Afternoon in Leu

[Kailua_Krish]

Hi all,

I took a stroll through Leu gardens on Monday and was amazed as I had never seen it before. Here are some photos I took of interesting things and I have some questions to go along with them!

I was amazed by how big the Arenga engleris were! How old do you think a 12 footer is?

The way that Leu uses chiniensis and saribus to create a tropical jungle feel is amazing... I am now working on this in my yard.

[Kailua_Krish]

They had two Butia x Parajubaea there. One looked ok and the other looked robust but the one that looked robust had spines on the petiole and looked a lot like a butia!

The normal one

Robust one

[Kailua_Krish]

There were 3 Butia purpurascens, each looked slightly different, and only one didnt have spines on the petioles. I thought this species was only supposed to be spineless?

First One

Second One

This was the one without spines

[Kailua_Krish]

The rare palm, Sabal miamiensis

[Kailua_Krish]

Random plants I liked

Sabal lisa

Livistona fulva

Curcuma I have but no idea what it is

Nice ornamental banana mixed in with everything

[Kailua_Krish]

Plants that people say dont do well in Central Florida

D. decipiens (I have one of these in Ocala that grows well but slow)

Parajubaea sunkha, a lot of people say this wont grow in the southeast but this specimen looks better than the B x P hybrid. It is very healthy looking. (I also have a healthy looking one, but not this big)

Other palms that I have heard are difficult or impossible to grow in Florida

Hedeyscape

Howea belmoreana

Rhopie baueri

Thats all!

-Krishna

[sarasota alex]

Plants that people say dont do well in Central Florida

D. decipiens (I have one of these in Ocala that grows well but slow)

Parajubaea sunkha, a lot of people say this wont grow in the southeast but this specimen looks better than the B x P hybrid. It is very healthy looking. (I also have a healthy looking one, but not this big)

Other palms that I have heard are difficult or impossible to grow in Florida

Hedeyscape

Howea belmoreana

Rhopie baueri

Thats all!

-Krishna

Krishna, thanks for the pics! And kudos to Leu for pushing the envelope!

[freakypalmguy]

Nice pics Krishna, thanks for taking the time to post them.

The B X P.c. with the thorns is interesting. I have one that ended up with thorns so it's believed to be just straight Butia. I'll have to say, I'm still uncertain. I know that the consensus is, if it has thorns it's not a hybrid, but I can't help but think that as variable as hybrids are, that occasionally one might have armament, especially since the mother (Butia) is armed. Couldn't it be possible that the mother traits are more dominant in some of the offspring? One example of an armed hybrid is Butia X Jubea with the latter being unarmed. As few B X P.c. as there are that are mature, can we definitively say for sure, that all will be unarmed?

My plant is much faster than any Butia I've ever seen, but sure looks like a Butia, but maybe a bit different. Only time will tell for sure. I know that there are others with this hybrid as well that have come up blue when they were all believed to come up green. Or quite possibly a contaminated batch slipped through.

Well, I'm running for cover after making such outrageous allegations Actually, I'm just thinking out loud and am very interested to hear others opinions are on this topic.

Matt

Edited June 9, 2010 by freakypalmguy

[BeerPlant]

Curcuma I have but no idea what it is

Looks like Curcuma 'Scarlet Fever' - I just put it in the ground last year and is my best performer so i'm a big fan of this one!

[Kailua_Krish]

Nice pics Krishna, thanks for taking the time to post them.

The B X P.c. with the thorns is interesting. I have one that ended up with thorns so it's believed to be just straight Butia. I'll have to say, I'm still uncertain. I know that the consensus is, if it has thorns it's not a hybrid, but I can't help but think that as variable as hybrids are, that occasionally one might have armament, especially since the mother (Butia) is armed. Couldn't it be possible that the mother traits are more dominant in some of the offspring? One example of an armed hybrid is Butia X Jubea with the latter being unarmed. As few B X P.c. as there are that are mature, can we definitively say for sure, that all will be unarmed?

My plant is much faster than any Butia I've ever seen, but sure looks like a Butia, but maybe a bit different. Only time will tell for sure. I know that there are others with this hybrid as well that have come up blue when they were all believed to come up green. Or quite possibly a contaminated batch slipped through.

Well, I'm running for cover after making such outrageous allegations Actually, I'm just thinking out loud and am very interested to hear others opinions are on this topic.

Matt

I was thinking along those lines but the one I saw a Leu looked an awful lot like a straight Butia, the fronds were very induplicate (thats V shaped, right?) and had a strong curve on the end. I was very surprised that the P. sunkha looked better than the hybrid that looked more like a hybrid!

-Krishna

P.S. I just got a seedling of this hybrid and I'm very excited about it! Hopefully it will grow faster than my P. sunkha which while robust is a slow poke!

Also Bill thanks for the ID, it has performed very well for me too and the sun really brings out the red in these. Leu has these scattered about in the understory and while the red isnt as bright as those in more sun it gave it an amazingly tropical feel!

Edited June 9, 2010 by krishnaraoji88

[PalmatierMeg]

Thanks, Krishna. Great photos of not-so-common-in-FL palms. That S. miamiensis looks like it's seeding. Hope someone at Leu harvests them.

[Kailua_Krish]

Thanks, Krishna. Great photos of not-so-common-in-FL palms. That S. miamiensis looks like it's seeding. Hope someone at Leu harvests them.

I would hope so, it looks as if its been seeding for a while. I took all the pictures of it as it was a good example of distinguishing characteristics for S. miamiensis, the fronds that were so folded as to look like praying hands and the three orders or branching on the inflorescence. I recently got a seedling a purported S. miamiensis but it isnt large enough to be able to confirm that identity yet.

-Krishna

[PalmatierMeg]

Thanks, Krishna. Great photos of not-so-common-in-FL palms. That S. miamiensis looks like it's seeding. Hope someone at Leu harvests them.

I would hope so, it looks as if its been seeding for a while. I took all the pictures of it as it was a good example of distinguishing characteristics for S. miamiensis, the fronds that were so folded as to look like praying hands and the three orders or branching on the inflorescence. I recently got a seedling a purported S. miamiensis but it isnt large enough to be able to confirm that identity yet.

-Krishna

I have a seedling too. Very slow, just put out its 5th strap leaf but it had a rough go the first year. I thought I'd lost it. I hope to plant it in the front garden in the next couple weeks. But I would mind trying a few of those seeds.