The Great Parajubaea Experiment

[Kathryn]

Keith - Please post a picture of the survivor.

[_Keith]

Keith - Please post a picture of the survivor.

Kathryn, it was the most pathetic thing you ever saw before the freeze, and now 3 or 4 dead seedling fronds, with a sorry little green tip emerging. But hey, maybe this will its first pinnate frond, lol.

[Kailua_Krish]

Here is my Sunkha. It lost its spear this winter but did much better than the queen palms around it. It has been growing well, but slowed quite a bit when it got hot. Also some nasty bug is munching holes in the fronds... Overall, I am very pleased with this palm!

-Krishna

[Palm crazy]

After two bad winter in a row I don't have any parajubaea in the ground and won't try them again. Biggest was a 15 gallon. I had several types too.

They do better in some places but don't like prolong cold spells. They do seem to do very well in All most all parts of Cali coast and inland. Except Palm Springs.

[PalmGuyWC]

After about two weeks of very warm weather (hot) with mild nights, my Para T V T has sprung into growth. It was about 10% foliage damaged from two or three freezing nights in early Dec of 2009. It's in serious space competition from some Trach wagneranus growing nearby. The new fronds on it are about 10 feet long. My plan was to have the Parajubaea grow up and over the Trachs to give them some midday shade, but the Trachs have grown at incredible speed, about a foot and half of trunk per year. I still have hopes that the Parajubaea will push up above the Trachs.

Long range I don't have high hopes for the Parajubaeas as they have not proven to be as cold hardy as I expected. Thus far I have gotten some foliage damage about every other winter, but they grow about 6 new fronds a growing season for me. The star of my garden is the Butia X Para C. growing nearby. It has never gotten any cold damage and is growing like a weed, my fastest growing palm. It's also a nice looking palm, nicer looking than any of the Parajubaeas, and it holds lots of fronds.

Dick

[Kailua_Krish]

After about two weeks of very warm weather (hot) with mild nights, my Para T V T has sprung into growth. It was about 10% foliage damaged from two or three freezing nights in early Dec of 2009. It's in serious space competition from some Trach wagneranus growing nearby. The new fronds on it are about 10 feet long. My plan was to have the Parajubaea grow up and over the Trachs to give them some midday shade, but the Trachs have grown at incredible speed, about a foot and half of trunk per year. I still have hopes that the Parajubaea will push up above the Trachs.

Long range I don't have high hopes for the Parajubaeas as they have not proven to be as cold hardy as I expected. Thus far I have gotten some foliage damage about every other winter, but they grow about 6 new fronds a growing season for me. The star of my garden is the Butia X Para C. growing nearby. It has never gotten any cold damage and is growing like a weed, my fastest growing palm. It's also a nice looking palm, nicer looking than any of the Parajubaeas, and it holds lots of fronds.

Dick

Even Sunkha has had damage for you? Like I said, mine has proven to be hardier than queens here.

-Krishna

[Alberto]

Even Sunkha has had damage for you? Like I said, mine has proven to be hardier than queens here.

-Krishna

Or P.sunkha is a superhardy palm....or your queens are from a too tropical origin.....

My sunkhas also grew fine here and never showed signs of damage to freezes . The same for the native queens of course!

[Kailua_Krish]

I wish I could get some of the super hardy queens but they are difficult to find here. Most people sell the tropical ones they grow in South Florida. I got some seeds of supposed Santa Catarina queens but they have not germinated yet.

-Krishna

[_Keith]

Glad you bumped this thread. The The Great Parajubaea Experiment is not over. Amazingly, both of mine have returned from the freeze.

[Kailua_Krish]

Glad you bumped this thread. The The Great Parajubaea Experiment is not over. Amazingly, both of mine have returned from the freeze.

Which two of yours are alive?

-Krishna

[_Keith]

Glad you bumped this thread. The The Great Parajubaea Experiment is not over. Amazingly, both of mine have returned from the freeze.

Which two of yours are alive?

-Krishna

Parajubaea torallyi and Parajubaea sunkha. The sunkha looks better for the experience. The torallyi has only a single spear that has emerged, but they are still tiny plants, no more than advanced stage seedling. I gave them zero chance of returning. The only reason they are even still here is that I never got around to digging them up and replanting the spots.

[palmpuppy]

The small palm in the background of my avatar is a Parajubaea cocoides. Sad to say it hasn't had a lot of attention (fertilizer, etc). Our palms in the back yard tend to get over looked (other than hand watering during the hot, dry season). I wish we would have planted more of these, though. 5 1/2 years later, it looks like this....

Jackie

[Kailua_Krish]

Glad you bumped this thread. The The Great Parajubaea Experiment is not over. Amazingly, both of mine have returned from the freeze.

Which two of yours are alive?

