & green Cyrtostachys in pots for years - my area gets too cold in winter for them to survive in the ground. I kept them on dollies on my back lanai. When nights fell below 50F we wheeled them indoors until temps rose. That worked great until they grew too tall for the lanai birdcage, so I sold them. We are too old now to go through that again. Your area is warmer than mine but I fear your beautiful palm's long term survival if planted is not good. Placing it in the center of a pond or water feature is a good idea but doesn't guarantee survival. A pond-planted, deep canopy Cyrtostachys on Pine Island (which has a climate more like Miami) did well for years but died after the Jan 2010 record cold.

[Asere22]

14 hours ago, kurt decker said:

Make sure to place your cyrtostachys where is blocked from north and west winds. They are very tropical, sort of borderline plants here, dry north and west winds in the winter are very hard on them. And if we get low temperatures, it is something you would want to protect. I had several friends lose big ones in 2010. They protected them quite well, but just on both ends of that year we had multiple cold events, it just kept beating them and beating them until they succumbed. A lot of people here can give you really good advice on cold protection, but your initial site for planting will be very important. That's a great palm

Thanks for the advice, at which temperatures should I start protecting them. 

[Asere22]

My god this is scary... I asked the worker at the nursery they had them and was told they’d been there for years I wonder how they survived. They were not in a swamp like environment just full sun and water everyday hmmm. 

[PalmatierMeg]

4 hours ago, Asere22 said:

My god this is scary... I asked the worker at the nursery they had them and was told they’d been there for years I wonder how they survived. They were not in a swamp like environment just full sun and water everyday hmmm. 

That's because some nurseries sometimes lie to make an expensive sale (or their staff are incompetent). A few years ago I attended a palm sale at Mounts Botanical Garden in Palm Beach. Later I went to a part of the garden that had sale plants. A very loud, brassy woman and her husband, snow birds if I remember right, had apparently bought a large Cyrtostachys at the sale, then wandered back into the garden ahead of us. She announced to a Mounts employee that she planned to plant her lipstick in the center of her home's front courtyard in Palm Beach. He informed her that her purchase could not possibly survive winter planted in Palm Beach, nor was it a candidate to be abandoned and neglected for 8-9 months while its owners flew north. She promptly flew into a rage and began yelling at and berating the poor guy for being stupid and insisted he should be fired by Mounts. Apparently, the unnamed nursery that sold her the lipstick (for multiple $100s) swore it would grow fine in her courtyard.

I felt I had to step in so I informed her the Mounts employee was spot on, that Cape Coral is directly across the State from Palm Beach and I can't grow one in the ground here. Then the employee and I told her what she needed to do to ensure she didn't have a very dead lipstick come spring. She was most unhappy with both of us because she bought the palm for decorative snob appeal and had no intention of actually caring for the wretched plant once she stuck it in the ground. She and her husband then stomped off. Dollars to donuts she stuck it in the ground and ended up with fried lipstick before mid-winter.

In answer to your other question, I moved my Cyrtostachys indoors when lows fell below 50F. They stayed indoors until nights went back above 50. If you plant yours be prepared to protect it with supplemental heat and blanket wrappings.

One other thing I didn't see mentioned: Cyrtostachys should never, ever be allowed to dry out. If they do, they will die, period. I kept my potted ones sitting in large trays of water I checked almost daily. You cannot overwater them.

[NC_Palms]

Good luck! I am so jealous  

[kurt decker]

 Don't get scared. They are great palms, you just have to be aware of temperatures. Start thinking about them if it gets below 45 degrees, that's considering that the palm is well hydrated and blocked from those cold dry winds. Jeff Block used to have a photo of his big one with frost on the ground and a thermometer saying 32 degrees at the base of the palm. I've had lots of them over the years, and seldom have trouble by keeping them out of the cold wind. Bob Seay (spelling?) had a 15-footer in Coconut Grove nicely protected, and it sailed through the hard freeze in 1989 with no damage. Just be smart, and thoughtful on how you set the palm up. If we have normal cold events, they are easy  to protect. If we have an extreme cold event, bad things could happen. But those are few and far between. Enjoy it, it's a beauty

[Tracy S]

Jesus, 

Welcome to the forum. You sure have a nice start to landscape g your yard with beautiful palms. Two thumbs up for you excellent taste.

[Asere22]

4 hours ago, kurt decker said:

 Don't get scared. They are great palms, you just have to be aware of temperatures. Start thinking about them if it gets below 45 degrees, that's considering that the palm is well hydrated and blocked from those cold dry winds. Jeff Block used to have a photo of his big one with frost on the ground and a thermometer saying 32 degrees at the base of the palm. I've had lots of them over the years, and seldom have trouble by keeping them out of the cold wind. Bob Seay (spelling?) had a 15-footer in Coconut Grove nicely protected, and it sailed through the hard freeze in 1989 with no damage. Just be smart, and thoughtful on how you set the palm up. If we have normal cold events, they are easy  to protect. If we have an extreme cold event, bad things could happen. But those are few and far between. Enjoy it, it's a beauty

Thank you, really appreciate all the information. I would like to start getting prepared in the event that I have to protect them from the cold, if anyone can chime in with ideas or what’s need it. I bought them to plant them so moving them around is not an option. Sorry for all the questions I’m so green when it comes to knowledge of plants in general and I’m starting to realize that I had no idea what I was getting into when I got them but I actually like the challenge of protecting these babies. By the way Kurt I’m the guy that called you about your Copernicia Fallaense and am patiently waiting to call you back in January. 

