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Leptotes pohlitinocoi with its first flower in my garden. It isn't putting on the same display that my Leptotes bicolor are but it is a younger plant. Maxillaria tenufolia is sharing it's fragrant blooms again too.

I think the fact that there are a low number of sabals in CA has many reasons. There is no one reason, things are not that simple. If you really want to know, ask a nurseryman in california why they don't offer many sabals, seed is super cheap. You cant buy what they dont carry and give me a reason why choose a sabal over prichardia or bismarckia if you want a less common fan palm(dont want a washie). Conduct a poll here among californians and see who wants to grow a yard with multiple sabals. Then look where they live coastal or inland. Or ask if a sabal is a top 5 palm for them. Sabals can be grown in california, the one that inspired me to buy a causiarum was from between LA and san diego on elevated ground(above sea level) and inland a bit but with lots of trees/vegetation on the lot(none overhead). But perhaps 80% of growers know nothing about palm choices. The grower of the saba Causiarum I was inspired by was a knowledgeable, grower and yes it was rare in CA 15 years ago and still is. It was a monster similar to mine these days. But if you want an idiot proof palm to sell with a warranty, I don't think nurseries want a sabal. "Hard to grow" depends on how much effort you want to put in. For palm aficionados its different than most people who want something that will look nice with low effort. I see all kinds of palm abuse around me in florida from low effort. One guy ripped out a bismarckia with 6' clear trunk that had lost half the crown in hurricane milton. I still maintain that californians have many choices, hundreds even, and they are not particularly inspired by sabals. I am willing to bet that 75% of all palm talkers would choose a feather palm over a fan palm. The market is the market and what is not offered will limit what is grown. Ask Phil at Jungle Music why he doesnt sell many sabals.

Sedirea (Aerides) japonica in bloom.

So cool... Butch

Well done with that Erythrina-they seem to be tricky to keep going, at least for me anyway.

Dioon edule, “Palma Sola” pushing up its first Encephalartos cerinus with a new frond

It is such a pleasure to have something much color popping all at once. I enjoy walking around my garden with my granddaughter and showing her the orchids that are both in bloom and yhe ones with flower spikes getting ready for the next display. She really warmed my heart when she said she wants to grow orchids "when she gets big". We wi)l see what a 3 year old considers "big" in the coming years. You have a lot of variety blooming now to enjoy. Hopefully some are also fragrant to appeal to a different sensory mode.

Cold is key to fungal infection, arizona soils are generally not very cold in winter since even when temps dropped to 21F in 2007 it was 60F by 2PM. Longer cold spells with too much irrigation can be an issue. Northern CA and coastal soils are much cooler in winters than inland Cal where everything dries out faster. Also there is Plenty of dry ground around those AZ washies to grow roots. If I grow one next to a slab, half the roots will see cont8inual moisture and half will not. Habitat for W filifera in AZ is at 4500 feet elevation NW of phoenix with steep slopes where water is very temporary from rainfall. No fossils were ever discovered int he sonoran desert where tempe is. ufl.edu https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu › publication › pdf Filiferas get root rot in Florida due to overwatering.

Congratulation on finding that Black Sphinx. I have one in my yard that i planted in 2018. I had my first full harvest in 2025, it took my 7 years to get that harvest. I have sort of a pedigree doc about the trees source dating back to the first one in 1928. Mine hasn't bloomed this year yet but it should push blossoms soon. I had 7 blooms on it last year and pollinated with male pollinator palm i had access to with 100% success. Absolutely love this date, i think its the best tasting palm date out there. Here are some pictures.

I just bought another cubic metre of life saving sandy soil. Without it I am sure that many of my plants would be dead now with all this rain..

I have had palm trees in the yard since I have lived in Texas. However, over the past 6 years or so. We have had 2 major freezes including the 2021 disaster that decimated the palms around my property. We have decided this year to replace the Pindo's and Texas sables in the back yard. My usual practice over the years was to wrap the trunks for winter but after the last 2 big freezes. This was not enough. So with all new trees in the back yard now. I need to step up my game in palm protection since the DFW area has now changed with regular freezes. I would like to wrap the trees like i saw in TN Tropics video. They had a light weight round enclosure that would work nice to keep some incandescent lights under. My new plan for winter is to tie up the fronds. Then put some type of plastic chicken wire around them. Then wrap the tree with incandescent mini lights. Then wrap the trunk and fronds with planket from home depot. Next I will put tarp over the fronds and top of plam and secure. I have remote temerature gauge to know when to turn on the lights. Next i would like to cover the whole thing with the round wrap enclosure I seen from TN Tropics video. Can someone tell me where I can get this cover? It looks light weight and easy to maintain, rather than building a box out of pvc and putting tarp over it. Looks easy to store.

These guys are all blooming now

Not had any issues myself but I've read mixed reports on how they perform in oceanic climates compared to odorata despite coming from a climate which should be more similar. I think there is just a lot of variation. They're way less common here though. Most UK nurserys only stock odorata nowadays.

One last choking gasp of summer? Nice week ahead!

Interesting solution, unfortunately playing with hydrochloric acid is not too my liking, but possible I suppose.

Hey! The washingtonia is looking good and it grew one leaf since the last post and i had my birthday in early april and my frienda bought me clumping queen palms which they said are the "Santa Catarina" variety, and so I planted it in ground by the washingtonia where its sheltered from north winds and they are looking good, no sun scorch despite UV indexs of 8 a few times. Temps are stable, mostly 20-24C with occasional rain and lows above 10C.

Nice B. Eriospatha. I've heard they are more cold hardy than B. capitata.

Nice Butia pics from Naval Air Station. Those are many years old and should still have many years of growing left.

I can relate to the cost of water, although I have a bore for water , the electric bill is paying for that. I wouldn’t use crystals I know the o ez you’re talking about. What I would do is mulch and I would put a one inch plastic pipe about one foot down or as deep as you can get, this way it give the ground a deep watering. Also a 5 litre water bottle with a small hole in it to slowly drip out. But mulch is the go!

Three for the price of one, archontophoenix Cunninghamiana, dypsis saintlucei and Arenga engleri.

Alas, it is the high water needs combined with high water price. This causes a restricted water supply during summer, which leads to los of foliage and half brown leaves. I mean thus a deterioration in look within same year. Fortunately temperature needs of this hybrid are not high and therefore it can replace lost foliage during the cold/cool season. Truth is that it barely moves during the hot months. Do you think that drilling holes in the soil around the trunk and filling them in with water retention stuff such as silica crystals, would help somehow?

Bees are a welcome addition in getting attention! IMG_1608.mov

Ravenea glauca

One of Royals opening a new frond

The potting bench this time. If I put a little thought into it life will be easier potting up. So it was time to get the welder and start building. Iam never building anything out of timber in the bush again, this steal structure should see me out and a few years beyond that.