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Coconut Growing Farthest From Equator


Palmateer

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Coconuts grow all over coastal Canary islands. even on the north coast of lanzarote they grow in la santa and el golfo. though they don't look as good as the coconuts to the south.

they also grow and fruit in Madeira and Bermuda with out winter protection. the gulf stream is amazing

In florida cocoa beach is the furthest north they grow and produce viable seeds. same latitude of the canary islands.

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7 hours ago, RedRabbit said:

Just to clarify on Albert Whitted, the airport is basically a pier going out into Tampa Bay. A few neighborhoods immediately on the water like Tropical Shores and Coquina Key really are that warm, but most places in St. Pete are a little colder. 

Yes, I can see on Google map how the airport and those two neighborhoods jut out into Tampa Bay where they would receive more thermal benefit of the water at night, as opposed to inland St. Pete. I knew Albert Whitted wasn't representative  of all of St. Pete in general, just pointing out the consistency of higher nighttime temperatures at the airport location.

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Mad about palms

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7 hours ago, empireo22 said:

Coconuts grow all over coastal Canary islands. even on the north coast of lanzarote they grow in la santa and el golfo. though they don't look as good as the coconuts to the south.

they also grow and fruit in Madeira and Bermuda with out winter protection. the gulf stream is amazing

In florida cocoa beach is the furthest north they grow and produce viable seeds. same latitude of the canary islands.

I was of the impression that coconuts can get killed on the northern coasts of Canaries, during particularly cold, wet spells in winter. They get battered by the wind and rain there in winter and temps can get as low as 5C. I have seen some growing in the northern parts of Tenerife & Gran Canaria, but as you say, they never look as good as the ones on the southern sides. I'm sure I saw a few dead, or dying, coconut palms in Las Palmas a few years back. I might be wrong though.

I know Madeira and Bermuda are pretty darn mild, but I wasn't aware that they can grow fruiting coconuts there. I guess you learn something new every day. It goes to show just how mild those places are, even in winter, thanks to the Atlantic influence and being surrounding by a big body of water.

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Dry-summer Oceanic climate (9a)

Average annual precipitation - 18.7 inches : Average annual sunshine hours - 1725

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here are some on northern lanzarote. im not sure that the temps really ever get to 5 on the northern coasts. I think the biggest problem on the north is salty wind with over cast days and hard soils. actually SW Madeira and Bermuda grow cocos a little better than the northern coasts.

https://goo.gl/maps/5ixq4H4bTfF2 la santa

https://goo.gl/maps/tvCQup1etiD2 el golfo

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5 hours ago, Walt said:

Yes, I can see on Google map how the airport and those two neighborhoods jut out into Tampa Bay where they would receive more thermal benefit of the water at night, as opposed to inland St. Pete. I knew Albert Whitted wasn't representative  of all of St. Pete in general, just pointing out the consistency of higher nighttime temperatures at the airport location.

Gotcha, I wasn’t sure how familiar you were with the area. My dorm in undergrad was literally right across the street from Albert Whitted. St. Pete is a great city, I thoroughly enjoyed my time there. 

Edited by RedRabbit
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Westchase | 9b 10a  ◆  Nokomis | 10a  ◆  St. Petersburg | 10a 10b 

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3 hours ago, RedRabbit said:

Gotcha, I wasn’t sure how familiar you were with the area. My dorm in undergrad was literally right across the street from Albert Whitted. St. Pete is a great city, I thoroughly enjoyed my time there. 

I have two palm friends who bought an older home in St. Pete last year to use as a winter home. She and her husband are now planting many species of palms and tropical plants. I have a green Malayan dwarf coconut to give here from one I sprouted from my coconut palm. I intend to compare wintertime temperatures with her location this coming winter vis a vis Albert Whitted.

