All Activity

looking to buy some fresh parajubaea seeds. if anybody is growing a palm in california.

I notice the bougainvilleas other houses have (they are everywhere) and I haven't seen any like mine. All other bougs look happy. As for the soil, I tried one last year in the ground and it died.. I must mention I also have one in the ground, at a different spot with better soil (amended) and that one does not have shrivelled leaves something which makes me think that it's the pots.. perhaps too much water? But then I would expect brown leaf tips, not shrivelling

That said the curling makes me think something in the soil like a pathogen, let them dry out they are super tough. I also knew they are super tough; I remember my grandma had one in a terracota pot, and never watered it. It became a monster. The leaves are still moist inside.. I don't get it.

I must have a palm from the same source. I bought mine from Jungle Music as well. I've seen your previous posts about it and have wondered if there was any official ID.

palmenthusiast100 Welcome to Palmtalk !

I have one too!

Dypsis Plumosa

I have very little experience with mules personally, but I have always liked them. I now own two. I have one that I bought last summer at roughly a 3 to 5 gallon size. I grew the other from seed. (It was the only one of 12 seeds I was able to germinate) Both have grown well in pots and in the ground for me thus far. Seed grown: March 2025 June 2026 (bottom right) Tonight 6 August 2026 (1st pinnate frond) Mail ordered mule: September 2025 March 2026 Tonight, 6 August 2026 This mule in the ground is the most marginal palm I have planted in my yard. My area is rated zone 9a. If you ask January 2021, it is an 8a. I have planted my landscape with the idea that I want my palms to be able to look good down to 20F, and survive 15F. I would like to think I am not being overly cautious or confident. Time will tell, I guess.

Floribunda palms caught my eye today, such a luxury to be only 25 minutes away, sorry I wasn’t able to do photos today (other than my order) also picked up an Areca laoensis and Asterogyne guianensis.

Forsteriana naturally grows in very dense stands, with seedlings germinating and growing very slowly in often heavy shade for years or decades until a suitable chink in the canopy opens which they can fill. You can see photos of these stands on LHI. This is why they do so well in low-light, indoor conditions. Belmoreana, on the other hand, tends to grow in much more open environments, and in more stony, volcanic soil. My theory is that H. belmoreana's reputation for being slower than forsteriana is largely down to this fact; people assume that it will be equally tolerant of low light as an indoor plant and it isn't. My belmoreana lives in the conservatory in winter and outside in the summer and gets as much natural light as I can provide any non-hardy palm, and it isn't slow in comparison to many other palms I have. If I were to put it in a room with a window at one end (rather than light from three sides and above), I don't think it would respond well, and it would grow at toenail-speed. I'd suggest H. forsteriana is a better fit for your environment (will grow quicker in your light regime).

Tracy, was that a Jungle Music purchase? I have a spitting image from them; argentata if I recall..

@Phil Petersen if you are concerned about root rot you can also foliar spray it diluted. That's what I have done with some potted palms that turned yellow. I just guessed it was root rot from the potting soil being too dense with too much watering. It seemed to work well, about the same as @Urban Rainforest dry sprinkle + watering method. I haven't had problems with Whitelockii/Ituriensis in pots or in the ground, at least here in the swamp of Florida. The PTer I bought from used almost pure perlite and supplemental fertilizer. I used a "chunky" mix of perlite, potting soil, Turface MVP (fired clay pebbles) and sometimes a handful of mulch or small pine bark. I have around 10 in the ground, the only problem with them is frost damage below 30F. What are you doing for soil & water? @Urban Rainforest I bet the sprinkle and water works great as long as it isn't root rot. I haven't been able to grow any of the South African blues (Tri, Lehmannii, etc) here due to crown and root rot. Some hybrids (Nat x Horr or Aemulans x Lehmannii) seem to work in dry areas of the yard.

I would post this is the palms worldwide section. This is the cold hardy section. You will get your answer there

There are some good ones. I also believe Houston and Dallas are drier in fall/winter than summer, and trachies there are more fall/winter growers. Here, they are spring/fall growing. They idle in summer/winter. I have learned to look at the base of trachies here in the SW. The "decent" ones usually in an irrigated lawn situation. Soil type and ph could also be a major factor.

