Mounting Things on Palm Tree Trunks?

[voyager]

Being a Norther Tier native now living in Hawai'i, my palm tree experience is not very well developed.

I want to install a CCTV security camera along our driveway.

We have a colonnade of Alexander palms along each side of the drive.

From looking around the i-net, I find that, if done right, it could be mounted on one of those palms without damaging it other than superficially.

If I use SS fasteners and seal the  wounds against infections my impression is that this can be done without noticeably harming the tree.

Anyone have thought on this and/or suggestions on how to do it properly?

 

Edited May 24, 2016 by voyager

[Tropicgardener]

A huge array of epiphytic orchids such as Dendrobiums, Cattleyas, Vandas, Phaleonopsis etc. would do fine. You could also adorn the trunks with Platyceriums (Staghorns and Elkhorns)................I normally attach mine with soft stockings. Absolutely no damage to the palms............. Where I live here Alexandra Palms are local natives and in the rainforest they can be covered in epiphytes.

[voyager]

5 hours ago, Tropicgardener said:

A huge array of epiphytic orchids such as Dendrobiums, Cattleyas, Vandas, Phaleonopsis etc. would do fine. You could also adorn the trunks with Platyceriums (Staghorns and Elkhorns)................I normally attach mine with soft stockings. Absolutely no damage to the palms............. Where I live here Alexandra Palms are local natives and in the rainforest they can be covered in epiphytes.

I am a transplant from Alaska.

I grew orchids up there For over 10 years in my home, keeping as many as 75 of them.

In fact, I bought my home up there for the orchids.

It was a fish bowl, windows everywhere.

I have gone bonkers acquiring orchids since moving here to Hawai'i.

But, I do not keep them in the house any more.

I treat them like barn cats.

I throw throw them outside and let them fend for themselves now.

I'm on the windward side at about 800' with a USDA zone 11/12 climate.

I am absolutely enthralled by the fact that all the species Dendrobiums of the cool dry dry winter rest types that I specialized in  back in Alaska grow and bloom here with no extra care.

 All of those species Den's are mounted on the Alexander palms along the driveway, including a number of Rhynchostylis species, Maxilaria species, Vanda hybrids, Encyclia species, Catt species and hybrids  and the list goes on.

One thing though, the palms would not be a good place for the Phals, too  much light for them.

Those I am placing in my Geometry Tree [Bucida buceras].

They do very nicely there with all that tree's foliage to block direct sun light from the plant.

Some of the Vanda and Antelope hybrids have begun to seed and reproduce themselves.

I have seedling Vandas scattered through out the trees on the lot and expect to see antelope seedlings soon.

I have mounted so many orchids around the property on the palms and ohias that I am beginning to run out of places to mount more.

There! That's what you get for mentioning orchids to an orchid nut.

So, anyway back to my original question:

What about the thought of using one of those palms as a substrate for a CCTV camera?

 

 

 

Edited May 25, 2016 by voyager

[Steve Mac]

I always just nailed things straight to my palms and have never had a problem    

maybe just lucky.                       

[Rusty on Pine Is.]

There is no good way to insert a fastener into the trunk of a palm without risking  the introduction of secondary decline organisms.

Unlike trees that posses vascular cambium (oaks, maples, and pines for instance)  palm trunks lack the ability to wall off injury to prevent the introduction of insects and pathogens that can cause disease.  Trees with vascular cambium in effect create a new tree each year, and have differentiating tissue that makes new bark, cambium, phloem and xylem tissues and phyto chemicals that can prevent the introduction of disease by creating chemical barriers.......and at the same time increasing in diameter  to hopefully outgrow the pathogen.

Palms have no such ability, since they have trunks composed  fibers that are static, and cannot wall off injury.

No injury to the palm trunk is superficial, and the area cannot be "sealed" to prevent pathogen entry......and it really doesn't matter what the fastener is made of; it is not the fastener, but the hole it makes that creates that poses the problem.

Will your palms decline if you drill into them?  Well, maybe, and maybe not.

You will have to decide if it is worth the risk....

Good luck.

[Rusty on Pine Is.]