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Mad about palms

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On ‎2‎/‎2‎/‎2019 at 2:19 PM, Attalea Funifera said:

www.rekorgelisim.com/yorum-videolari
I think I know a way to save them. And this method will be the only elixir of coconut trees, which has been reconciled with the mediterranean conditions. ^ REKOR GELiŞiM ^ He's a miracle. It is a magnificent soil conditioner that gives life to the drying trees, protects the risk of frost and spectacular the quality of the fruit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2RAq_uoCNjA

Can you translate what was said in the video for us?  I am curious what they and you are talking about.

John

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On ‎2‎/‎2‎/‎2019 at 7:55 PM, tacobender said:

In Lake Chapala area in Mexico. Latitude 20  high altitude with some occasional frost. Lots of chilly weather for a few months. Coconuts are fairly healthy and fruiting all around. 

Would the tropical sun/uv overcome the effects of cool temps? Daylight hours?

I have a friend who lived in that area of Mexico for a little while a few years ago, and he also told me there were mature fruiting coconut palms in the area. I think their normal daytime highs in the winter make up for some of the chilly nighttime lows they sometimes have there.  That and they are probably a variety known for being able to take more chilly conditions for a while than other varieties can like the one in the photo on this thread with healthy looking nuts on it growing in an area with relatively chilly temps for coconut palms..  There are apparently some varieties than can handle a couple of months in the winter with average temps of around 56F to 58F, even though the generally accepted average minimum temp for coconut palms to reach maturity and fruit is 60F.  The Mexican Tall from the Gulf Coast of Mexico is one of these varieties that seems to handle prolonged chilly weather better than other varieties, as there are some nice looking big ones in the Brownsville area of the Rio Grande Valley that have survived some pretty chilly winters and even some occasional downright freezing wintertime lows in the upper 20'sF.

John

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Just now, Mr. Coconut Palm said:

I have a friend who lived in that area of Mexico for a little while a few years ago, and he also told me there were mature fruiting coconut palms in the area. I think their normal daytime highs in the winter make up for some of the chilly nighttime lows they sometimes have there.  That and they are probably a variety known for being able to take more chilly conditions for a while than other varieties can like the one in the photo on this thread with healthy looking nuts on it growing in an area with relatively chilly temps for coconut palms..  There are apparently some varieties than can handle a couple of months in the winter with average temps of around 56F to 58F, even though the generally accepted average minimum temp for coconut palms to reach maturity and fruit is 60F.  The Mexican Tall from the Gulf Coast of Mexico is one of these varieties that seems to handle prolonged chilly weather better than other varieties, as there are some nice looking big ones in the Brownsville area of the Rio Grande Valley that have survived some pretty chilly winters and even some occasional downright freezing wintertime lows in the upper 20'sF.

John

That is not to say that they can take coldest temps each year in the upper 20'sF, but that they can survive being exposed to such temps occasionally every several years without dying unlike other varieties that could be killed by just one or two nights of such temps.  I honestly think that a healthy mature and well established Mexican Tall in the Rio Grande Valley would probably be hardy down to about 26F, meaning that such a palm could probably survive one or two nights down to such a temp over the entire life of the palm which might be as long as 20+ years in the area.

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On 2/3/2019 at 12:34 AM, UK_Palms said:

I'm pretty sure the furthest north in the world that coconuts can be cultivated year-round, without protection, is in the Canary Islands at 28N. And even there, I think they are only capable of being grown on the leeward, south sides of the islands. 

I know they manage to grow them in Andalusia in southern Spain and also in Cyprus, which are statistically the warmest locations in Europe outside of the Canaries, but they still need winter protection in these areas and are known to be killed off completely in abnormally cold, wet winters every 5 years or so. 

I have seen people growing coconut palms in the UK, but they obviously have to spend 9 months of the year indoors where there is supplemented heat. I know there is a large coconut palm at a garden centre, not far from me, which is kept in a large greenhouse/hothouse that is open to the public, and then it is brought outside in early June. Last year it had to be brought back inside by mid-August, but I have known them to leave it outdoors until early-mid September in warmer years. 