-Krishna

Parajubaea torallyi and Parajubaea sunkha. The sunkha looks better for the experience. The torallyi has only a single spear that has emerged, but they are still tiny plants, no more than advanced stage seedling. I gave them zero chance of returning. The only reason they are even still here is that I never got around to digging them up and replanting the spots.

Any updates on how they are doing? Mine stopped growing over the middle of the summer but then within the past 4 weeks has started sending out 2 new leaves! From what it looks like the P. sunkha doesnt grow unless night temps are in the low 70s, or at least that is my experience. This bodes well for growing it in inland Florida because we get cooler night temps than locations near the coast!

-Krishna

[_Keith]

Glad you bumped this thread. The The Great Parajubaea Experiment is not over. Amazingly, both of mine have returned from the freeze.

Which two of yours are alive?

-Krishna

Parajubaea torallyi and Parajubaea sunkha. The sunkha looks better for the experience. The torallyi has only a single spear that has emerged, but they are still tiny plants, no more than advanced stage seedling. I gave them zero chance of returning. The only reason they are even still here is that I never got around to digging them up and replanting the spots.

Any updates on how they are doing? Mine stopped growing over the middle of the summer but then within the past 4 weeks has started sending out 2 new leaves! From what it looks like the P. sunkha doesnt grow unless night temps are in the low 70s, or at least that is my experience. This bodes well for growing it in inland Florida because we get cooler night temps than locations near the coast!

-Krishna

I stuck my head in the weeds yesterday, and yes they are still there. And still not much more than strap leave seedlings after 2 years, but they have endured much, hurricanes, droughts, 15 year low freezes, and no care whatsoever. Since we are just cooling off and getting into their prime growing season I plan to weed them tomorrow, fertilize, and give them a little TLC. I am mixed on whether to mulch them. Someone said they don't like organic matter as mulch, but I can't help but think it would improve matters.

[Kailua_Krish]

Mine is mounded in a sand and limestone chip mix but has a light layer of pine bark on top. It seems to be ok and it keeps the weeds down.

-Krishna

[_Keith]

Mine is mounded in a sand and limestone chip mix but has a light layer of pine bark on top. It seems to be ok and it keeps the weeds down.

-Krishna

I was never able to clearly discern if they preferred acid or alkaline soils. If alkaline, I can definitely help them out as they are in acid soils right now. I can do a mulch like you have very easily.

[Kailua_Krish]

Mine is mounded in a sand and limestone chip mix but has a light layer of pine bark on top. It seems to be ok and it keeps the weeds down.

-Krishna

I was never able to clearly discern if they preferred acid or alkaline soils. If alkaline, I can definitely help them out as they are in acid soils right now. I can do a mulch like you have very easily.

From my understanding they prefer an alkaline soil, but I dont know why I remember that, definitely dont have a source on that info. Mine is planted near the foundation of my house and near a sidewalk too so it gets all that nonsense too. I was pretty determined to get this palm to grow so I wanted to cover the nematode base too

-Krishna

[_Keith]

I literally had to weedeat them back into visibility. Although small, one has actually thrown its first pinnate leaf, the other still strap leaved.

Can someone else chime in here on the acid or alkaline conditions.

[Alberto]

Mine is mounded in a sand and limestone chip mix but has a light layer of pine bark on top. It seems to be ok and it keeps the weeds down.

-Krishna

I was never able to clearly discern if they preferred acid or alkaline soils. If alkaline, I can definitely help them out as they are in acid soils right now. I can do a mulch like you have very easily.

I think (?) all the Parajubaeas grows in acid soil in habitat....

My palms are all growing fine in acid sandy soil and a few in more clayish acid soill!!

[Stevetoad]

*BUMP* Keith, is this still growing???

[_Keith]

I am sad to report that although they did survive the big freeze, they succumbed to the all time record drought we had in 2011. I do hope to try again someday with larger stock.

[Meangreen94z]

On 11/10/2008 at 8:17 AM, PalmGuyWC said:

A few weeks ago I delivered 6 Parajubaeas to San Francisco to be planted in the San Francisco Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate park. There were 3 P. TVT, 2 P. microcarpa and one sunkha, all nice 5 gal. sized with one or two divided fronds emerging. The planting will be supervised by Jason Dewees, who has contatcs with the supervisors of the garden. Jason is an experienced palm grower and helped in selecting the site where the palms will be planted. I have not seen the site, but hopefully it will be well drained and sunny. I can't think of a better place to plant these palms, and hopefully in a few years we will be walking under Parajubaeas in a public location where they can be enjoyed by all.

 

Dick

Any update? Maybe some photos showing their growth over the years? Thanks.

 

Edit* I checked Dick’s status to see that he is no longer with us. Sad to hear. Anyone associated with him and his efforts in SF have photos/info?

Edited March 2, 2020 by Meangreen94z