[Hammer]

47 minutes ago, Asere22 said:

Thank you, really appreciate all the information. I would like to start getting prepared in the event that I have to protect them from the cold, if anyone can chime in with ideas or what’s need it. I bought them to plant them so moving them around is not an option. Sorry for all the questions I’m so green when it comes to knowledge of plants in general and I’m starting to realize that I had no idea what I was getting into when I got them but I actually like the challenge of protecting these babies. By the way Kurt I’m the guy that called you about your Copernicia Fallaense and am patiently waiting to call you back in January. 

Nothing wrong with being a newbie at plants.  Everyone was at some point.   Trial and error is how you learn. But understandable not to want to lose an expensive palm.

You probably don't need to go to such extremes but guys like Jim Hardy and Scott Schaffer on this site are zone pushing palms like crazy and you can learn a few tips and tricks that might help you dial in your own situation.   Good luck and welcome to PT.

[Elvis Cruz]

Asere22,

Enjoy your new palms!

You might be interested in attending the next meeting of the South Florida Palm Society.  It's on October 1, 2018, at 7 pm at Fairchild Tropical Garden.  The guest speaker will be Craig Morrell of The Kampong.

For more info about the SFPS, see http://www.southfloridapalmsociety.org/

[Tracy S]

Jesus, 

I have been growing a lipstick palm outside for 5 years. I don't bring it inside during the winter because it's too big/heavy to move it even with a dolly. I do provide cold protection when the temps drop below 45 degrees. 

I planted it in a very large ceramic pot and leave that above ground. When it gets cold I use a heater next to the pot. The ceramic pot acts as a radiator and keeps the roots warm. On this plant I prefer to use a little electric space heater but I have also used a small propane heater. (The propane heater will some times blow out if it windy.)

I have had no damage to this plant until this past winter. This winter we had repeated and prolonged cold unlike anything we had seen since 2010. I had also lost a good portion of my canopy is hurricane Irma which resulted in temps about 4 degrees cooler in the area where the plant sits.

The damage the plant received was a loss of about 1/3 rd of the leaves and then the plant went dormant for about 4 months. Once it got really warm it started growing again.

I say, grow it but be prepared to agonize a bit in the winter. Good luck and I look forward to seeing the pictures.

Also, the plant needs constant water and should sit in a tray of water always.

 

Edited September 22, 2018 by Tracy S
A million typos

[palmislandRandy]

45F seems to be the end of the road for these unless you get a rare genetic freak. I remember getting advice to pre treat with a fungicide when it dips below 50F but mine carked anyway.

 

-Randy

[PalmatierMeg]

19 minutes ago, palmislandRandy said:

45F seems to be the end of the road for these unless you get a rare genetic freak. I remember getting advice to pre treat with a fungicide when it dips below 50F but mine carked anyway.

 

-Randy

I treated my lipsticks with Dithane M-45 containing mancozeb every month or so starting Nov. through Mar. It's a powder you mix with water, then spray the palm thoroughly - not expensive. I never had problems with fungus on either palm. After I sold them I learned some people dispute that advice but I'm still glad I did it. You have to grasp at any straws when you try to keep palms as sensitive and expensive as these alive over winter. They were gorgeous palms and grew surprisingly fast during the 5-6 years I had them but I have no desire to hassle with them again.

[Missi]

On 9/21/2018, 3:02:47, PalmatierMeg said:

That's because some nurseries sometimes lie to make an expensive sale (or their staff are incompetent). A few years ago I attended a palm sale at Mounts Botanical Garden in Palm Beach. Later I went to a part of the garden that had sale plants. A very loud, brassy woman and her husband, snow birds if I remember right, had apparently bought a large Cyrtostachys at the sale, then wandered back into the garden ahead of us. She announced to a Mounts employee that she planned to plant her lipstick in the center of her home's front courtyard in Palm Beach. He informed her that her purchase could not possibly survive winter planted in Palm Beach, nor was it a candidate to be abandoned and neglected for 8-9 months while its owners flew north. She promptly flew into a rage and began yelling at and berating the poor guy for being stupid and insisted he should be fired by Mounts. Apparently, the unnamed nursery that sold her the lipstick (for multiple $100s) swore it would grow fine in her courtyard.

I felt I had to step in so I informed her the Mounts employee was spot on, that Cape Coral is directly across the State from Palm Beach and I can't grow one in the ground here. Then the employee and I told her what she needed to do to ensure she didn't have a very dead lipstick come spring. She was most unhappy with both of us because she bought the palm for decorative snob appeal and had no intention of actually caring for the wretched plant once she stuck it in the ground. She and her husband then stomped off. Dollars to donuts she stuck it in the ground and ended up with fried lipstick before mid-winter.

In answer to your other question, I moved my Cyrtostachys indoors when lows fell below 50F. They stayed indoors until nights went back above 50. If you plant yours be prepared to protect it with supplemental heat and blanket wrappings.

One other thing I didn't see mentioned: Cyrtostachys should never, ever be allowed to dry out. If they do, they will die, period. I kept my potted ones sitting in large trays of water I checked almost daily. You cannot overwater them.

What she said  If you're near the water, I like Tracy's idea too! Best of luck and please keep us apprised! 

 

[Barry]

I have two growing (potted) in Fort Myers, doing great. But I do bring them into garage during cold snaps. Considering planting one of them in a protected area. If you go to rarepalm.com website, Steve has a care sheet you can print. I do spray with diathane m-45 during winter months. I have just rooted two seedlings from the mother plants.

[Asere22]

Added a few more palms to the project and there are some nice one on my wish list... but here is what I have so far. 

Phoenix dactylifera x 3, Ravelana madagascariensis and Coccothrinax borhidiana my favorite so far.     

 

[Asere22]

[Asere22]

[Asere22]

[Asere22]