Gaussia x4 Photo Topic

[PalmatierMeg]

Last night got down to 48.4F and today's high barely touched 60F with bright sun and gusty winds. I'm highly prone to bronchitis in winter weather so have been stuck in the house nearly all day. I could clean but where's the fun in that? About an hour ago I ventured outside to take photos for a palm topic I dreamed up. The genus Gaussia consists of 5 species from the Caribbean and Central America, of which I have found four. They are certainly not the most gorgeous palms in the world but they have their good points. G. gomez-pompae is sometimes called the "Carbibbean bottle palm" because when young it has a fat, swollen base. As it gets older it outgrows that trait. G. princeps is slow-growing with a stiff, upright crown and is considered the most attractive species. G. attenuata has a much reduced swollen stem when young. G. maya is typically pinnate and was widely planted in FL decades ago. The fifth species is the rare and odd G. spirituana from central Cuba. I've not had any luck finding it to complete my Gaussia quintet. These palms do very well in alkaline soil and have dry season drought tolerance in FL. They are hardy to zones 10/11, with G. maya to possibly 9b. 

Gaussia princeps

 

Gaussia gomez-pompae

 

Gaussia attenuata

 

Gaussia maya

G. maya seeds

[Stevetoad]

Very cool. I never realized they hold seed that far below the crownshaft. 

[Tracy]

4 hours ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Gaussia princeps

They aren't very popular here in Southern California either.  I'm growing just this one species, G. princeps but have been happy with it thus far.  I can't think of many things I'm growing which are slower but there are a few which equal it's snail's pace.

[DoomsDave]

@PalmatierMeg

obscenities have been well and thoroughly screamed 

[BS Man about Palms]

Nice to see these Meg. I have Gomez-P planted and a few princeps in pots.. Yours look great. But it is intresting to see your Gomez-p has the same spots on the older leafs that mine does. Trying to see if it's one batch from Dale H. or if a characteristic of the palm. Source of yours? Have you tried to combat it?

[Josue Diaz]

very cool! I have about 100 gomez pompeae seedlings. Hoping these will do well in an inland z9b in California. 

[DoomsDave]

I have a pair of G. gomez-pompae I got from @Josh-Oa while back, and they're growing, though a bit slowly. They definitely seem to like plenty of heat and water.

[PalmatierMeg]

10 hours ago, BS Man about Palms said:

Nice to see these Meg. I have Gomez-P planted and a few princeps in pots.. Yours look great. But it is intresting to see your Gomez-p has the same spots on the older leafs that mine does. Trying to see if it's one batch from Dale H. or if a characteristic of the palm. Source of yours? Have you tried to combat it?

The G. g-p in the photos may also have come from Dale. I remember buying it at a Palm Beach sale some years back. I have a number of smaller ones I grew from seeds from I no longer remember where. I will have to check them for spots. I always figured the leaf spotting was a nutritional issue due to my dreadful alkaline soil. The spots don't seem to hamper its overall health. I do fertilize all my palms each spring and fall. 

[PalmatierMeg]

1 hour ago, DoomsDave said:

I have a pair of G. gomez-pompae I got from @Josh-Oa while back, and they're growing, though a bit slowly. They definitely seem to like plenty of heat and water.

They are true Caribbean palms and love lots of sun, heat and regular water although they have some drought tolerance.

[PalmatierMeg]

13 hours ago, Tracy said:

They aren't very popular here in Southern California either.  I'm growing just this one species, G. princeps but have been happy with it thus far.  I can't think of many things I'm growing which are slower but there are a few which equal it's snail's pace.

Tracy, G. princeps is a very handsome palm, esp. when young. And it's tougher than most pinnate palms.

[DoomsDave]

31 minutes ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Tracy, G. princeps is a very handsome palm, esp. when young. And it's tougher than most pinnate palms.

Be careful to water them though.

That rocky horror habitat of theirs gets a good bit of rain. Or, they’re well able to tap ground water.

[Eric in Orlando]

Gaussia palms are great, G. maya is fairly cold tolerant under canopy. There are 2 older ones here at Leu Gardens, planted in 1993! They were about 20ft tall but Hurricane Irma blew them over. They are still alive and horizontal, I didn't have the heart to remove them.

I have a G. attenuata planted in my yard (north of Orlando in Altamonte Springs). Its about 2ft tall, planted it last fall. It survived last winter's freeze with no damage. I had one windy night at 28f and its growing under high canopy. 