Exactly my point. I see Houston was well above normal in May, June, then much drier than normal in July. Your grass near the palms also says not regularly irrigated. Yes, trachy don't like the inconsistent moisture Texas provides. But with regular, consistent water, they handle sun much, much stronger than say, Houston or Dallas. Heck, the natural habitat of fortunei,high elevation, southerly latitude supports the high uv aspect. Heck, Tony in Dallas has some beautiful specimens, but surprise, grown in an irrigated lawn setting. Just saying. They burn big time here. Because they are not given proper, consistent irrigation. So yes, I do agree with you, they do burn if neglected. Yes full sun is not ideal if under watered. Why do you think so many are seen in Tejas with such skinny trunks? Heck these palms "reach" for the sun. Actual skydusters in southern California. But yes, in your and my climate, they need help. I guarantee mine would sunburn and wither away if I were to remove or stop watering my lawn. One thing of note, I also put coffee grounds near the base of mine. I don't think they like alkaline conditions, also found in a lot of Texas.

Greetings Lush Fronds Community, I have average experience with plants and most of mine are indoors, I'm now looking forward to adding a Palm! Great it is to have found folks with so much experience and who I'm sure can assist with a few questions based on threads I have read here about my topic through searching the forum. For Indoors in North Florida after considering options, I concluded that I really want a Howea forsteriana (Kentia palm) or a Howea belmoreana (Belmore sentry palm). Location: Insert a Perfect Palm Here. I have indoors space in a room marked for it, which at it's highest point is quite good for a vertical grower and also a few spare feet around for width. Light: It gets light from the window at one end of the room. (Never direct - too far for it, bright during later parts of the day, decent enough for morning/mid, all varies by season of course and also will sit right next to a floor lamp (with second bulb a LED full spectrum grow bulb if required). Size: Mid-Size. Given both my choices are Slow Growers and my need for a decent sized one to fill the space, I am aiming for a not too small a palm nor a huge one with fronds already too big. Important Consideration: Being on a student budget and a first timer Palm owner, larger and expensive ones would be out of my affordable range so I am aiming for a mid-sized palm. I just cannot find Howea belmoreana (Belmore sentry palm) at all around here, and had some luck with other - finding just one nursery which may only have one Howea forsteriana (Kentia palm) with them as of now. I have never seen the Belmoreana but I did a online search for the differences between the two in terms of Consider growth, diseases, care, indoors factor, cons and my requirements. Some factors made Belmore a better choice and I slightly like it better but I only have some remote chance of finding a Kentia and it seems to be hardier of the two for a first time grower (Correct or Incorrect?). I am not sure which one to get and from where? Given I have other plants indoors and this will be the largest of them all, I do not wish to purchase a palm from some random online company only to have it delivered diseased or dying. Why are both quite so hard to obtain? From what I read and understand Howea belmoreana (Belmore sentry palm) has a better liking by some and I would like some trusted folks who have had both to help me which to narrow down to and how to get one in Northern Florida! (I read this thread and will follow-up on once I am at that point to bring it indoors https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/topic/93809-kentia-palm-from-outdoor-to-indoor/#comment-1261439 On this forum I did find Kentia and Florida in search but it is from 2018: https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/topic/58649-kentia-in-florida/#comment-877585) Mods: Do I keep this post in this thread or should it be in PALMS IN POTS as technically I am looking for Indoors? TLDR; Question: Howea forsteriana (Kentia palm) OR Howea belmoreana (Belmore sentry palm) indoors. Problem: Can't find any.

@JLM Haven’t posted in a while, so thought I’d give you a little yard update after the last few of not so good back-to-back winters. The only thing that’s been protected with just blankets (no heat) is my Pygmy Date. Still growing out half of it’s defoliated fronds but is otherwise doing good. The coastal areas have stayed within 9A throughout all these past few bad freezes, including the snow event, so no real palm losses here fortunately. Sorry to hear about your Queen! It looked beautiful and had good size to it.