I live at latitude 28 on the Sea of Cortez. Coconuts are carefree and are the fastest growing palms in the yard. I believe they can be grown north of here a few degrees of latitude. Not proven as it is uninhabited for 80 miles along the coast. Next time I am up to Bahia de Kino (next town north) I will post a picture of coconut trees there. I may have seen some there.

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On 2/3/2019 at 4:14 PM, UK_Palms said:

I was of the impression that coconuts can get killed on the northern coasts of Canaries, during particularly cold, wet spells in winter. They get battered by the wind and rain there in winter and temps can get as low as 5C. I have seen some growing in the northern parts of Tenerife & Gran Canaria, but as you say, they never look as good as the ones on the southern sides. I'm sure I saw a few dead, or dying, coconut palms in Las Palmas a few years back. I might be wrong though.

I know Madeira and Bermuda are pretty darn mild, but I wasn't aware that they can grow fruiting coconuts there. I guess you learn something new every day. It goes to show just how mild those places are, even in winter, thanks to the Atlantic influence and being surrounding by a big body of water.

No coastal place in the northern Canaries has ever got as low as 5°C, lows under 10°C in the northern coastline are extremely rare. Las Palmas extreme low is 9.4°C and it's straight on the northern coast of Gran Canaria. In the southern coast many places have extreme lows above 10°C. Even San Cristóbal de La Laguna, inland northern Tenerife, at 640m asl (2100ft, Tenerife North airport) has never seen temps under 3.2°C in January and that happened in 1961. This is Arrecife, coastal city at 29°N in the NE island of Lanzarote:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arrecife#Climate

Arrecife, Lanzarote at 29°N has a record low of 8.0°C and grows perfectly coconuts, big & healthy and giving fruit every year. In fact the northernmost yet least known Canary island (La Graciosa) also grows them quite good at 29°30'N and they do fruit there as well. They're too dry and windy, tho:

kf1s9s.jpg

The only real danger for the coconuts in the Canaries are the salty, dry winds and some kind of small insects who like to attack palms, I don't remember their name but they damage even the native CIDPs. This is more prone in the eastern islands, which are closer to the Sahara. They also get more Saharan winds. 

More pics of coconuts in La Graciosa (29°30'N) and as you can see, even CIDPs get this insect damage:

9r3lzp.jpg

Another pic in this page. CIDPs seem even more damaged, while Washingtonias don't bother at all. You can see it here: https://somoscanarias.com/un-paseo-por-la-graciosa/caleta-de-sebo-5/

Yes, some coconuts had to be removed from NE Gran Canaria because those insects were devastating them, giving them a very trashy look. As well as Syagrus. Roystoneas seem hardier for the insects. No climate problem by far, since they grow perfectly, lushy and they do fruit in the northern coast of Tenerife. Like in Puerto de La Cruz, where you can see giant coconuts near the coastline.

Puerto de La Cruz (28°30'N) in NW Tenerife:

039-15-2.jpg

el-agua-salada-re%C3%BAne-lago-martianez

Edited by Alicante
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I live in Altea, Spain 38°34'N 0º03'O. USDA zone 11a. Coastal microclimate sheltered by mountains. 
The coconuts shown in my avatar are from the Canary Islands, Spain ! :)

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Puerto del Carmen, Lanzarote. Almost 29°N

playa-mar-puerto-del-carmen-lanzarote-is

coconuts-growing-in-puerto-del-carmen-la

44ad6c828f1da6d9220266ebc23956f8.jpg

los-fariones-hotel.jpg

hotel-los-fariones-servicios-4a67d0a.jpg

 

Puerto de La Cruz, northern Tenerife.

playa-playa-jardin-con-el-monte-teide-en

But my favorite park from Puerto de La Cruz is this one having a Howea jungle ^_^

palmeras-en-loro-parque-espa%C3%B1a-tene

Edited by Alicante
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I live in Altea, Spain 38°34'N 0º03'O. USDA zone 11a. Coastal microclimate sheltered by mountains. 
The coconuts shown in my avatar are from the Canary Islands, Spain ! :)

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Hello Adam,

Can you link me some Puerto de la Cruz Fruiting coconuts, because I can't find it and if you can specify the location it would be an added bonus, thanks.