Btw, have you considered banding the hardware onto the trunk?  This would have less of a damaging effect if installed on a palm that has reached it's adult diameter, and wouldn't require any drilling or insertion of fasteners.

[Patrick]

They make steel strapping that you could use that would wrap around the trunk instead of nailing it. I don't recall the brand name of the equipment, but I did a quick search for "banding tool" and came up with the stuff. You have to use a special tool to tighten the banding and you can see what that looks like here:

http://www.uline.com/Grp_72/Steel-Strapping-Tools

 

I guess all that remains would be to find the bands and buckles in stainless, but they're around if you look

[JT in Japan]

>> All of those species Den's are mounted on the Alexander palms along the driveway, 

I'd love to see some shots of your pimped-out Alexanders.

JT

[mcrawford]

My mother used a hot glue gun to mount air plants (Tillandsia) to things.

This was outside and it neither harmed the plants, not was affected by the

weather.  Of course there is some weight limit to the hot glue...

[rprimbs]

3 hours ago, mcrawford said:

My mother used a hot glue gun to mount air plants (Tillandsia) to things.

This was outside and it neither harmed the plants, not was affected by the

weather.  Of course there is some weight limit to the hot glue...

Interesting idea.  Perhaps he could glue a board vertically on the trunk and mount to that.

[Palmdude]

How about Velcro straps?

[CLINODAVE]

I have a grunch of orchids that I was thinking about attaching to some Alexanders.  Does anyone have experience with doing this and, in particular, how likely falling fronds are to knock off the orchids?

[mcrawford]

Here are some naturally occurring epiphytes I shot in Oaxaca a few yrs ago.

Orchids as well as the Beaucarnea; which will get very large given time- but not up there.

 

 

[voyager]

Sorry folks. i started this thread and then got sidetracked by other pressing matters. I am concerned about the health my palms. Otherwise I wouldn't have come here with my question. Thanks Rusty. That confirms a niggling in the back of my mind about poking holes into a palm.

I'll get pics of my Kings [my understanding is that Alexander and King palms are the same] and the others too. I've ID most but there are a few I'm not sure what they are. I've got the Alexanders, 2  clumps of Sealing Wax [Cyrtostachys renda] that have merged into one, 3 Flamethrowers [ Chambeyronia macrocarpa], several clumps of a small light colored betel type, 4 young coconut types that are probably one of the large, tall varieties  and a couple of one that I have no idea as to what it is.

I'll look into "tying" the camera to the tree. I want to build a "bird house" to place the camera into, then attach that to the tree. Otherwise, I'll have to drill or jackhammer into the lava underlying our thin soil to place a post of some type to mount it on. I'm mostly wanting the camera to be seen but not too easy to disable. I think its best use is as a deterrent rather than an after the fact, find our who did it identification system. I want them to know it is there. After all, that one is not the only camera on the property and just knowing that it is there will stop most from going any further. The driveway is the only easy access to the property. Otherwise they'll need to hack their way through jungle, too much work.

@Clinodave

I have worried about the falling fronds tearing the orchids off the trunks. So far it hasn't happened. But, I think it is a real possibility, possibly just one of those hazards that have to be dealt with from mounting them on a palm. So far, the fronds have fallen away from the trunk, not down it. Plus I check them almost every morning, often pulling the dead fronds off the tree before they fall. But, now they're getting too tall to be able to reach the hanging fronds. The further that have to fall, the more likely I think it'll be that they fall away from the tree.

I'll work on gathering up and getting more pics of my palms and palm mounted orchids to post here.

Thanks folks.

 

 

 

Edited June 1, 2016 by voyager

[Alicehunter2000]

The nylon strap idea is good....Velcro or those come a long ratchet straps. I have a hammock using the ratchet type....hold more than enough weight for a camera.

[hbernstein]

On 5/25/2016, 10:10:36, Rusty on Pine Is. said:

Btw, have you considered banding the hardware onto the trunk?  This would have less of a damaging effect if installed on a palm that has reached it's adult diameter, and wouldn't require any drilling or insertion of fasteners.

