Phoenix theophrasti

[Marius]

This is one of my two that I grew from RPS seeds. They are four years old now. They really started picking up speed when I planted them in the ground. They were planted out when about a year and a half old. Full sun from the start and have been doing well ever since. 

[Laaz]

They do great here in the southeast. My two largest.

 

[Laaz]

This one is the same age, but I moved it twice which stunted it's growth.

 

[Meangreen94z]

19 hours ago, Laaz said:

They do great here in the southeast. My two largest.

 

Wow, those look great, they usually look terrible in humidity. I have 3 in 15 gallon containers I will eventually use.

[Fusca]

On 12/1/2018 at 10:31 AM, Yort said:

The green 'variety' turns blue in summer and the blue 'variety' turns green in winter. 

Mine green theo started turning bluish in the past 6 weeks or so.

 

@Laaz do yours get graphiola leaf spot?  Mine has it pretty bad on the lower leaves but only noticeable up close.  How often do you have to trim the suckers on yours?

Edited November 8, 2020 by Fusca

[necturus]

Man Laaz, yours look great. I'm always tempted when I see them, but then I remember the two thorns from my deceased CIDP that lodged in my big toes.

I also wonder how they'd do here long-term... CIDPs in Houston are all living on borrowed time. P. sylvestris seems solid, but I've seen regular date palms also dying from what appears to be a fungal illness.

[Laaz]

We have CIDP's here over 100 years

old.

[climate change virginia]

how fast do Phoenix theophrasti grow? growing spees from 1-10 (ten being the fastest)

Edited December 3, 2020 by climate change virginia

[kinzyjr]

25 minutes ago, climate change virginia said:

how fast do Phoenix theophrasti grow? growing spees from 1-10 (ten being the fastest)

Grow relatively fast for a Phoenix, but not as fast growing as something like a Veitchia - I'd give them a 5.

[climate change virginia]

On 11/8/2020 at 5:06 PM, necturus said:

Man Laaz, yours look great. I'm always tempted when I see them, but then I remember the two thorns from my deceased CIDP that lodged in my big toes.

I also wonder how they'd do here long-term... CIDPs in Houston are all living on borrowed time. P. sylvestris seems solid, but I've seen regular date palms also dying from what appears to be a fungal illness.

houston is too humid for desert plants in the summer the humidity is oppressive. Gulf coast and south east have a hard time having desert plants. I lost 2 dactys from root rot then I moved them all under my overhang of roof on my deck. 

[buffy]

On 11/8/2020 at 4:06 PM, necturus said:

Man Laaz, yours look great. I'm always tempted when I see them, but then I remember the two thorns from my deceased CIDP that lodged in my big toes.

I also wonder how they'd do here long-term... CIDPs in Houston are all living on borrowed time. P. sylvestris seems solid, but I've seen regular date palms also dying from what appears to be a fungal illness.

Why would you say CIDPs are on borrowed time in Houston. I've seen 50 year old specimens in neighborhoods down there. Hell, there's a guy here in Longview that has a 20 year old one that saw down to the low teen/upper singles three years ago. 

[OC2Texaspalmlvr]

1 minute ago, buffy said:

Why would you say CIDPs are on borrowed time in Houston. I've seen 50 year old specimens in neighborhoods down there. Hell, there's a guy here in Longview that has a 20 year old one that saw down to the low teen/upper singles three years ago. 

My guess is he's talking about TPPD getting them =/ 

[buffy]

1 hour ago, climate change virginia said:

houston is too humid for desert plants in the summer the humidity is oppressive. Gulf coast and south east have a hard time having desert plants. I lost 2 dactys from root rot then I moved them all under my overhang of roof on my deck. 

Amigo: Have you been to Houston? Drive along I-10 and look at all the 30 foot P. dactylifera they have planted at car dealerships. They won't fruit worth a dern, but you can grow plenty of deserty stuff down there. 

[buffy]

1 minute ago, OC2Texaspalmlvr said:

My guess is he's talking about TPPD getting them =/ 

That would make plenty of sense.  Thanks

[climate change virginia]

20 minutes ago, buffy said:

Amigo: Have you been to Houston? Drive along I-10 and look at all the 30 foot P. dactylifera they have planted at car dealerships. They won't fruit worth a dern, but you can grow plenty of deserty stuff down there. 

My mom told me when she used to live there her neighbors had a date palm it was sad from the humidity she showed me a picture it looked like a filifera in with rain all the time but she did live in south east Houston. also we lost the picture  you could be right tho im probably wrong it was prob fungal disease

Edited December 3, 2020 by climate change virginia

[climate change virginia]

is the fruit edible in humid climates?

