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All my Cham tuercks - Fall 2018


PalmatierMeg

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I haven't posted this topic for the past 18 months, mainly because I was bummed after I lost two of my 5 Chamaedorea tuerckheimii after I repotted them. It would be tempting to leave them in their pots forever but the potting mix eventually breaks down and causes major problems. Even though I was careful as possible, two of my medium palms developed damping-off-like infections that were ultimately fatal. This palm is notoriously tricky to grow and exists in one of two states: healthy or dead. I'm amazed I still have my largest Cham tuerck, purchased from Dale Holton in 2011. What is the secret to growing them? I truly don't know but have a few thoughts.

First, I keep them in pots, not in the ground. My alkaline calcareous soil is dreadful and I don't dare risk planting such expensive palms. I also don't know if nematodes are a problem here. Second, I keep them outdoors year round (I don't keep houseplants at all) on plastic shelf units deep under canopy in my jungle - deep shade, little to no sun. They love high humidity and warmth but are not fond of FL's hot summer days and sweltering nights. But deep under canopy in my jungle, temps can be 10-15 degrees cooler than ambient temps. Now that cooler weather is here they will be much happier and less stressed as long as I make sure the irrigation waters them. The downside is they are out of sight and not on display as eye candy but I am willing to make that tradeoff. I check on them every week or so but otherwise leave them alone. I believe fussing and fretting over them would cause more harm than good.

Otherwise, I give them full checkups every spring and fall. Today I showered them, trimmed their leaves. flushed their pots with distilled water to wash away accumulated salts, drenched soil with imidacloprid insecticide, fertilized them with time release pellets and sprayed them for spider mites (alternately with Ardent or Floramite). Cham tuercks are spider mite magnets and typical insecticides don't kill mites. This summer has been particularly intense and they show a bit of stress.

Then I took the following photos. Since I lost 2 of my 5 palms 18 months ago, I have managed to obtain small ones from Floribunda and Scott Cohen. I also managed to germinate 6 of 10 seeds I got from RPS. Now if I can get them all to survive. Growing this palm is a marathon, not a sprint.

Chamaedorea tuerckheimii, Cape Coral, FL, Fall 2018

5bce4fc1ddf70_Chamaedoreatuerckheimii0215bce4fce969fd_Chamaedoreatuerckheimii0315bce4fdcedcfd_Chamaedoreatuerckheimii0415bce4fe9ac407_Chamaedoreatuerckheimii0515bce500b6c1c1_Chamaedoreatuerckheimii0715bce50223f26a_Chamaedoreatuerckheimii0815bce502f5b494_Chamaedoreatuerckheimii0915bce503c5fceb_Chamaedoreatuerckheimii1015bce50494b6cd_Chamaedoreatuerckheimii1115bce5054960c0_Chamaedoreatuerckheimii121

  • Upvote 9

Meg

Palms of Victory I shall wear

Cape Coral (It's Just Paradise)
Florida
Zone 10A on the Isabelle Canal
Elevation: 15 feet

I'd like to be under the sea in an octopus' garden in the shade.

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GREAT palms, Meg!

Which variety of palms are these?  Vera Cruz or Guatemalan?  I ask because I have heard the Guatemalan form is a lot easier.  

 

Huntington Beach, CA

USDA Zone 10a/10b

Sunset Zone 24

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11 minutes ago, joe_OC said:

GREAT palms, Meg!

Which variety of palms are these?  Vera Cruz or Guatemalan?  I ask because I have heard the Guatemalan form is a lot easier.  

 

Vera Cruz/Mexico. The Guatemalan variety is a cloud forest palm that is impossible to grow here. I'm not aware of the cloud forest form being grown anywhere in the US (or anywhere else I know of). It is that difficult.

Meg

Palms of Victory I shall wear

Cape Coral (It's Just Paradise)
Florida
Zone 10A on the Isabelle Canal
Elevation: 15 feet

I'd like to be under the sea in an octopus' garden in the shade.

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11 minutes ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Vera Cruz/Mexico. The Guatemalan variety is a cloud forest palm that is impossible to grow here. I'm not aware of the cloud forest form being grown anywhere in the US (or anywhere else I know of). It is that difficult.

DOH!  You are RIGHT!  I had them switched.

 

Huntington Beach, CA

USDA Zone 10a/10b

Sunset Zone 24

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Awesome little palms, Meg. Joe, the two forms are actually quite distinct. The Veracruz form has a larger, bright green leaf with a little notch on the end. Meg's are perfect representations. The Guatemalan ones are smaller, sort of a blue green with a white border, and lack the notch at the end of the leaf. De Hull used to bring in lots of the Guatemalan ones, and they were very tricky to keep alive in Florida. This is just a random photo off the internet of a Guatemalan plant.

Screenshot_20181022-212949.jpg

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The Guatemalan form with blue-green leaves and white edge is the more attractive of the two forms but as it is an impossible grow for me I'm not complaining.

Meg

Palms of Victory I shall wear

Cape Coral (It's Just Paradise)
Florida
Zone 10A on the Isabelle Canal
Elevation: 15 feet

I'd like to be under the sea in an octopus' garden in the shade.

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