Regards,

 

Pedro

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14 hours ago, Cluster said:

Hello Adam,

Can you link me some Puerto de la Cruz Fruiting coconuts, because I can't find it and if you can specify the location it would be an added bonus, thanks.

Regards,

 

Pedro

Puerto de la Cruz is probably the most tropical place in the Canary Islands above 28ºN due to their sheltered NW location and it's quite sunny climate, exceptuating some of the southernmost coastal zones... look at the actual forecast: https://www.weatheronline.co.uk/weather/maps/city?LANG=en&CEL=C&SI=mph&CONT=euro&LAND=SP&REGION=0005&WMO=60012&LEVEL=52&R=0&NOREGION=1 Only Mogan, Maspalomas and Tenerife South can beat this. (and probably few other small areas but all are in the 27-28ºN range of the Canaries, not above 28ºN)

WIY142j.png

Coconuts grow fast and big but they cut them instantly because most are in very touristy areas, and they do it to prevent accidents... I remember posting a newspaper link here some years ago about coconuts being trimmed and their fruits cut in Tenerife, since they were a danger for the people, tent shops and vehicles passing by.

jrOrrgA.png.

1seDs4z.png

As you can see, these cocos (fruits) are quite noticeable. The 2nd palm has at least 12 of them. They're in Puerto de La Cruz, 1st pic in the marina and the 2nd in a theme park (the same with the Howea jungles) and it seems they skipped to cut these ones. One pic is from December and the another one from January, if i'm not wrong. 

sYRIByV.png

The coconuts 1-12 are clear, you can compare it with the pic without numbers. I don't know if 13 and 14 are coconuts or not, but the ones from 1 to 12 definetly are!

And this is quite normal winter weather since I've been watching their winters since the 2014/15 season, it's a pity the official AEMET station doesn't offer long term averages. Long term averages for this place are all untrustworthy and non official. This WeatherOnline site has quite good predictions for my area, and for the Canaries too as well. If you want you can see also Santa Cruz de Tenerife's weather for example, which has 21-24/14-16 forecasts in this same website, which is the usual for this season. https://www.weatheronline.co.uk/weather/maps/city?LANG=en&CEL=C&SI=mph&CONT=euro&LAND=SP&REGION=0005&WMO=60020&LEVEL=52&R=0&NOREGION=1

 

Although Puerto del Carmen in Lanzarote at 29ºN has this, which is further north than Puerto de La Cruz. This is a private hotel garden, so they don't cut them:

coconuts-growing-in-puerto-del-carmen-la

los-fariones-hotel.jpg

If you look at my post from above, the last 3 pics from Puerto del Carmen (Lanzarote) seem completely like a Caribbean place, full of giant coconuts and many of them have curved trunks! In fact, people go there in winter to have sea/bathing holidays. 29ºN is quite an impressive latitude to see such big cocos and giant coconut trees, isn't it? ^_^

Edited by Alicante
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I live in Altea, Spain 38°34'N 0º03'O. USDA zone 11a. Coastal microclimate sheltered by mountains. 
The coconuts shown in my avatar are from the Canary Islands, Spain ! :)

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Some more pics from Puerto de La Cruz... 28º30'N

tall-palms-in-loro-parque-tenerife-on-ca

n3qNjTP.png

PU2fnAD.jpg

TRX12dT.png

aQhzbZP.png

 

Those last photos are winter pics, you can see them in Google panoramics. This last one is in January and people is shirtless and bathing on the giant pool.

