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The ugliest palm


steve99

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I've seen some ugly palms before, but surely this group of Caryota I saw while working in Brisbane today is the ugliest of them all?   I doudt I'll ever plant this species in my garden !   Then agian, some Palmtalkers might think they look fantastic.  :evil:

 

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yikes!

Caryota maxima and urens are very short lived palms indeed

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Carlsbad, California Zone 10 B on the hill (402 ft. elevation)

Sunset zone 24

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For me its coconut,palmera and royal palms we had coconut and royals in our garden.we had to cut it down as it was droping dried fronds and nuts into our neighbour's house.in that area they used to park their vehicles and their kids used to play.

These palms are good only to ranches or farm house in rural areas or city outskirts.

And its very common to my place..

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love conquers all..

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Yeah, I'd think those looked better before flowering?

For me, the Gaussia genus is up there in terms of fugly palms!

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Ben Rogers

On the border of Concord & Clayton in the East Bay hills - Elev 387 ft 37.95 °N, 121.94 °W

My back yard weather station: http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/hdfForecast?query=37.954%2C-121.945&sp=KCACONCO37

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Some Chamaerops mutants are pretty ugly. Like dick douglas Chamaerops:

image.thumb.jpeg.1b038ad88524b9d0c7ebab7

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Los Angeles, CA and Myrtle Beach, SC.

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2 minutes ago, Brad Mondel said:

Some Chamaerops mutants are pretty ugly. Like dick douglas Chamaerops:

image.thumb.jpeg.1b038ad88524b9d0c7ebab7

Yeah, that's another bad one.  Patric Schafer tried to get me to take one of those...yeah, no thanks!!

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Ben Rogers

On the border of Concord & Clayton in the East Bay hills - Elev 387 ft 37.95 °N, 121.94 °W

My back yard weather station: http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/hdfForecast?query=37.954%2C-121.945&sp=KCACONCO37

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Ugly in my eyes are those old 100' W. robusta. A tiny crown of leaves on top of a ridiculously elongated skinny 100' trunk.

Cheers, Barrie.

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Poorly grown Majestics and Queens top my list.

 

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Andrew,
Airlie Beach, Whitsundays

Tropical Queensland

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On ‎7‎/‎1‎/‎2016‎ ‎9‎:‎10‎:‎16‎, steve99 said:

Yep, probably planted some time back in the 70's  

 

 

Well, that's like judging how someone looked 40 years ago now that their teeth have fallen out, their ears have sprouted hair, and doctor visits are the only exercise they get.

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Overtrimmed, yellowing Sabals- come to Northwest Florida to see these galore!!!

aa3.thumb.jpg.0dff74aedf111942bad6ae0a2b

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Trachycarpus fortunei growing in hot Med climates or by the sea in cooler climates , like this one in the UK...

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Malta - USDA Zone 11a

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20 hours ago, Brad Mondel said:

Some Chamaerops mutants are pretty ugly. Like dick douglas Chamaerops:

image.thumb.jpeg.1b038ad88524b9d0c7ebab7

I would still grow that one though, just for the curiosity.

I have seen some fairly attractive and impressive Caryota, but many are pretty homely (to just plain ugly).  I knew there was a reason I had none and have passed over on free seed many times.  I agree with Gaussia being an ugly genus.  Slender crownshaft palms are my favorite, but Gaussia fits well with what an ugly slender crownshaft palm would look like! :rolleyes:  Nonetheless, I have a Gaussia maya growing in the shade next to a large oak and it has not yet developed the ugly, ratty characteristics,

Cocos, no way, but I have seen some un-cared for individuals that were.

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Neglected Manila Palms (adonidia merrillii) in Manila. When neglected they tend to not grow straight and termites love them and unfortunately there's far more neglected, then cared for Manila Palms in Manila.
 

The best ones I have seen in the Philippines are in Batanes Island, 2nd pic......Also, Makiling Botanical Garden has some nice tall ones.

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The perennial favorite in California will always be a neglected Washingtonia robusta !

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San Francisco, California

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18 hours ago, Opal92 said:

Overtrimmed, yellowing Sabals- come to Northwest Florida to see these galore!!!

aa3.thumb.jpg.0dff74aedf111942bad6ae0a2b

Agreed. In my opinion, they should be planted from pots, not transplanted, in this area.

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Woodville, FL

zone 8b

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Double agreed.  I don't understand why my local government plants these guys everywhere only to hack them to death.  It makes me cringe. 

image.jpeg

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  • 2 weeks later...

20160712_173627.thumb.jpg.89e1f7c9301f26Here is a still of a young date palm which was a disturbance to pedestrians. ...and see what they have done.in the name of trimming. This house is in my neighbour hood.

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Btw. I used to admire this date palm as its fronds were dark green in colour. And hoped that it grow up into healthy date palm bearing fruits.

But people have virtually destroyed it. And made it appear ugly.

 

Edited by Kris
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love conquers all..

43278.gif

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Ive Always Loved Palmetto palms like these

url.jpg.ff543f70c8c1c2b5f111aefcd2f82ad0

but not overtrimmed like these

cabbage-sabal-palm-trees-hurricane-cut-b

Uglier still are the untrimmed Washingtonias with their shaggy old man beards.

5786607390890_BolsaChicaWetlandsHuntingt

also, short pindo palms arent quite attractive either.