[Xenon]

20 minutes ago, buffy said:

Why would you say CIDPs are on borrowed time in Houston. I've seen 50 year old specimens in neighborhoods down there. Hell, there's a guy here in Longview that has a 20 year old one that saw down to the low teen/upper singles three years ago. 

Oh definitely not on borrowed time due to the cold but TPPD has pretty much annihilated all of the 50 year old CIDPs in Houston. I've been watching them die one by one in the last 10-15 years. Currently near town, I only know of one old CIDP growing near a bayou in East Downtown. For some reason, Galveston seems to have been completely spared and there are dozens of giant CIDP in the older parts of town.  Perhaps the disease vector doesn't like the coastal conditions. 

 

1 hour ago, climate change virginia said:

houston is too humid for desert plants in the summer the humidity is oppressive. Gulf coast and south east have a hard time having desert plants. I lost 2 dactys from root rot then I moved them all under my overhang of roof on my deck. 

Phoenix dactyfilera is used in many prominent areas of Houston, almost exclusively in commercial settings. You see them all over the I-10 corridor especially around Memorial/BW8 interchange. They also line NASA Rd 1 and several freeway interchanges in southeast Houston.  Not to mention they are used extensively along I-45 in Galveston and Moody Gardens. 

[Xenon]

5 minutes ago, climate change virginia said:

is the fruit edible in humid climates?

Yes the fruit is "edible" but of low quality. The seed is also of course, viable. 

[climate change virginia]

24 minutes ago, Xenon said:

Yes the fruit is "edible" but of low quality. The seed is also of course, viable. 

so will it be like dates from miami

[necturus]

Lulz. I live in Houston and have been all over the city, I know what's going on with the CIDPs here. I cut down a huge CIDP in my backyard after it died from fusarium/TPPD/whatever less than two years after we moved in. There were a few people on here from the bay area that questioned me when I first wrote about this, but now they are noticing the decline of CIDPs in their area. It sucks. It's not cold that's killing them. Are there some hanging on? Sure. I can show you a couple nice ones inside the loop, but I can tell you about a lot more that have died in the last three years.

I just hope mule palms and queens aren't next - some of the stories on here from central Florida are scary. There's a lot of bad plant disease going around in Harris and Fort Bend county, like citrus greening and canker.

P. dactylifera is interesting. They've been planted in great numbers recently. Some are dying, a few are thriving. The best looking ones I've seen are in small strips surrounded by concrete. There's some really beautiful ones downtown in a courtyard, great silver color.  Similarly, I hope P. sylvestris is resistant, because it's probably the best adapted Phoenix spp. we can grow.

[Xenon]

14 minutes ago, necturus said:

Similarly, I hope P. sylvestris is resistant, because it's probably the best adapted Phoenix spp. we can grow.

From what I've seen, it's definitely not. Seems like only P. roebelenii is resistant. P. dactyfilera doesn't seem to be hit as hard either. 

[Xenon]

On 12/3/2020 at 8:01 AM, Xenon said:

For some reason, Galveston seems to have been completely spared and there are dozens of giant CIDP in the older parts of town.  Perhaps the disease vector doesn't like the coastal conditions. 

I spoke too soon...century old CIDP are dropping like flies on Galveston Island. Maybe another 5-10 years for total eradication? Very sad 

[necturus]

The tragedy is, they seem to grow more susceptible with age. There's plenty of smaller ones around town that still look great, in part because Houston Garden Center sells them cheap.  But the big ones keep biting the dust...

[Jeff985]

21 minutes ago, Xenon said:

I spoke too soon...century old CIDP are dropping like flies on Galveston Island. Maybe another 5-10 years for total eradication? Very sad 

I’ve been noticing it in Galveston also. I’ve also seen sabals showing symptoms. I’m not sure roebeleniis are resistant either. I saw a few quickly decline and die over the summer. Wouldn’t swear it was from tppd, but that’s what I suspect. The dactyliferas on NASA Rd. 1 have been dying off also. Last year in my area queens were dying in large numbers. I spoke with an arborist who said tppd, and fusarium were killing them. Of the ones I saw die none of them had the one sided wilt associated with fusarium. This year has been much better for queens though. I haven’t noticed any of them dying lately, which is odd. 