Puerto de La Cruz probably averages somewhere close to 24/15 in January, due to their very special microclimate. This can be seen in the height and health of the coconuts, as well as their tropical gardens which also have very healthy Adonidas. That theme park has them all, I hope I can visit it this year, it's a palm tree utopia!

Pics from there:

XlOnwL5.png

RnwBMYQ.png

PyECRue.jpg

Edited by Alicante
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I live in Altea, Spain 38°34'N 0º03'O. USDA zone 11a. Coastal microclimate sheltered by mountains. 
The coconuts shown in my avatar are from the Canary Islands, Spain ! :)

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hey, what do you think they do with these coconut palms in Ocean City, MD during the winter? (They are cocos, right?) 

I'm well aware that it's too cold for them in the winter, but do you think they plant new ones every year and let them die before replacing them or can you dig them up after the summer is over and re-plant them elsewhere? How easy is it to re-plant cocos?

Screen_Shot_2019-01-29_at_3_11.51_PM.png

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6 minutes ago, sirfelgar said:

Hey, what do you think they do with these coconut palms in Ocean City, MD during the winter? (They are cocos, right?) 

I'm well aware that it's too cold for them in the winter, but do you think they plant new ones every year and let them die before replacing them or can you dig them up after the summer is over and re-plant them elsewhere? How easy is it to re-plant cocos?

Screen_Shot_2019-01-29_at_3_11.51_PM.png

They just let them die every year to the best of my knowledge. :(

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Westchase | 9b 10a  ◆  Nokomis | 10a  ◆  St. Petersburg | 10a 10b 

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1 minute ago, RedRabbit said:

They just let them die every year to the best of my knowledge. :(

I'm not sure if they still do it.  But, years ago, there were palms planted on the beach in Atlantic City, NJ.  They used them as annuals there too.

As I recall, there were definitely Queen palms (Syagrus R.) planted in the sand.  It's too bad that they chose that particular palm as there were better choices that at least may have had a chance of surviving.  Especially, if they protected them a bit.

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Winter Springs (Orlando area), Florida

Zone 9b/10a

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  • 1 year later...

I saw some mention of winter rain earlier this thread. It's pretty clear that year-round rainfall isn't an issue for coconuts, as seen with the ease they grow in tropical rainforest regions. So I do wonder what the temperature threshold is when winter rainfall starts becoming detremental for coconuts?

Edited by AnTonY
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AnTonY, my guess would be much below 70F (21C) isn't great and below 60F (15C) is really bad if it occurs with any regularity.

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A subtropical climate certainly helps (dry season in winter). The NSW coast in Australia has coconuts from about half way up (Forster and north) where winter temps average around 19c max. There are fruiting coconuts in South West Rocks (30.5'S). I think this is due to the low winter rainfall rather than the high winter temps. Sydney averages around 18-20c max during winter, however gets more rain than slightly further north. For this reason I think Sydney can't grow them successfully. 

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On 4/30/2020 at 5:08 PM, Nick1985 said:

A subtropical climate certainly helps (dry season in winter). The NSW coast in Australia has coconuts from about half way up (Forster and north) where winter temps average around 19c max. There are fruiting coconuts in South West Rocks (30.5'S). I think this is due to the low winter rainfall rather than the high winter temps. Sydney averages around 18-20c max during winter, however gets more rain than slightly further north. For this reason I think Sydney can't grow them successfully. 

Nick,

Could you post some pics of the ones you are talking about and maybe even post a map of how far south they are in relation to Sydney.  Thanks.