This Cocothrinax was labeled as argentea or argentata, but when I posted it in past years I was advised it didn't key to either. I am still waiting for its first flowers. It does have some silver color on the leaf underside but it is modest. It has been a good grower. I thought it was time to solicit thoughts on a species id again. Here it is...

August update: Mexico: While the initial report was yanked ..for whatever reason.. By the end of July / start of Aug. we have 23 active cases in Sinaloa, the closest detections being reported from the north end of the state, not too far south of the Sonora / Sinaloa state line. Cases continue to increase in Chihuahua as Jalisco continues to approach the 1K total cases mark as well.. This leaves only Sonora and Baja Norte / Sur NWS free at this time.. What happens next will depend on how the weather plays out as we head into the Fall.. Warm and wet in western / northwestern Mex? = continued, steady expansion into NWS free areas is possible.. Significant uptick in tropical activity ....that sets up closer to the coast of Mexico than it has been lately... now - start of October?, = could aid in dispersal into those same NWS free areas. Beyond Mexico... - Between July 9th and now = Texas cases have risen to 45 total ( Only 5 of which are considered " currently active " ) and haven't spread beyond the general region of the state where they have already occurred, which could reflect the effectiveness of the mass SI dispersal campaigns within the states -side, blue polygon area on the map above. This may be helping to limit detections in areas on the Mexico side of the Rio Grande as well. - Not sure how much trust i have in the reporting on it but, no reports of detections within wildlife in the effected region of TX as well, which if true, is a win, for the time being.... - For whatever reason, USDA has decided to resume states - side Cattle imports from Mexico, starting with AZ ports of entry bordered by Sonora. Some ports in New Mexico may reopen as well. We'll see how well that goes. - Was also announced that AZ will receive funding for a SI dispersal facility ( in Douglas, i believe ) and that Sterile Flies may be dispersed along the currently vulnerable section of the US/Mex border from NM to CA, just in active detection #'s do explode in Sinaloa / expand into and rapidly increase in Northwestern Chihuahua and / or Sonora ..or start turning up anywhere in Baja. A sort of morbid / sort of fascinating ( ....to those un afraid of such things at least ) article discussing how studying the scent of decay may offer more precise lure and maybe help protect valued livestock from NWS. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-wound-odors-flesh-world-screwworm.html One thing that is interesting about all of it is that evolutionarily speaking, NWS ( and it's counterpart in the Old World ) these flies graduated from being a typical consumer of decaying material to one that requires live tissue to nurture the start of their life cycle.. Gross as we may find them to be, while we may eliminate NWS ..and OWS.. in the future, could the elimination of one or both open ( ...re- open??? ) an ecological niche that we will never be able to eliminate ..that some other fly soon learns to fill? Think it is very rare that nature doesn't find a way to fill " now hiring " job openings, even if it takes a little time to do so. ....Something to think about i suppose.

I was attracted to this Anthurium today due to the new spathe opening. It handles s good deal of sun and it's roots escaped the container a while back. I wanted to plant it here but fear disturbing the roots of my Chrysalidocarpus prestonianus because of the hole size the Anthurium now requires. So the pot remains. The tag doesn't seem to match what I remember so I will have to clarify it's id with the friend that grew it.

All of that heavy rain somehow missed my house. Smh

Supplied by equatorial exotics, and very cool tolerant even as tube stock not a problem in my climate.

Which is also no longer in use and is considered a synonym of P sessilifolia. But I don’t think that’s the same palm which has floated around in the nursery trade as P ‘sarawakensis’. I think the palm Richard is referring to is the highly mottled palm that has been posted on here before. Either way, I doubt any of these lowland Bornean palms would be the best choices for California. I’d be looking for ones originating from decent latitude away from the equator (P baviensis, P gracilis, P tashiroi, P sylvestris) or highland species (P capitata) or a mix of the two (P declinata, P annamensis, P kontumensis). As noted, some others seem to have some level of hardiness despite relatively tropical origin like some of the Philippines species, P javana and P coronata.

Thank you for the information.

It has been cooler and rainy most of the day. The wind picked up around 1pm and then it started raining. In addition to rain, the big blessing is that it has been very comfortable outside and gives the AC a break.