Anti Palm Sentiment in Virginia Beach

[Mr.SamuraiSword]

Was looking up Palms in the News section on google and found these people who "less than approve" of palms in Virginia.  

This one Cracks me up even more.... Trying to use "Patriotism" as a reason to dislike palm trees... Whattt?

Its Funny considering how they are literally bordering a state that has two native palms and VA beach may have once had sabal minor..

Of course their statement that they are not Florida may be true but palms in the right locations flourish nonetheless...

[PalmTreeDude]

If I lived in Virginia Beach I would squeeze every last degree out of the 8a climate growing stuff. The healthiest palms (for the most part) are a little inland, as you saw. I saw so many healthy full headed Sabal palmetto there this July. 

[kinzyjr]

Everyone has their own opinion.  That being said, if I were one of their neighbors, I'd have to "garden troll" a little by planting the whole yard with Sabal palmetto, Trachycarpus fortunei, Sabal minor and Rhapidophyllum hystrix.

Aside from that, Sabal minor is thought to have been native to that area within the last 150-200 years.  A good argument could be made that those folks are, in some cases, re-introducing a native species.

[Palmarum]

 I would use it as incentive to plant even more palms.

[DoomsDave]

We're all entitled to our differences of opinion, but I suspect I might get slapped for getting catty:

"Ms. Clark:

You may not be aware that palms are or recently were native to the immediate region.

You also appear to be trying to turn Virginia Beach into a suburb of Washington DC."

Or, New York? Or, Boston?

I'll shut up. It's early and it's been a long day already.

[PalmatierMeg]

Reminds me of the more recent drive in So Cal to replace iconic Washingtonia robusta, i.e., in Beverly Hills, with "native" Californian trees because palms have no place there. Locally, on Pine Island, there is an ongoing verbal dispute between residents and "native plant nazis" (I didn't coin that term) that want the island returned to its former barrier island state.

[Brad Mondel]

I read on a gardening website comments saying upstate SC doesn't  need palms either, that they don't blend in with the temperate forests.  Little do they know Sabal minor is native to up into Greenwood county! 

[jimmyt]

Long live the palms!  Give me liberty and Palms!  Come and Take it!   Are these people serious???     Plant 2 palms for every live oak planted..............

[Josue Diaz]

I think palms get a bad rep just about everywhere. I am working on a client's new landscape design who says they want a tropical look, but doesn't want any palms... in an arid, zone 9b that is devoid of trees,  how in the world are you supposed to achieve a tropical look without palms? They want cannas and elephant ears (barf). can't wait to break the news to them that they'll melt with frost and will burn in mid summer sun. so much for their tropical landscape. 

[Joe NC]

Same sentiment by many here in SE NC.

"Palms don't belong here"

Yet the same people seem to be more than happy at the endless amounts of crepe myrtle, azaleas, gardenia, camellia, hydrangea, & nearly all of our other southern landscaping standards all from Asia somewhere. 

However, we have two native Sabal species that "look out of place" since we are "not in Florida"....

 

[kinzyjr]

If anyone would like to read the original article that prompted these folks to write this: Palm trees near Virginia Beach seawall must be removed, U.S. Army Corps says

The letters can be viewed here:

Letter: Palms look silly

Letter: Show Virginia pride

[SilverDragon]

People who gripe about palms don't deserve them, but that's no reason to take them away from others who might like them. These whiners need a hobby...like caring for palms!

[PalmatierMeg]

Not looking like Florida seems to be a cliche theme running through many of these arguments.

I predict many of these self-righteous whiners would gladly welcome a mid-winter break to work on their melanomas, er, tans, in sunny, palmy FL. Wait, not predict, I know because they will double our traffic and prowl the neighborhoods rubbernecking at the tropical landscapes.

[SEVA]

I read through a few of the comments shortly after this was posted on social media.  Most folks were not happy about the palms being removed and many said they'd gladly take them.  I know I would.  I've never understood why some people think palms only belong in Florida.  I had someone tell me they don't want to see palms anywhere except for the tropics.  I tried explaining that there are palms native outside of the tropics, but it was like talking to a brick wall.  And as others have mentioned, I've read in a few articles that Sabal minor is native to southeast VA.  I wouldn't mind more live oaks though.  And regarding loblolly, it's more prevalent today than it used to be.  Longleaf pine was the dominant pine species in southeast VA, particularly on upland sites.  Loblolly pine was typically restricted to wet sites due to the frequent fires that occurred before fire suppression.

[PalmTreeDude]

9 hours ago, kinzyjr said:

Everyone has their own opinion.  That being said, if I were one of their neighbors, I'd have to "garden troll" a little by planting the whole yard with Sabal palmetto, Trachycarpus fortunei, Sabal minor and Rhapidophyllum hystrix.

Aside from that, Sabal minor is thought to have been native to that area within the last 150-200 years.  A good argument could be made that those folks are, in some cases, re-introducing a native species.

Don't forget the one picture posted here a while back of a Sabal minor growing beside a smaller river, it may have been native, but no one knows for sure. 

I also wouldn't say they are trying to make Virginia Beach look like Florida, they are just trying to make it feel like what it is, a beach in the Southeast. I personally consider the Virginia Beach area to be the true start of the Southeast, climate wise. Live Oaks, Spanish Moss, Bald Cypress in all the swamps, a good variety of palms that can actually be grown without being protected, endless they are getting destroyed by the wind directly on the beach (Northeastern N.C. also has this problem when it comes to palms being right along the beach). 

Edited October 9, 2019 by PalmTreeDude