John

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I've seen few in Port Macquarie, and heard of them an hour south at Foster.....anywhere further south ie coastal Sydney is just a bit too cold and wet in Winter. Note that both the east and west coasts the limits are similar....30*S is marginal and 32*S probably the limit. The mature ones planted in the Sydney Botanical Gardens declined over a few years and died off a winter or 2 ago,
map_of_new-south-wales.jpg.7c56ad576265348486ee01980850f999.jpg map_of_western-australia.jpg.06896e2434430d0d40881317277ffe9f.jpg
 

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On 2/7/2019 at 12:36 AM, Alicante said:

Some more pics from Puerto de La Cruz... 28º30'N

tall-palms-in-loro-parque-tenerife-on-ca

n3qNjTP.png

PU2fnAD.jpg

TRX12dT.png

aQhzbZP.png

 

Those last photos are winter pics, you can see them in Google panoramics. This last one is in January and people is shirtless and bathing on the giant pool.

Puerto de La Cruz probably averages somewhere close to 24/15 in January, due to their very special microclimate. This can be seen in the height and health of the coconuts, as well as their tropical gardens which also have very healthy Adonidas. That theme park has them all, I hope I can visit it this year, it's a palm tree utopia!

Pics from there:

XlOnwL5.png

RnwBMYQ.png

PyECRue.jpg

Just stumbled across this today.  Puerto de la Cruz is actually where I’m intending to relocate to this December (pandemic allowing).

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Resident of Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife, San Diego, CA and Pahoa, HI.  Former garden in Vista, CA.  Garden Photos

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13 hours ago, greysrigging said:

I've seen few in Port Macquarie, and heard of them an hour south at Foster.....anywhere further south ie coastal Sydney is just a bit too cold and wet in Winter. Note that both the east and west coasts the limits are similar....30*S is marginal and 32*S probably the limit. The mature ones planted in the Sydney Botanical Gardens declined over a few years and died off a winter or 2 ago,
map_of_new-south-wales.jpg.7c56ad576265348486ee01980850f999.jpg map_of_western-australia.jpg.06896e2434430d0d40881317277ffe9f.jpg
 

Doug, thanks for the maps and the description.

John

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17 hours ago, Mr. Coconut Palm said:

Nick,

Could you post some pics of the ones you are talking about and maybe even post a map of how far south they are in relation to Sydney.  Thanks.

John

In Port Macquarie I have been growing them for 35 years the tallest getting to around 30 feet of trunk, but once it was exposed to the cold wind in winter it was no longer looking good and I removed it. Super slow growing here which is good for long term appearance. The ones at South West Rocks are growing on Granite Rock Boulders which makes for excellent drainage and heat retention, and ideally positioned to take advantage of sunshine all year round. The two that are left do suffer during winter, particularly during a unusually cold winter. I have seen fruit on them but not sure if any have been viable over the years. They would be close to 40 years old now.  

In Foster the one and only growing as far as I know is gone, whether or not it died of natural causes or was removed I don't know. It was about the same size as the one in the picture I have.  

I believe I have the only one now in ground with decent size and duration on the east coast south of SWR. 

Would like to be proven wrong though.

Here is a picture of some I have.

The one's growing in California next to the concrete driveway looks great. All that heat retention and drainage will certainly help during those cold night winters. I also expect the roots from the coconut will attach to the underside of the concrete for moisture and heat all year round.  

 

IMAG0131.jpg

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Port Macquarie NSW Australia

Warm temperate to subtropical

Record low of -2C at airport 2006

Pushing the limit of palm survivabilities

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Hello Mike!,

Would be nice to put a lot of fertilizer on them to see if you are able to get a proper sized fruit and report back to us:)

A question when you say you removed the tallest ones because of the winter cold winds, was it because it was too tall to be sheltered from such winds, whereas these smaller ones don't have to deal with that?

 

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From the time they flower to harvesting fruit in the tropics is close to a year I believe, here in Port Macquarie it is just to long and the fruit dies at a young age. Just to far south. 

The one I removed some years back was exposed to the cold winds as it was taller than our two story home. Also the ground below was mostly in shade for most of the year due to many palms and plants growing next to it. The ones in the picture get sun from about 9am till 3pm in winter which is just enough to keep the ground warm. Its all about ground temperature. 

