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Found a bottle palm in Orange California in the foothills

HTX and Pearland 288 side of town foxtails dead lolllllll

An update on the gorilla's efforts to beautify the neighborhood. Post flowering the trunk branched.

The enjoyable and informative IPS Newsletter has a new Editor. The previous Editor, Andy Hurwitz, has now become IPS President. Well known landscape and botanical author, Jason Dewees has assumed Andy's previous position. Many thanks to both of them. Newletters and announcements from Jason will be posted here.

I have recently successfully air layered three Chamaedorea spp. I did a search on PT on air layering and read every post. Thanks to all who helped me! These palms were very leggy and had roots forming in the middle of their stems. I just put moist sphagnum covered with foil around a group of roots and waited a few months. I cut the trunks and potted up the tops two months ago and they seem to be doing well. I am waiting until I see that the roots are filling up the pots and then will plant them out again once our rainy season begins again in May or so. Eventually I will post about them but want to wait until I am sure of their success longer term.

Just uncovered my baby arenga englerii and it seems to be doing fine Same with the phoenix reclinata and one baby mule palm that was covered. 3 other mules the same size show no damage(yet) and were not protected at all besides live oak canopy

My whole house is surrounded by plantings like this. I plant marginal species close to brick walls to help retain heat and have had good success. Here’s a Dypsis rosea that I’ll start easing away from the eaves next year. I doubt it would survive out in the open.

Hello, my name is Andy Hurwitz I am excited to be the 26th president of the International Palm Society. I am also a daily reader on Palm talk. So it should not be a surprise that I have chosen to make sporadic announcements about the IPS here on our forum. Today I am thrilled to report that the IPS annual conservation initiative, Save the Species, achieved our donation goal for the fifth consecutive year! We collected over $25,000 in donations which will provide ample funding to repatriate Basselinia vestita in habitat in New Caledonia. I wish to thank each and every one of our PT community for their interest and donations. andy

As most of you may know, PalmTalk is one of the many things the IPS supports to help with the education, conservation, and enjoyment of palm trees. Our current President Dr. Andy Hurwitz will use this page from time to time to post notices and to stay in touch with the IPS Membership.

Sorry you guys are dealing with all of this. I’m always amazed at the efforts people are willing to put forth to protect your palms up north. The good news, is that every day the sun gets higher and the days get longer from here on out. Here’s a comparison of the weather down this way, for anyone who is interested. It’s definitely been a colder month than usual overall. The last two days lows were 49 and 46 respectively, at the house here. Looks like low temps here will be in the mid 60s next week and in the low 70s the week after. Which will be a nice change. So far in 2025… Last year…..

Hi Everyone Could someone please help me to identify this palm?

Looks like Syagrus (née Lytocaryum) of some kind. Likely weddelianum. There’s different related species; weddelianum is the most common, and one of the toughest.

I want to argue back. But I can’t. He’s extremely negative, but extremely accurate. Honestly, if it weren’t for family I would not live here in south Louisiana. We have “arctic” storms AND “tropical” storms in the same location!? Absolutely ridiculous. I rolled the dice and spent dollars and years on 4 butia x parajubaea which were fruiting. I don’t know if they will pull through. Was it worth it to look out over the pool and see large pinnate palms for a few years? Probably so.

I’ve been growing Dioon califanoi for about 15yrs on the Ms Gulf Coast. It’s seen days below freezing and lows of 14°. This past cold front will put it to the test. I would call it cold hardy. I may see a few brown leaves this winter but nothing a new flush won’t cure. Edule x califanoi, Edule x argenteum and Merolae x vovidesii are all great Dioon hybrids that will withstand temperatures in low twenties /teens. Edule x Caliafanoi Edule x Argenteum Edule x Califanoi Dioon califanoi Edue x Califanoi Edule x califanoi Edule x Agenteum Merolae x vovidesii This past weeks cold front

Exactly this. I grew both species from seed and planted one of each right next to each other and forgot which is which! 😆 Not a big deal though. Domingensis seeds are large - similar to mexicana in size while causiarum seeds are smaller similar to palmetto. For what it's worth both seedlings have had zero damage from 3 straight years of exposure to 27°F and both are growing at roughly the same speed. I'd expect the faster one to be causiarum.

Basselinia pseudoveluntina was only recently discovered in 2021 where I received the first batch of seed's offered. Was mistaken for Basselinia moorei until more observations were taken by Don Hodel which determined a new species. It is a mid elevation palm sitting between Basselinia moorei which is highland and Basselinia veluntina which is on the lower elevation. Difference from Basselinia veluntina are seed colour veluntina are black and pseudoveluntina are red and other differences which is explained by himself. If you google Basselinia pseudoveluntina,Donald Hodel a PDF Link 🔗 should be there to read more on it. I don't think Basselinia pseudoveluntina as an adult outside of New Caledonia at this stage.