I would not use steel straps on  palm trunks. Trunks can expand and contract slightly over time with abundant or scarce water uptake. Strapping inevitably wounds the trunks.

[Monòver]

On 28/5/2016 22:31:07, mcrawford said:

Here are some naturally occurring epiphytes I shot in Oaxaca a few yrs ago.

Orchids as well as the Beaucarnea; which will get very large given time- but not up there.

 

 

Beucarnea growing ephiphythe!!!

And what is the specie?

[mcrawford]

B. recurvata, I believe.

I have seen these, in the proper

setting, growing to 7-8' diameter

base-but not while up in another tree!

[voyager]

OK, some photos -

Some palms:

Alexanders

 

Chambeyronia macrocarpa

 

Cyrtostachys renda

This Sealing Wax palm is my favorite. The fronds were damaged about 1-1/2 years ago when hurricane Iselle blew through. It is a slow grower.

 

This little jewel is unknown to me. I have not been able to ID it. Can anyone help?

Then I also have many Arecas scattered around the property, a solitary fan palm, and several clumps of a small almost yellow in color Betel palms.

Photos at a later date.

Now, orchids mounted on palms:

Max. tenuifolia

NoID Vanda Intergenerics

D. aggregatum + D. pendulum

Den. aggragatum [lindleyi] in bloom

D. anosmum + NoID Catt. Intergeneric

Den. anosmum in bloom

 

D. crystallinum + 2X Rhynch. gigantia

Rhynch. gigantia in Bloom

 

D. polyanthum + D. loddigessi with Areca behind

D. primulinum

Ency. odoratissima, a most exquisite fragrance on a mud fence flower

 

An Equitant oncidium hybrid up high, a Den. Mousmee hybrid in the middle and a NoID Catt intergeneric down low

I've got a few more, but that is more than enough for now. I'm getting tired.

[mcrawford]

Loran Whitelock had a couple dead palm trunks, about 6-8' tall,

on which he placed on top Bromeliads.  I can't find a photo, but

they were very interesting looking and always solicited a few

"what is that?" responses from non-palm people. 

[Kim]

6 hours ago, voyager said:

 

 

This little jewel is unknown to me. I have not been able to ID it. Can anyone help?

 

Looks like you might be in Leilani Estates?  Anyway, it resembles my neighborhood. (If I had to guess, I'd say you're on Kahukai.) Your beautiful palm appears to be Clinostigma samoense, a very fast grower, can put on 3-4 ft. of trunk a year. The rings on yours look very close together -- clear away the grass, fertilize with a slow-release containing micro-nutrients and it will push upward!

About the cameras, have you had problems on your property?

[voyager]

5 hours ago, mcrawford said:

Loran Whitelock had a couple dead palm trunks, about 6-8' tall,

on which he placed on top Bromeliads.  I can't find a photo, but

they were very interesting looking and always solicited a few

"what is that?" responses from non-palm people. 

I've been mounting Broms and orchids on the stumps of Ohias that have been blown down by storms or killed by ROD.

4 hours ago, Kim said:

Looks like you might be in Leilani Estates?  Anyway, it resembles my neighborhood. (If I had to guess, I'd say you're on Kahukai.) Your beautiful palm appears to be Clinostigma samoense, a very fast grower, can put on 3-4 ft. of trunk a year. The rings on yours look very close together -- clear away the grass, fertilize with a slow-release containing micro-nutrients and it will push upward!

About the cameras, have you had problems on your property?

Very perceptive Kim, only about 1/4 mile off Kahukai near its mid point.

That is my palm, nice to know what it is.

As you can see I am not a meticulous gardener. My barn-cat orchid strategy is applied to almost everything I grow. I'm getting ready to remove the rock ring around that palm and apply mulch to that area. I find that rock rings around plantings just creates more work I'd rather not be doing. My weeding mostly consists of noticing that the jungle has encroach several feet along the edges. Then, I attack it wildly where it has encroached the most with the brush cutter. Then, I wander off to something else until the next encounter with the encroachments.