[climate change virginia]

imo they look like an armed and dangerous dacty that overly suckers 

[climate change virginia]

On 11/6/2020 at 6:14 PM, kinzyjr said:

Technically, you could, but I don't bother.  This is one of those palm species that likes when I ignore it as much as possible.  Can you post a picture of what you mean by frayed?

oh sorry I didn't post it earlier also its dead I got caught up in school stuff

[ahosey01]

On 12/5/2020 at 1:40 PM, Jeff985 said:

I’ve been noticing it in Galveston also. I’ve also seen sabals showing symptoms. I’m not sure roebeleniis are resistant either. I saw a few quickly decline and die over the summer. Wouldn’t swear it was from tppd, but that’s what I suspect. The dactyliferas on NASA Rd. 1 have been dying off also. Last year in my area queens were dying in large numbers. I spoke with an arborist who said tppd, and fusarium were killing them. Of the ones I saw die none of them had the one sided wilt associated with fusarium. This year has been much better for queens though. I haven’t noticed any of them dying lately, which is odd. 

Of course the worst species is spared.... lol

[climate change virginia]

What site can I buy this palm from a 5-15 gallon palm. I have been looking and I couldn't find a thing.

[ahosey01]

22 minutes ago, climate change virginia said:

What site can I buy this palm from a 5-15 gallon palm. I have been looking and I couldn't find a thing.

Going to probably have to call places.  A 5G is probably parcel ship-able, but a 15G is probably going to have to go LTL. And this time of year you’d be taking a gamble.

Probably best to just drive somewhere to scoop one. If it’s something you’re really keen on, it’s always worth the drive. I drove 10 hours round trip for an Agathis robusta last month.

[climate change virginia]

15 minutes ago, ahosey01 said:

Going to probably have to call places.  A 5G is probably parcel ship-able, but a 15G is probably going to have to go LTL. And this time of year you’d be taking a gamble.

Probably best to just drive somewhere to scoop one. If it’s something you’re really keen on, it’s always worth the drive. I drove 10 hours round trip for an Agathis robusta last month.

how big are the palms on urban tropicals I cant see the options because its not April yet. Also does urban tropicals only sell seeds or do they sell the palm

[Xenon]

On 12/5/2020 at 2:40 PM, Jeff985 said:

I’ve been noticing it in Galveston also. I’ve also seen sabals showing symptoms. I’m not sure roebeleniis are resistant either. I saw a few quickly decline and die over the summer. Wouldn’t swear it was from tppd, but that’s what I suspect. The dactyliferas on NASA Rd. 1 have been dying off also. Last year in my area queens were dying in large numbers. I spoke with an arborist who said tppd, and fusarium were killing them. Of the ones I saw die none of them had the one sided wilt associated with fusarium. This year has been much better for queens though. I haven’t noticed any of them dying lately, which is odd. 

Well at least foxtail, bottle, bismarck and spindle palms are popping up everywhere. Should be resistant to disease at least. 

I also found an old specimen triangle palm that survived all the cold at a home near Moody Gardens. 

[Jeff985]

29 minutes ago, Xenon said:

Well at least foxtail, bottle, bismarck and spindle palms are popping up everywhere. Should be resistant to disease at least. 

I also found an old specimen triangle palm that survived all the cold at a home near Moody Gardens. 

Yeah. I’ve been planting a lot of zone pushers for that reason. Ptychosperma, royals, chambeyronia, spindle. We’ll see how it goes. 

[Matt N- Dallas]

A number of CIDP’s have been dying around San Antonio for the last couple of years also.  

[amh]

11 minutes ago, Matt N- Dallas said:

A number of CIDP’s have been dying around San Antonio for the last couple of years also.  

Disease or environment?

[Matt N- Dallas]

It looks to be from disease.  

[amh]

57 minutes ago, Matt N- Dallas said:

It looks to be from disease.  

Not good.

Is the TPPD affecting any other sabal species besides Sabal palmetto?

[Matt N- Dallas]

I’m not sure.  There’s not many s. palmettos in S Central TX- more s. Mexicanas.  

[Jeff985]

6 minutes ago, Matt N- Dallas said:

I’m not sure.  There’s not many s. palmettos in S Central TX- more s. Mexicanas.  

I’ve read that mexicanas are susceptible, but  I haven’t actually seen it. Here there are way more palmettos than mexicanas. 

[amh]

12 minutes ago, Jeff985 said:

I’ve read that mexicanas are susceptible, but  I haven’t actually seen it. Here there are way more palmettos than mexicanas. 

I've seen mexicana listed on some websites, but Sabal palmetto is the only Sabal species I've seen listed on .gov or .edu sites.

Edited December 8, 2020 by amh

[Xenon]

15 minutes ago, Jeff985 said:

I’ve read that mexicanas are susceptible, but  I haven’t actually seen it. Here there are way more palmettos than mexicanas. 

Kinda strange how as soon you head south or west of Victoria, pretty much all you encounter is S. mexicana. In Houston, S. mexicana is significantly more common in town than in the suburbs.