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We’re in the same climate zone 9b/10a. Those are some healthy looking kings, they look healthier than the ones I saw in Coronado last month.

I dont find archies(kings) difficult to grow at all and I am in a cool 10a right on the 9B border. I also dont plant any palm in cool soil, the developing roots will have to see more aggressive fungus behavior at lower temps. Microbes that assist in nutrient uptake are 20x less active at 55F than at 70F so many palms will not feed well and face favorable conditions for root fungus infection(wet with stagnant drainage, low oxygen, cool temp soils). There is a lot of experience growing various archontophoenix species here and we have the Aussie members who are quite familiar with them. My Archontophoenix alexandre and myolensis are from 25 to over 30' in 14 years and have been over 20' for 8 years. They have seen 30F cold snaps 2x and mostly defoliuated. They have also seen 3 hurricanes. They are pretty tough though I know they can die as small palms at 30F. I bunch mine together to improved coldhardiness a fruiting triple of alexandre and a myolensis, also currently fruiting

@SCVpalmenthusiast I agree . The original post says that they are having problems in San Diego which is better climate than up here in Ventura County , for the most part . I have had a bit of burn on shade grown ones but that gets corrected quickly with new growth. I’ve been growing them in 9b - 10a zones without losing any for over 35 years. Even further north , they grow. Easy palm to grow , just add water . Harry

Yes, Richard 🤗, a really good idea

Blue jays do it at my house. Cram them everywhere. They put them in potted plants, into bromeliads, and in any crevice. Squirrels tend to bury them. The Jays “stick them” in small elevated spaces.

I wouldn’t say futile, the poster from Florida showed it took 25 degrees and still survived. Some damage sure, but it survived. I guess the caveat could be that Florida’s 9b is different than California 9b. That’s why they can grow cocos. Perhaps that matters more than temperature lows.

My old house that I bought in 1990 was down in the city below . We got frost every year down there . I planted two 10” King palms and never had any issues with them . There are some sky scraper A. Cunninghamiana in our city that are very healthy , they have to be very old palms , probably planted at least 40-50 years ago . I think they are pretty hardy palms . King palms are very common in this area even with non collectors , most look pretty healthy . As long as they are watered regularly , they should thrive. Harry

Perhaps. Somebody suggested to me it might be rot on dead tissue. That makes sense too.

@TropicsEnjoyer The seeds I germinated( Cunninghamiana) took several months to pop up. I don’t have a heat mat or any greenhouse , just containers under the palms with 2-3 seeds per container (4”) . After well over 6 months I was ready to give up when I saw the first sprout. I ended up with about 90% yield ! Hang in there , hopefully you can get some to germinate. The Alexandrea is a faster growing palm here than Cunninghamiana . Just my experience . My climate is listed as 9b but up here on the hill 38f is the coldest I’ve seen . I am also growing Roystonia Oleracae up here . Harry

A. alexandrea is such an elegant palm. Where I used to live my neighbor has a huge one, I tried to pick some seeds from it but months later they’ve not grown. But i’ve been hesitant to consider buying one after this hell of a 9b winter.

Flying Foxes love mangos and make quite a mess of my trees. However, mango season is over so they're stuck with Carpentaria acuminata fruit. We get a number of species of Flying Fox, these are Black Flying Fox, Pteropus alecto. During the wet season when my dam is full, Shining Flycatchers, Myiagra Alecto, build their nest over water. Both male and female share the job of sitting on and hatching the eggs. Whistling Kites, Haliastur sphenurus, are around all the time but have never seen them nesting at my place. Northern Brush-tailed Possum, Trichosurus vulpecula ssp. arnhemensis, not usually around during daytime, this one was grooming itself just outside the bedroom window.

February continued our above average pattern of rainfall with 385.8mm, 121.2% of average. This kept February temperatures down Ave. Max 25.1 Ave. min 32.3 The sun is now to our north. UV rating is up to 15, however with the frequent cloud cover it's not so noticeable. The humidity ranges from the mid 80's to the high 90's over the 24 hour cycle. A monsoon trough has developed across the top of Australia, the fourth and strongest this season. Four tropical lows along it continue to bring lots of rain and some severe weather, but are not expected to intensify into tropical cyclones. Over the weekend one of the tropical lows will move over us, flood warnings have been issued. Next week the monsoon trough is expected to dissipate and rain to ease. This is getting back to some of the wet seasons we were having 10 to 15 years ago.

Richard beautiful palms and many species to choose from, please enjoy

Down here in south Florida, my Pseudobombax ellipticum has been dropping leaves the last month, and today at 5pm these six leaves in the red circle are the last leaves to fall. and flower buds about to open. and the very first flower this season already dropped.

I'll be ashamed of you if you don't buy that Geonoma! Jokes aside...thank you kindly for organising all of the above!

Actually posted today by the wife as I drove up to get a bargain of a lifetime and that holy grail palm at the pacsoa show you always dreamt of growing, such a pity you can’t make it, oh well more palms for me to buy I guess, and yes I might even think about this Geonoma atrovirens for my collection!

You're a cruel, hard man! Although admittedly I did go to the Botanical Gardens today and picked up the two Black Petiole baronii you sent down to me as well as the Calamus muelleri that you bought for me at last year's PACSOA show... and you're sending me some G undata seed that you ordered for me from RPS...soooo... my case against you is not looking too flash, lol!

There’s a stack of palms up for grabs, at the pacsoa show this year. So for all those palm nuts out there head on up to Brisbane botanical gardens for a palm or two!

Oh yeah drive it like you stole it hey! I reckon you’ll be in with a chance of growing one around the back of your house in a protected shaded corner in a container. Richard

They will grow for you in your grow room, and might even grow in the ground with a bit of winter protection could be worth a try!

Theres plenty at the pacsoa show in Brisbane today, such a pity you can’t be here, what a shame!

I think there’s still a bit of good stuff that'll be left over for you!

Then all you cold climate growers will have all the good stuff!

Send 'em south! You know you want to!