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How many of you have thought about making palm/plant activities a side business, or a full time main source of income?

The new upgrade "broke" the Classic Blue Skin. There may be a way to fix it with a little bit of work. But, if very few will miss it, the time and potential problems a fix could lead to is not worth it. If you are using it, you will notice some weirdness with some things. Try using the newer skin (options at bottom left hand corner of page) and see if you can't get used to it. There are actually some improvements not available with Classic Blue.

My wife sees my passion for palms and just gave me the green-light to start some sort of palm business....and, to eventually quit my job this summer (assistant principal in an elem. school). If you're not already in the palm business, have you ever had these thoughts? Is there money out there to be made? If you have any ideas that you'd like to share....I'm all ears. .... and may even want to partner up. Here are her thoughts for me: sell acai berries....and, make/sell/market acai juice (we have twenty dwarf SuperBerry trees - but not fruiting yet).commercial landscaping design (to bring in more unusual palms to the area.......and discourage more planting of sabals, queens, and D.lutescens).combine a rare palm nursury with something else.....like a skate/surf shop & park and/or a healthy fast-food & cafe joint.assist S.Florida nurseries with trade & transport.

There have been some cycads that have grown well for me, and many that haven't. In discussions with other N. CA. cycad growers, they have had similar results. Freezes burn the leaves of many species (although I have never had a cycad die after a freeze) and our cold wet winters likely rot root systems. They don't seem to do well with heavy root competition either. I have had better growth with higher nitrogen fertilization. Here are some that have done well. Lepidozamia peroskoffiana (center) burns a bit, but flushes nicely in the Spring. From seed 8+ years.

Rare palms is a great hobby, but, as a business . . . No.

It could be and I wouldn't even know! I bought the seeds through the Cycad society many years ago.

Thanks John and Matt! I had to wait until late in the season to get decent pics of these.

Great looking cycads Glenn. I've got a few that grow unevenly like your lehmanii, I'm not sure why they do that.

Very nice, Glenn....end of summer pics are always the best for our tropicals!

Encephalartos lehmanii grows unevenly and very slowly. It has never shown frost damage. From seed 10+ years.

Cycas panzuiaensis grows steadily and does not burn. From seed 5 years.

Cycas thouarsii burns in freezes but grows very fast and flushes twice a year. Below it, Zamia furfuracia burns in freezes, but replaces its top nicely every spring. Ceratozamia sp. (mexicana? far right) grows well and is currently coning.

Encephalartos natalensis burns in freezes. Ive noticed that mine have produced a declining number of leaves over the past few years.

Macrozamia mooreii has never burned in a freeze. It grows steadily but slowly. From seed 13+ years. I bought this one as a 10-11 inch diameter caudex. It grows slowly but I have been much more impressed with the growth from seed.

I planted 4 Encephalartos ferox, this one is doing the best. Burns in freezes. 12+ years from seed.

Encephalartos arenarus (blue-green) grows quickly for a cycad. Burns in freezes but reliably throws 1 or 2 tops every year. From two leaf seedling 10+ years.

Jeff- I am going to get them before you do if it is the last thing I do.