All Activity

Here are a few cycas currently flushing around the garden. Cycas maconochiei Cycas siamensis. I grew this from seed I got about 20 years ago. A Cycas siamensis “dwarf” in the foreground that was flushing and got smashed by a Bismarkia palm frond from a storm that passed through a few night ago. In the background is another Cycas siamensis flushing. Cycas revoluta was pretty common around here until a few years ago. Scale has killed off most of them but I’ve been able to keep this one in check. It seems to like my soil prep area.

Hi Jim! Also in the Bay Area (Peninsula) and have a foxy lady seedling to plant. Do you remember the sun exposure yours had when you planted it as a seedling 10 years ago? Should I find a full shade spot where it has to mature/grow to reach full sun exposure?

New one available: Phoenix theophrasti. $3 per germinated seed.

Once you get that mulch on the ground it’s a game changer, it’s one thing to plant a heap of palms and let them grow on own , but if you tend to them and add a little plant culture along the way they respond much better and grow a lot happier. You can see the difference straight away, good mulch and water and palms grow a lot healthier once the mycelium start to take affect and begin eating that soil becomes just what they want. And another great benefit is the decorative affect with all sorts of colours in mulch materials, along with using a light coloured mulch it reflects light back up, using a dark coloured mulch you heat the ground up faster great gor that extra warmth in winter. Richard

@Hennyhana I have a bunch of them too, some just generic. In the front yard is a kinda-solitary tall Cerifera, but it's been shaded by a Sabal Causiarum and losing some of the silver. But it is also growing loooong petioles in the shade, which is interesting too. Also up front is a sorta-Cerifera with a nice silver-blue color. In the backyard I have a single trunk generic green, a Vulcano, and a very clustery generic type. When I am at local nurseries I check their stock for anything odd.

@Robert Cade Ross If you are moving to Florida, there are some public places where you can collect seed. I think the seed needs to be collected fairly fresh though, as everything I saw (at a couple of different locations) had damage from boring insects.

Hallelujah it’s raining seeds!

I’ve seen @DoomsDave R. Oleracae in person a few times . It is a real stunner. He has named her well! I planted mine in a very protected spot out front and it grows well there. Unfortunately , until about 5 years ago when I joined this forum , I found out that I was not giving it enough water. Now it gets water , water , water . I also give it a bunch of organic fertilizer 4 times a a year. It is coming back slowly . The fronds are almost twice the size they were and the trunk has that swelling they are known for. Harry

About two inches for me today in the plastic rain guage, so im hoping it is correct but dont ever trust these they always drop when they get closer in time.

Yes , they should fall off easily . The C. Decipiens I had experience with literally rained seeds every time I went to gather them. They were green in color , about the size of a marble or a bit larger. Harry

Ever so subtle.

I sprouted Nenga seeds last year and had an albino as well. It died quickly...

Yes, that Black Wings one is really nice! Beautiful displays in Hilo. A place I would enjoy visiting sometime.

They’re definitely more tender to the cold. A big one died on me in the big freeze of 2007. (Small regias survived nearby no problem.) Got this one as a fiver from Mardy Darian, and it’s been a rocket.

When they fall onto the ground or with a bit of a nudge. Ain’t that right @Harry’s Palms ?

Fausto = headed toward ..but will swing just north of.. the Hawaiian Islands, though increased showers / breeziness, and increased surf conditions may still effect some areas out there as it passes by.. Genevieve = First E. Pac. storm / U.S. Hurricane to reach Cat 5 status. https://www.sacbee.com/news/weather-news/article316674317.html ..While some outer bands on it's northeastern side may swipe at Socorro Island as it passes, storm will remain a fish storm as it heads further out into the Pacific. That said, it will help generate 8 to 10'+ swell along beaches across Southern CA.. ...and will likely play a big part in the upcoming heatwave across the region later this week / into the start of next week..

Yeah the place has been testing me lately. I got the outside nursery panel back up again yesterday just before sundown. Will cable tie frost cloth back up today. The weekend is project “rebuild greenhouse”. Ahhh it needed some love anyway. Will re establish the guy wires and stitch in new black shade cloth. Never grow Pinus radiata.

Your contraption looks great and your Rhopalostylis looks awesome. Yeah a negative 2.3C would have me out with the gas heater and probably another wood fire and an industrial fan to distribute the hot air. I’m trying to still create canopy so if I have to do that once a decade maybe twice I’m ok with that. The majority of the garden is built to withstand those sort of temps. My marginal stuff will go in the most protected area close together for that reason. If I get stupid and plant a marginal out in the freezer then that’s my stupid fault if they die. I hope winter will ease off for you now.

07 /27 Shore Station Data check: Scripps Pier < Surface > S.P. < bottom > San Clemente Newport Beach Zuma Beach Santa Barbara Granite Canyon / Pac. Grove station data hasn't been updated. Farallon Islnd. / Trinidad Beach stations = SSTs currently in the upper 50s. ..Additional data from around S.Cal. on 7/25 via Colin McCartney < US_Stormwatch > ** Approach ** 80F? ..My bet? W/ the high likelyhood of an extended period of high pressure setting up over the area later this week / sitting there into -at least- the start of next week = Near Shore SSTs exceed 80F somewhere down there, soon..

I brought back seed from the Coastal Botanical Garden near Savannah a few years back. Nothing ever came up lol. But apparently they are erratic germinators with strong dormancy and can sometimes take years to sprout (?)

post the mini deluge it looks like over an inch in my straight walled bucket. Haven't seen a soaking like that in a couple months it seems. My palms seem more vibrant, maybe less weeping. The retention ponds are still more than foot low, seems like that isn't changing. The lack of sun is much appreciated, its relative absence each day for a few hours lately helps the palms in this drought.

I did not know this. How do you know when they are ready to sow?

Start by looking at the Cycads Cones and Flushes topic in this forum. Lots of people here making seed and rooted offsets.

calyptrocalyx pachystachys

Looks male, to me. There's no sterile scales at the apex, plus they're emerged including the peduncle at this point.