I have a small one on the edge of my property which gets sun early morning till about midday with a few short shady periods during that time due to the neighbours trees, it's small like the ones in the photo, germinated insitu, no care at all even during our last year drought I never water it. Hasn't grown much but healthy enough. Like I say its all about ground temperature, than anything else this far south of the equator.

Cheers

Mike 

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Port Macquarie NSW Australia

Warm temperate to subtropical

Record low of -2C at airport 2006

Pushing the limit of palm survivabilities

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Thought folks may enjoy this Coconut shaft and the split accompaniment at 26.7 N today:D90DCDE7-66AA-486F-B846-8FFCC7F4FD0A.thumb.jpeg.e66e7a54335405d9544e6d968a4bd1ca.jpeg

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What you look for is what is looking

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That is weird Mike,

The fruits that take a certain time to develop in the tropics tend to be a bit slower in the sub tropics (if they can grow there), so I would imagine if it took a bit longer there it wouldn't be problematic as the coconut fruits all year anyway. I would imagine a date fruit would be more problematic there to get to the last stage (for soft date consumption) due to the rainfall, those actually need a long period of sun and dry weather.

On Madeira Island which is a bit warmer (mostly at night) they tend to fruit during the winter, the problem there seems to be during summer when it gets too dry (no irrigation) and trimming, which leads to no "public coconuts". 

 

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22 hours ago, The Palm Nut said:

From the time they flower to harvesting fruit in the tropics is close to a year I believe, here in Port Macquarie it is just to long and the fruit dies at a young age. Just to far south. 

The one I removed some years back was exposed to the cold winds as it was taller than our two story home. Also the ground below was mostly in shade for most of the year due to many palms and plants growing next to it. The ones in the picture get sun from about 9am till 3pm in winter which is just enough to keep the ground warm. Its all about ground temperature. 

I have a small one on the edge of my property which gets sun early morning till about midday with a few short shady periods during that time due to the neighbours trees, it's small like the ones in the photo, germinated insitu, no care at all even during our last year drought I never water it. Hasn't grown much but healthy enough. Like I say its all about ground temperature, than anything else this far south of the equator.

Cheers

Mike 

Thanks for the info Mike, To get one to 10m is a pretty good effort that far south. I have one in a pot in Sydney's Northern Beaches that I take inside for June-August to be safe, it's not really grown a hell of a lot, but managing to keep it alive. Once its a bit more established I might move it into a north facing pocket somewhere against some rocks and see how it goes. If we had a few mild winters it might make it through.

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On 5/2/2020 at 12:23 AM, greysrigging said:

I've seen few in Port Macquarie, and heard of them an hour south at Foster.....anywhere further south ie coastal Sydney is just a bit too cold and wet in Winter. Note that both the east and west coasts the limits are similar....30*S is marginal and 32*S probably the limit. The mature ones planted in the Sydney Botanical Gardens declined over a few years and died off a winter or 2 ago,
map_of_new-south-wales.jpg.7c56ad576265348486ee01980850f999.jpg map_of_western-australia.jpg.06896e2434430d0d40881317277ffe9f.jpg
 

Doug,

I didn't realize Perth is so far south on the West Coast.  I thought it was a little further north.  So, this makes it all the more amazing that some who live there have been able to grow any Coconut Palms at all there.

John

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On 5/2/2020 at 5:09 PM, The Palm Nut said:

In Port Macquarie I have been growing them for 35 years the tallest getting to around 30 feet of trunk, but once it was exposed to the cold wind in winter it was no longer looking good and I removed it. Super slow growing here which is good for long term appearance. The ones at South West Rocks are growing on Granite Rock Boulders which makes for excellent drainage and heat retention, and ideally positioned to take advantage of sunshine all year round. The two that are left do suffer during winter, particularly during a unusually cold winter. I have seen fruit on them but not sure if any have been viable over the years. They would be close to 40 years old now.  

In Foster the one and only growing as far as I know is gone, whether or not it died of natural causes or was removed I don't know. It was about the same size as the one in the picture I have.  