While I do want that little palm to be healthy, I'm not sure I want it to be growing 3 -4'/yr. After the high wind episodes through the last couple of years, I'm a bit leery of too tall of trees too close to the house. The Kona wind about a year or so ago blew down an ohia that stopped falling just before it actually struck the lanai. I had to crawl up onto the roof before the winds died with a chainsaw to cut it up before it fell further and actually made contact with the roof.

I moved to Alaska during the pipeline days and lived there for almost 35 years before retiring to here. I'm not intimidated by what most would consider "lawlessness". I can take care of mine and myself. With that said, a next door neighbor's house was burglarized with furnishings stolen. Occasionally, you hear about other burglaries and invasions from HPP to LE. Then, the residents on the local neighborhood website are in an almost constant "chicken little" mode with reports of strangers walking and driving around looking down driveways, etc. While I discount most of them, at M'Lady's insistence, I have bought and installed a video surveillance system. Cameras are installed around the exterior of the house. No one can approach the house without being seen and recorded. I think an obvious camera on the driveway would be the most effective as a deterrent.  I'd rather that than trying to figure out who violated us after the fact.

 

[voyager]

@ Kim

Yeah, I know it's been over 3 years since I posted this thread'

I'm getting ready to ask for advice on another palm.

But, I do have an update on the Samoan.

The ring around the base of that palm in the above older photo, was a ring of lava rocks mortared together by the previous owner.

Shortly after your response above, I broke up and removed that ring of rocks adding cinders around the base of the tree and tapering them out away from the tree.

I have done nothing else other than fertilizing one time.

Apparently that ring was  restricting root growth and development.

Its growth rate has increased since removing the ring.

We have a second Samoan palm in the back portion of the yard area.

It has been pretty much been left to its own devices and seems to have been doing much better than the other.

I have been enlarging the yard area by adding and leveling cinders around this palm.

I'll be adding a couple of sheds, one on either side of the palm and in front of it.

I began this project before the eruption.

I does not seem to have had any affect on the palm.

We sustained some, but little permanent damage due to the eruption.

Off to start another thread about propagating our  Cyrtostachys renda,  Sealing Wax Palm.

 

[Leo Farnsworth]

On 5/27/2016 at 10:07 AM, mcrawford said:

My mother used a hot glue gun to mount air plants (Tillandsia) to things.

This was outside and it neither harmed the plants, not was affected by the

weather.  Of course there is some weight limit to the hot glue...

Brilliant solution.  So smart and aestheticlly pleasing versus a strap around the tree. I'm going to take a 1"by 2" piece of wood, about four inches long, paint it the color of the tree, glue it to the tree and screw the camera mount into the 1x2.  Will let you all know how it comes out.

Glue will not hurt the tree will it?  The camera might fall at some point, but the tree will be fine right?

[UK_Palms]

I’m not sure how relevant this is, but I have spotted a number of bird feeders attached to CIDP trunks in London & southern England. Here is one I photographed this year…

[Cocoa Beach Jason]

I’ve used long zip ties to hold orchids on to kings and other palms. This has been successful for me. On some palms I removed the zip ties once the palm’s roots have secured the orchid to the tree. I quit removing the zip ties lately and just leave them for support during storms. You can buy extra long zip ties online. If the trunk is really massive you can connect more zip ties together in a chain and then wrap them around the palm. 

Edited May 28, 2022 by Cocoa Beach Jason

[Merlyn]

I like the idea of velcro for attaching lightweight things like cameras.  At one point I had staked a Beccariophoenix Alfredii with a big PVC pipe hammered into the ground and a fairly stout nylon rope wrapped around it.  I had it tied reasonably tight, and it worked great to pull the crown back vertical.  And...then I forgot about it.  A year later I realized I hadn't removed the rope, and the trunk had expanded enough to pull the rope insanely tight and create a pinch point.  Fortunately it had only squished a couple of old leaf bases, but I think a nylon strap, metal band, ziptie, or anything rigid could do the same thing.  Velcro can slip a little bit in shear (expanding diameter) and still stay attached, at least within reason.  And because it's capable of slipping and increasing diameter, it probably wouldn't create a constriction in the trunk.