East Side around the House

[PalmatierMeg 5,460]

Today I continued my photo record of our landscaping escapades by focusing on the east side of the house. In the swale near the street I planted a bald cypress. I love how they grow "knees" in the Everglades. Cape Coral has started landscaping water runoff areas with cypress and some of them have developed really cool knees. Just above the swale, on the slope - bad idea - I put in an 8x8 Euphorbia garden. This was before we acquired our garden lot and had little room left for my goofy ideas. So, some of the tall Euphorbias have a tendency to list or fall over.

I missed this little Livistona nitida when I photographed Sabal Row. It's actually not on my property but no one has complained yet.

From the street side looking south

Our monster Roystonea regia. We planted it over 20 years ago as a willowy sapling. It's fixing to rain down 1000s of little seeds.

[DoomsDave 8,499]

Please Mr. Roystonea! Don't eat me!

[PalmatierMeg 5,460]

Past the royal there used to be a handmade trellis covered with viney things. But last fall we realized the trellis had rotted so we tore it down and yanked out the vines. The area beside the house was overrun with heliconias (what else?), Sansevieria, ornamental bananas and oyster plants. You couldn't walk back there and the blob of plant matter kept trying to assassinate my palms (the bananas actually smothered my Ptychosperma carytoides to death and I've never found another). So over the course of several days last fall we dug up and trashed all the offenders - except the @#^$&* heliconias keep trying to return. We have since covered the area with wood chip mulch. My palms breathe easier and so do I.

Side by side are a Thrinax? Leucothrinax? and the Sabal minor featured in another topic.

Serenoa repens Silver #1, Chamaerops argentea, Serenoa repens Silver #2. They are much happier now the palms around them grew tall enough to let in more sun.

This is the one banana my husband kept. It's dwarf and produces edible fruit.

Archonotophoenix alexandrae produced seeds for the first time last month

[PalmatierMeg 5,460]

My two largest Chamaedorea hooperiana in pots behind the Alexander. I am waiting to see how well they take the increasingly harsh morning sun before I commit to planting them.

Our third huge Livistona decora in the ground around 5 years

Coccothrinax sp stretched out but still looking elegant

Carpentaria acuminata

[PalmatierMeg 5,460]

Chamaedorea seifrizii in pot undergoing the morning sun test before planting.

Archonotophoenix tuckeri holding back evil Dutchman's pipe vine

Offending Dutchman's pipe

My small and large Dioscorea macrostachya

At the end of the garden looking north. Dwarf powder puff

Chamaedorea stolonifera outside lanai screen. Takes forever for them to spread.

[PalmatierMeg 5,460]

And, finally, our five Adonidias (double & triple) and two Veitchia joannis. I bought them in Dec. 2005 for $1.00 per pot ($5 total) from a trailer in a church parking lot in Homestead. I didn't even know for sure what they were but getting 4' tall palms for a $1.00 was too much of a deal to pass up.

Adonidias

Veitchia joannis. We just cut and composted crops of golfball size seeds from both. No one wants them.

[Brahea Axel 265]

Beautiful healthy palms, you're obviously within zone 10a, none of these look cold stressed at all!

[Kostas 154]

Looking awesome!!! I cant imagine how come none wants Veitchia joannis! One of the best looking species in my opinion! And they certainly dont look cold stressed for you!

The droopy leafed Coccothrinax looks very lush and tropical but tough as well!

[PalmatierMeg 5,460]

Thanks, guys. This our 3rd winter where lows didn't fall below 40F. That's the key. I know that mildness can't last and that's when stuff will start to look ratty or even die. Kostas, Veitchias are gorgeous, fast-growing palms but cold-sensitive. That's the only reason I can think of that few people in the US have interest in them. Sad to have to dump all those huge seeds. Same applies to Adonidias but they don't get nearly as large and can be kept in pots/boxes for a long time. Still, no interest so off to the compost pile.

[edric 626]

Real nice R. regia and L. decora Meg, Ed