Palms just adjust to buildings or walls. Some believe that they actually like the protection or thermal mass of a building . I planted this one as a very small seedling with the intent of moving it once it started to get a trunk . Well , it looked happy where it was so I left it. This is by far the fastest growing Howea I have , rapidly passing others that are the same age. Maybe because it is hugging the house? Who knows! Harry

5 gallon (20 L) bucket for scale.

Short visit to the botanical garden in St. Gallen 15 minutes by car from us.https://maps.app.goo.gl/SCc97LF3TACam38U9 The garden team does a great job and admission is free for everyone. Here are just a few impressions. There was not enough time for more...

It is common knowledge that there are rather colourfull palms. You can think of Chrysalidocarpus(Dypsis) lutenscens with its yellow petioles, varieties of Cocos nucifera also with golden yellow petioles, Cyrtostachys lakka with its bright red crownshaft and petioles and Mascarena verschaffelti with its orange/yellow petioles in young plants. They are all palms for more warm locations. But, only few people seem to know that there are colourfull palms for temperate locations too! During holidays in Spain I saw plants of Phoenix dactylifera and canariensis with golden-yellow petioles too. Important to notice is that in these palms not only the leafstalks are yellow, but the petiole itself is of a golden yellow color too. I saw these palms in Lloret de Mar, Blanes, Alicante and Marbella. The pictures in this article were made at the boulevard in Lloret de Mar and in a little village near Alicante. The odd thing is that no-one has been able to tell me whether this is a variety and if so, which variety. I have not been able to find anything about this variety on the Internet, nor in books. To my surprise, a wellknown Spanish man from the palmtrade even denies the existance of these colourfull palms. During my holidays I also visited nurseries in Spain, showed these people photos of those Phoenixpalms, but no sign of recognition whatsoever! I have never seen these beautiful palms in the trade too, not in Spain and neither here in Holland. This story brings me to a question for all palmenthousiasts in the countries in southern Europe. Is there anyone out there who recognises my findings and who can help me getting plants with this feature? I am looking for palms that can be grown in a container, so no tall trees!

This is a spectacular palm and unfortunately I don’t know what it is. It likes growing in the understory of our conifer forest.

The minimum in the garden was 35F. The lowest hourly reading at KLAL was 33.8F. Currently, that would be the lowest of the winter and of 2025. There was probably frost in the few parts of the yard that are still open to the sky, but it was gone before I had a chance to observe it. The airport hourly readings for 01/22/2025 to 01/25/2025 are attached in ZIP format. 20250125_NWS.zip

My foxtail in the 2018 freeze (28F) showed brown on fronds within 24 hours. It was one of my sensitive 10a plants that handled a hard freeze best. My coconut I posted yesterday was 100% defoliated but recovered. I had wondered if any of the sensitive palms can harden off some. Here in SE Orlando near MCO, got to 39F last night. Been a crazy week but I believe could have been worse without the cloud cover and, odd to say, snowpack to our immediate north. Pretty much 40F to 55F for 5 days. Long range says enjoy the warmth but could be a sneak arctic outbreak mid to late Feb. I'll enjoy the nice weather and let models do their thing for a couple weeks. Lol

Looks like south facing with a glass barrier and a nice warm wall. Still pretty rare to see one so healthy outdoors in SoCal. Harry

Quick heat up. Already above 50.

I just went look. There’s still a little green at the base of the spear. Recs everybody? I’m gonna go to Lowe’s in a bit. Daconil down the crown? Copper sulfate? Peroxide?

I hope they pull through, I’d agree tho that it was worth it to have that stunning backdrop behind the pool

I do agree with your sentiments overall. However, I just wanted to note that a lot of these sites are English-based, to be fair. Hence, there's usually a language barrier such that it can be hard to compare experiences with those from China/East Asia. So, I don't fully think that it's matter of people "not realizing yet" necessarily. As for commercial citrus, it looks like the Central Valley in California saves the day there.

Actually the C. Lutescens grows happily in warm temperate climate . They show many colors from golden canes to pinkish red emergent growth on new spears and light green foliage. The one on the east side of my house with only morning sun has more of a pink tone on new spears than the one on the west side that gets afternoon sun ….curious . Both have grown nicely here and I see them in non collector yards here in my warm temperate environment . My Dypsis Lanceolata has almost a burgundy look around the base and petiole when the frond opens but it is still quite small and not clumping yet . Of course the flamethrower , C. Metallica , and C. Decaryi have nice colorings and can be grown here. The silver blue Butia or Brahia Armata with golden inflorescence ….all quite lovely . Harry This young Dypsis Lanceolata showing some color on the petiole, harmonious with the bright red fruit of the C. Radicalis A temperate favorite , the Chembroynia Macrocarpa the golden canes of a mature , clumping Chamaedorea Tepejelote greets you as you find your way down the east side of the house more golden canes , this time from a C. Lutescens the popular Triangle palm , C. Decaryi with white grey to purple leaf bases and silver green foliage. All are temperate and , to me , display colorful variations in the palm world. Harry

In hindsight I should have defoliated and wrapped. But I just couldn’t make myself cut all of those fronds off.

