JubeaXButia hybrid

[TonyDFW]

Here is a 7 year old specimen I have growing in my Dallas garden, that I originally got from Merrill Wilcox.

It has never been damaged by cold is is a much faster growing plant the the older pure jubea specimen I have growing in another part of my yard.

What is your experience with this hybrid?

Thanks

Here is another image for scale of size. The hybrid is in the backround behind a Butia capitata and a Washingtonia and Trachycarpus.

[deezpalms]

Lookin' good Tony!

[Kris]

Dear Tony  

lovely garden and nice hybrid..even i prefer the hybrid varities..

thanks & Love,

Kris  

[SubTropicRay]

The place looks great Tony.

[tank]

Here is a recent thread of some Gainesville, FL Jubaea x Butia hybrids.

http://palmtalk.org/cgi-bin/forum/ikonboar...t=ST;f=1;t=5079

[PalmGuyWC]

Hi Tony,

Your garden is looking great, and I'm sure it's the nicest palm garden in Dallas. Congrats on all the public work you have done and introducing Dallas to palms. Your a true pioneer.

About the Butia X Jubaea hybrids:  From all the information I've gathered, it seems Jubaeas don't really thrive, or even live for very long, in the Southeast or in Texas with your higher humidity and warmer nights.  They thrive in our Mediteranian climate on the West Coast.

It would seem that with only a small portion of Butia introduced into the Jubaea strain that the hybrids adapt to a warmer, more humid climate and yours is proof of that. The hybrids seem to grow faster than either of the parents, and of course they are very cold hardy.

This year, Patrick Schafer has crossed Jubaea with Butia, and with Jubaea X (Butia X Jubaea), and he achieved an excellent seed set, over 200 seeds on each inflouresence. The mother plant is a Jubaea. I'm 100% sure the parentage is accurate. As some of these seeds are spread around the globe, it will be interesting to see how they have faired 5 years from now in different climates.

Dick

[TonyDFW]

Thanks Fellas for the compliements.

Dick... your incredible garden collection, knowledge and generosity have made a huge impact on all palm lovers and continue to create inspiration for us all.

[edbrown_III]

Great photos Tony,  well grown specimens.

Dick,  I am taking the liberty to post a shot of your back yard. Thanks for you kindness in hosting the visit some months ago.

[reinerio1]

Ed:  Your JxB's have aclimated well in Austin, TX (originally in Miami).  I live abou 3 hours south of Tony in Dallas and have been relunctant to plant the JxB's in the ground.  At what age/height would you recommend planting in ground?

Tony:  at what age did you plant in ground your JxB?  We have much clay in my neck of the woods.  How did you augment your soil?

Dick:  Your garden is my future fantasy garden.  your JxB is my personal favorite palm in the world.  Absolutely WOW!  I really enjoyed the photo tour and your comments you provided us several months ago.  My only problem is that I am 51 years old and will have to wait at least another 30 years to have a comparable garden.  I hope to live to that age.  If not, I can still occassionally peek at your photos which I have saved on my computer.  Thank you.

Reinerio H. (Austin, TX, zone 8b)

[TonyDFW]

Planted the hybrid as a young seedling. It has never  been protected in winter. I usually protect young seedlings the first 2 winters, but those early years for this palm were mild.

It is growing in the very fertile deep black slightly alkaline clay soil.

When watering avoid keeping the crown  wet,  to avoid summertime phytophora bud rot.

Very easy and carefree to grow.

[PalmGuyWC]

I think there is a lot of confussion about Butias and Butia X Jubaea hybrids. I have a Butia X Jubaea hybrid and it's considerably larger than a Butia, but it retains the old leaf bases like a Butia.  The flower spaths are the dead give-away, as they are covered with rust colored tomentum as is a Jubaea and the flowers are a beautiful red wine color.

I could be wrong, but the only large Butia that I know of that has tomentum on the spath is B. eriospatha and there aren't that many B. eriospathas growing in the USA. I think a lot of folks are confusing the many veariations of Butia with Butia X Jubaea. There also aren't that many Jubaeas around either.

I have Butias, Syagrus and a flowering Jubaea that are growing in close proximity and have been blooming for years, and there has never been a "natural" hybrid to  show up. I've seen pictures of a Butia X Jubaea growing in France and it also had rust colored tomentum on the outside of the spath. I think this is probably the best identifying feature of a hybrid Butia X Jubaea.

The one exception to "natural" hybridization is my Butia X Jubaea.  It used to set seeds regularly and we assumed they were F2 seeds, however Patrick Schafer learned through experiments that the palm is self sterile and can not set seeds with it's own pollen. There are a couple of Butias growing nearby, so we had to assume the hybrid tree was being pollinated by the Butias.

Dick

[bubba]

Is Gainesville , Florida the Mule Palm capital of the US? In driving around the city I do not think I have ever seen a greater concentration of these palms, each with their own different characteristics.

[PalmGuyWC]

Hi Bubba,

I used to visit Fla. regularly and there are quite a few mule palms in the Tampa, Orlando areas too. They used to be quite uncomon, but now they seem to be popping up everywhere particularly in those areas that can get a good freeze. 30 years ago they were mostly "natural" hybrids and most seemed to come from Central Florida where both Butias and Syagrus grow. Now there are a lot of guys hybridizing them, so I expect we will see more and more. For any temprate climate, they are a must-have for palm growers.