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and who could forget the potted majesty palms?  (basically they are just ferns.majesty_palm.png.fa9c98e3230ace9bf0644c7

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Got no pictures. Queen Palms in South Florida have got to be among the world champs of Arecaceae ugliness. Typically nutrient starved, underwatered, and improperly planted. They seem to be used as a cheap afterthought when landscaping is the last thing that a developer or homeowner wants to spend any money on.

Edited by hbernstein
grammar
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12 hours ago, hbernstein said:

Got no pictures. Queen Palms in South Florida have got to be among the world champs of Arecaceae ugliness. Typically nutrient starved, underwatered, and improperly planted. They seem to be used as a cheap afterthought when landscaping is the last thing that a developer or homeowner wants to spend any money on.

they grow in georgia and look even worse there!  they also look bad in the western states as they wither during droughts and virtually die of dehydration.  heres one in georgia578665df49276_ScreenShot2016-07-14at12.4

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How about queens that don't get ANY water during the hot summer months in California? oh yeah.....

 

Screen_Shot_2016_07_13_at_1_07_50_PM.png

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On 7/3/2016, 4:23:36, Gonzer said:

Well, that's like judging how someone looked 40 years ago now that their teeth have fallen out, their ears have sprouted hair, and doctor visits are the only exercise they get.

I have to agree.  A nicely grown and not oversized Caryota gigas or no, in with other palms can look quite nice.  I have a gigas in Carlsbad, which always generated compliments and curiosity.  My wife insisted on a Caryota in the new yard, but I didn't want to dedicate the space to another gigas, so planted Caryota no which is still quite young.  Perhaps it is in the eye of the beholder?

On the flip side, over planting of Phoenix roebelenii, Archontophoenix cunninghamiana, Washingtonia robusta, and Syagrus here in Southern California have taken them off my taste palette.  Not that they are intrinsically unattractive, but I personally have visual fatigue, seeing them in so many yards.  Straight outta Home Depot plantings.

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33.0782 North -117.305 West  at 72 feet elevation

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  • 1 year later...
On Sat Jul 02 2016 05:01:40 GMT+0100, Josh-O said:

yikes!

Caryota maxima and urens are very short lived palms indeed

Anyone knows what is max life expectancy and heigth for caryota maxima? Ps: I don't like them too much but I find their long  fruity hairs very gracious sometimes

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I have a trio of Phoenix roebelenii :sick: that were planted at the front center of my house by either the builders or original owners of the property. They have GOT to go. Just not sure what to put there instead, and I need SOMETHING there for the Christmas lights :D

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Naples (inland), FL - technically 10a but more like 9b in the winter :hmm:

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On 03. 07. 2016., Brad Mondel said:

Some Chamaerops mutants are pretty ugly. Like dick douglas Chamaerops:

image.thumb.jpeg.1b038ad88524b9d0c7ebab7

I like the look of that palm. It looks interesting .

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On 03/07/2016 03:50:42, Las Palmas Norte said:

Ugly in my eyes are those old 100' W. robusta. A tiny crown of leaves on top of a ridiculously elongated skinny 100' trunk.

Cheers, Barrie.

Sorry, but in my eyes this is fantastic.

868px-Washingtonias_larb_in_winter.jpg

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Carambeí, 2nd tableland of the State Paraná , south Brazil.

Alt:1030m. Native palms: Queen, B. eriospatha, B. microspadix, Allagoptera leucocalyx , A.campestris, Geonoma schottiana, Trithrinax acanthocoma. Subtr. climate, some frosty nights. No dry season. August: driest month. Rain:1700mm

 

I am seeking for cold hardy palms!

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13 minutes ago, Alberto said:

Sorry, but in my eyes this is fantastic.

 

I agree! Trimmed washingtonia are very pleasing in my opinion. Untrimmed, they are the nastiest looking palms where I live. 

Here's a stretch of country road with century-old palms on my way home. 

 

Capture.thumb.JPG.4b17c031647351b8d75131

 

Edited by Jdiaz31089
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2 hours ago, Alberto said:

Sorry, but in my eyes this is fantastic.

868px-Washingtonias_larb_in_winter.jpg

Where is that? Are those in the woods?

PalmTreeDude

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  • 1 year later...

There are a lot of good candidates, my picks are probably the bearded Washingtonias and pretty much anything severely overpruned.  There are tons of hacked up Sabals around here.  I don't particularly care for the Caryota No or Urens, but I've got Gigas/Obtusa seedlings growing now.  I like the giant, wide triangle fronds on them.

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As for species...Well, they say beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Every day I see horrid examples of neglected palms that could easily be much nicer if they were better maintained. Freeze damaged ones long after the event that have been ignored are the worst.

 

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Pardon the repetition...ugliest honors goes to Mule palms...wearing the worst characteristic of both parents.

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The Palm Mahal

Hollywood Fla

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  • 1 year later...
On 7/3/2016 at 9:53 PM, Darold Petty said:

The perennial favorite in California will always be a neglected Washingtonia robusta !

robustas 001.jpg

So.. hypothetically speaking of course, if you were the owner of these palm trees (not the original owner!), then you hypothetically found this forum via a google reverse image search of your own trees, then you realized your palm trees were a source of shame on the internet (hypothetically of course), what would you do in this clearly hypothetical situation? Asking for a hypothetical "friend"

Edited by ugly palm king
typo
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6 minutes ago, doubravsky said:

I'd cut that Washie down and make tikis! 

:greenthumb: X 2 ..Tikis, Tribal Masks.. Anything..

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