I believe I have the only one now in ground with decent size and duration on the east coast south of SWR. 

Would like to be proven wrong though.

Here is a picture of some I have.

The one's growing in California next to the concrete driveway looks great. All that heat retention and drainage will certainly help during those cold night winters. I also expect the roots from the coconut will attach to the underside of the concrete for moisture and heat all year round.  

 

IMAG0131.jpg

Mike, 

Thanks for the description of them.  I am curious, what is the Latitude of the furthest South ones that you have seen fruiting over there?  Yours look good.

John

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4 hours ago, Mr. Coconut Palm said:

Mike, 

Thanks for the description of them.  I am curious, what is the Latitude of the furthest South ones that you have seen fruiting over there?  Yours look good.

John

Hi John

30 degrees 53' 03, south. This being at South West Rocks. As close to prefect conditions as you can get for these two palms. I found this picture of them taken some years ago.

Cheers

Mike

IMG_0073.JPG

Port Macquarie NSW Australia

Warm temperate to subtropical

Record low of -2C at airport 2006

Pushing the limit of palm survivabilities

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5 hours ago, Mr. Coconut Palm said:

Doug,

I didn't realize Perth is so far south on the West Coast.  I thought it was a little further north.  So, this makes it all the more amazing that some who live there have been able to grow any Coconut Palms at all there.

John

It is deceptive because the east coast reaches way further south than does the west coast. By latitude Perth and Port Macquarie are almost the same distance south of the equator. Two very different climates of course, warm temperate bordering on sub tropical and a true Mediterranean climate on the west coast at Perth. One of the reasons for the WA members being able to successfully grow a coconut close to 32*S is the almost perfect drainage of the sandy soils in the Perth region. Visitors like me often remark that we cant tell where the beach finishes and the Great Sandy Desert begins.....
 

aunewz.gif

Climate map of Australia.png

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5 minutes ago, greysrigging said:

It is deceptive because the east coast reaches way further south than does the west coast. By latitude Perth and Port Macquarie are almost the same distance south of the equator. Two very different climates of course, warm temperate bordering on sub tropical and a true Mediterranean climate on the west coast at Perth. One of the reasons for the WA members being able to successfully grow a coconut close to 32*S is the almost perfect drainage of the sandy soils in the Perth region. Visitors like me often remark that we cant tell where the beach finishes and the Great Sandy Desert begins....

 

Can you expound a tad bit on that?

 

5 year high 42.2C/108F (07/06/2018)--5 year low 4.6C/40.3F (1/19/2023)--Lowest recent/current winter: 4.6C/40.3F (1/19/2023)

 

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3 minutes ago, GottmitAlex said:

Can you expound a tad bit on that?

 

Probably better @Tyrone and @sandgroper give their first hand experiences, as I'm only a visitor ( and casual observer ) of Perth gardens. But the Perth region, being a Mediterranean climate, receives the majority of their rainfall in the winter months ( the cold gloomy wet chilly miserable winter months if you are a visitor from Darwin at 12*S of the equator....haha ). So the ground is wet and cold ( relatively ) during winter, which by general consensus is not particularly conducive to successful coconut growth. However, the notoriously barren and sandy Perth soils, which really are just about pure sand, means that during the colder wetter months of winter, the coconut root systems do not stand in water, therefor don't succumb to root rot. Perth ( or parts thereof away from the coast ) can get quite cold on winter nights, even occasional frosts, but winter days rarely dip below 10c ( 50f ) and generally hover around 17c-21c.
That was the long answer, short answer is 'Drainage in Winter'
Climate stats for Port Macquarie and Perth.
95608899_245888476613894_7803043360138067968_n.jpg.83b0889b4fee49dc052b233767008a02.jpg 94762083_565244711093744_1487093565375905792_n.jpg.80b80e52ffd88a403d5c0147108a63f6.jpg

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