There seems to be a lot of veariation in them.  I have 3 and no two look alike.  All of mine have been fast growers, and one is a giant. The trunk must be close to 2 feet in diamater, and the fronds are near 20 feet long.

It's to bad my giant is a mule, but it would make a great canidate for cloning if that were possible.  Cloning has been tried with the mules before but with no success.  The giant would make an impressive street tree anywhere and they are cold hardy down to the mid teens.

Dick

[Kris]

Dear Ed  

Lovely still,and i assume that hybrid is seen in the rear of all tall palms.around 8 to 10 feet of massive trunk.have i identified that jubea right.it looks like a jamboo.very stout

and beautiful..

i love that palm & the still.

thanks & Love,

Kris  

[fastfeat]

Tony--

Great looking pics!

What sort of min. temps have you had in the last 10 or so years?

[NBTX11]

(fastfeat @ Aug. 18 2007,15:17)

QUOTE

Tony--

Great looking pics!

What sort of min. temps have you had in the last 10 or so years?

I don't have the stats in front of me, but Dallas usually sees one or two nights below 20F per year (zone 8).  Been in the 15-17F range once the past 2 winters.  That is pretty rare, normally winter lows are in the 30s, and occasional 20s for cold snaps.  I used to live in N. TX.

[NBTX11]

(reinerio1 @ Aug. 16 2007,22:45)

QUOTE

Ed:  Your JxB's have aclimated well in Austin, TX (originally in Miami).  I live abou 3 hours south of Tony in Dallas and have been relunctant to plant the JxB's in the ground.  At what age/height would you recommend planting in ground?

Tony:  at what age did you plant in ground your JxB?  We have much clay in my neck of the woods.  How did you augment your soil?

Dick:  Your garden is my future fantasy garden.  your JxB is my personal favorite palm in the world.  Absolutely WOW!  I really enjoyed the photo tour and your comments you provided us several months ago.  My only problem is that I am 51 years old and will have to wait at least another 30 years to have a comparable garden.  I hope to live to that age.  If not, I can still occassionally peek at your photos which I have saved on my computer.  Thank you.

Reinerio H. (Austin, TX, zone 8b)

Reinerio,

I see you made it to Austin, welcome!

Post pics oftens, so fellow Texans can see the progress of your palms.

What have you been able to get into the ground.  You should be able to grow a variety of hardy palms, believe it or not.

Have you been able to scope out the palm situation in Austin.  There are mature palms all over town.

Good luck.

[merrill]

Hi,  bubba :

QUOTING BUBBA:

Is Gainesville , Florida the Mule Palm capital of the US? In driving around the city I do not think I have ever seen a greater concentration of these palms, each with their own different characteristics. END QUOTE

Hi, bubba:  Gainesville does have a tradition of a generous supply of mule [i. e., XButyagrus] palms, started by Noel Lake, then Superintendent of Grounds @ U. F.  Noel is very knowledgeable, being both Landscape Architect and horticulturist.  The earliest XButyagrus were planted on the UF campus in the 1950's, and were provided by Ross Laffler of Leesburg, Lake County.  Only one of the many XButyagrus he gave the UF survives today, between McCarty "A" and McCarty "C".  None of those I later gave have survived; the space between the wings of McCarty hall is probably the most protected part of U.F..  merrill

[reinerio1]

Jim in San Antonio:  Finally made it to Austin but had to leave all my large palms in Miami.  It was very sad leaving all your fruits of labor behind.  I have not planted anything.  In about 6 months I will begin to build a new house.  I do not want to plant and have to dig up in 1 year.  I have 2.5 acres to start afresh.  

I have 4 JxB (3 years), 1 BxJxQ (1 year), 2 B. capitata (4 year), 4 B. yatay (2 year), 4 B. armata (2 year), 2 mules (2 year), I have many year old seedlings:  Sylvestris, CIDP, Date, Sabal minor, caucasian, riverside, Livistona chinensis and decipiens.  All are doing fine hear in Austin.

My favorite however, is the JxB.  I would love mine to look like  Tony's in Dallas.  I think I have a 3 degree advantage hear in North Austin even though my humidity is higher.  I sure hope the Jubea x Butia will thrive here.  Take care.

I hope to be in San Antonio within 2 months for business.  Will contact you soon to personally meet.

[edbrown_3]

Reinero,

They are probably large enough to go in the ground.  I  would berm them though if you are uncertain of water table. Here it comes to the surface so I berm things . Some of these die suddenly from high water table or too heavy soils.  a foot berm makes all the difference in the world.

Good luck

Ed

[bubba]

This is an old thread started by TonyDFW on JubeaXButia hybrids. Great insights from iconic posters who have sadly passed( Dick Douglas and Merrill Wilcox). Merrill Wilcox, in particular, shares the historical basis in which Butia became virtually indigenous to Gainesville, Fl. ( UF and Noel Lake/then Superintendent of Grounds). Merrill also shares the history of the insanely tall XButyagrus palm on the UF campus near McCarty Hall (Ross Laffler of Leesburg/1950's). Kyle spearheaded and established the nearly tropical planting in this McCarty Hall microclimate with the help of Ken Johnson and others.

TonyDFW has updated his specimens numerous times. Tank has updated Kyle's tropical garden as has Kyle numerous times over the years.

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

This June I stopped by and talked to Everett Wilcox,  Merrills son, and the large jubaea hybrids in his back yard were rapidly declining and looking like eminent death was all but assured as he had an outbreak of gandoderma which spread to many of the palms on the property. 

[Jamesasb]

thats just terrible!!