[Fusca]

On 11/29/2018 at 12:51 PM, Eric in Orlando said:

I have a G. attenuata planted in my yard

 

On 11/28/2018 at 3:40 PM, PalmatierMeg said:

G. attenuata has a much reduced swollen stem when young.

 

I currently have G. attenuata and G. gomez-pompae growing from seed (thanks @cfkingfish) which I plan to keep in containers in zone 9a.  I found some conflicting info in Palmpedia regarding G. attenuata growth rate which I have included below.  I doubt that it is hardy to my zone.  I realize that speed is relative but assume that it is a slow grower rather than fast.  Eric/Meg, how would you compare growth rate of these two in your experience?

Culture

Sunny, moist, but well drained position. Very slow, and intolerant of cold. Likes regular dressings of lime. Hardiness range: 9A - 10B.

 

Comments and Curiosities

A cliff-dwelling palm from monsoon-type forests in Puerto Rico that grows a slender, solitary stem, usually swollen at the base and holds an open crown with deep green, plumose leaves. Easy and very fast growing it does best in the tropics but can take a little cold with ease. (RPS.com)

[Eric in Orlando]

17 hours ago, Fusca said:

 

 

I currently have G. attenuata and G. gomez-pompae growing from seed (thanks @cfkingfish) which I plan to keep in containers in zone 9a.  I found some conflicting info in Palmpedia regarding G. attenuata growth rate which I have included below.  I doubt that it is hardy to my zone.  I realize that speed is relative but assume that it is a slow grower rather than fast.  Eric/Meg, how would you compare growth rate of these two in your experience?

Culture

Sunny, moist, but well drained position. Very slow, and intolerant of cold. Likes regular dressings of lime. Hardiness range: 9A - 10B.

 

Comments and Curiosities

A cliff-dwelling palm from monsoon-type forests in Puerto Rico that grows a slender, solitary stem, usually swollen at the base and holds an open crown with deep green, plumose leaves. Easy and very fast growing it does best in the tropics but can take a little cold with ease. (RPS.com)

We have G. attenuata and G. gomez-pompae at Leu but they are smaller and have had the same rate of growth. From past experience, G. maya is slow when young but speeds up a bit as it matures so maybe G. attenuata and G. gomez-pompae do to. The G. attenuata at my house is slow so far, about 2 1/2ft tall. But it is starting to swell at the base and get thick.

[Marius]

This is my Gaussia princeps that I planted recently. I hope it will do well here. 

[Marius]

[OC2Texaspalmlvr]

On ‎11‎/‎28‎/‎2018 at 3:40 PM, PalmatierMeg said:

Last night got down to 48.4F and today's high barely touched 60F with bright sun and gusty winds. I'm highly prone to bronchitis in winter weather so have been stuck in the house nearly all day. I could clean but where's the fun in that? About an hour ago I ventured outside to take photos for a palm topic I dreamed up. The genus Gaussia consists of 5 species from the Caribbean and Central America, of which I have found four. They are certainly not the most gorgeous palms in the world but they have their good points. G. gomez-pompae is sometimes called the "Carbibbean bottle palm" because when young it has a fat, swollen base. As it gets older it outgrows that trait. G. princeps is slow-growing with a stiff, upright crown and is considered the most attractive species. G. attenuata has a much reduced swollen stem when young. G. maya is typically pinnate and was widely planted in FL decades ago. The fifth species is the rare and odd G. spirituana from central Cuba. I've not had any luck finding it to complete my Gaussia quintet. These palms do very well in alkaline soil and have dry season drought tolerance in FL. They are hardy to zones 10/11, with G. maya to possibly 9b. 

You said they aren't the most beautiful palms I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder =) good looking palms IMO

[MAPU 1]

I have all 5 sp'. I collected G. Spirituana several years ago and only one lived.It is in rocky mound that gets no irrigation. so far it is doing well.

[PalmatierMeg]

24 minutes ago, MAPU 1 said:

I have all 5 sp'. I collected G. Spirituana several years ago and only one lived.It is in rocky mound that gets no irrigation. so far it is doing well.

That's great, Dale. I was so hoping to latch on to one when I went to Cuba in 2014 but we never went near its habitat.

I find Gaussias attractive in their own ways. Still, some people find them unattractive, even ugly. But ugly palms need love, too.

[Howeadypsis]

Definitely more fun than cleaning. Handsome palm!