@Allen Interesting video. Thank you for that source. @jwitt True about Laredo's rainfall. Brownsville's pattern is actually similar those months, the main difference being that Brownsville has a noticeable surge in precip during September and October.

@Swolte it got down to 24 but it’s the snow and ice I’m worried about. They were both ordered at the same time as well and planted out in 2023

Syagrus weddeliana I think.

SPECTACULAR!!! 👍 aztropic Mesa, Arizona

I didn't think you said anything out of turn to the guy in Texas. What the guy in TX maybe doesn't realize yet but he will is the southeast US is an awful climate to grow palms besides sabals. I have a friend in NZ at 40S growing navel oranges and never once had a tree freeze. And of course when is the last time you heard people in Spain and Italy frantically trying to protect their citrus from temps in the low teens. It never happens. Europe grows commercial citrus at 40N, something America can't even muster at 30N. We have the worst geography in the world. I know people in central FL have had their citrus trees frozen solid and die within weeks. There is a reason we have no native broadleaf evergreens except for ugly live oaks, while China is native to citrus and camelias and tons of broadleaf evergreens. Scientists have studied this. The US Southeast is so wildly erratic temp wise that you can get weeks of 70F weather in the winter, followed by temps in the low teens. It kills everything. It is the worst subtropical climate in the world bar none. I wouldn't even classify it as subtropical. Houston is a warm continental climate but certainly not subtropical went you can hit 7F. China, Australia, Argentina, Europe, the Middle East, etc etc. can grow far more and at higher latitudes, and never have winter temps deviate by 40F like the SE US. They are lucky if their temps deviate in winter by 10F. It is a horrible palm growing climate. that is why this cold hardy forum is full of Americans and basically no one else. . Every winter this cold palm forum is the domain of Americans dealing with these cold outbreaks, while people at 40N latitude in Europe are growing stuff no one can in Louisiana. WE have the worst palm growing climate for such low latitude locations. 6F at 30N no where else in the world ever. In the 1980's Mobile Al went down to 7F and here we are and they went to 6F at 30N latitude at sea level. Not a single location on earth at that latitude has ever gotten that cold. Never. Rotten geography which Americans will never admit to. I am much older than most on this forum. In the 1980's you couldn't grow a cidp to save your life in Houston. When you went to Houston in the late 80's you saw nothing but the most hardy of palms. Winter low mins in Houston 1982 12F, 1983 11F, 1989 the big winner at 7F. In 1983 Houston had three days in a row without going above freezing with an ultimate low of 11F. Not a single pinnate palm was left. Grow palms in Houston and the rest of the Southeast US at your own risk. Eventually all will die except sabals. When was the last time Nice France or Naples Italy hit 7F?

In my experience, I start to see some damage to fronds once temperature hit around 15F in healthy palms. Mostly cosmetic. Single digits usually means losing fronds and serious damage. I noticed about a 50% survival rate after 5F (Mature unprotected plants).

It really depends - odorata is quite variable. I lost the first one I ever had at 15°F but it was small 3-gal size when planted and it was the first winter in the ground. Back then I didn't know to protect it. During the 2021 Palmageddon I had 3 planted all well established and larger than 15-gal size. Two spear-pulled after 9°F and the third suffered about 40% leaf burn. All 3 were unprotected and survived but I had to trunk cut the two that spear-pulled. Never had any damage from freezes besides those in 25 years. If I had to guess I'd say around 15°.

Yes. I weirdly find palms growing underneath power lines. Sabal minor to a lesser extent but most definitely for Sabal palmetto.

Lets not get too optimistic too quickly! Damage may show up a few weeks or months later. @Chester B, this was just a frost cloth and it went down to 19F? If it keeps looking that good, I am genuinely impressed... It went down to 16F for me for a few hours as the worst event (other days, even yesterday, in the low 20s). Some first impressions of unprotected palms after a few days (I am not mentioning the obvious ones, like most Sabals or needles, etc...): - Supermule (frond damage, will probably end up defoliating completely) - Jubaea hybrids (look unfazed) - Sabal Causiarum 5 yrs (unfazed) - C Radicalis (looks fine but some discoloring. May end up defoliating) - Sabal Riverside 5 yrs (unfazed) Let me know if there's a specific palm you're interested in! Never thought of that... good idea for potted palms if you can't drag them in! ~ S

I noticed, growing up in Michigan, that in extreme cold weather, the needles of white pines bunched together, and the leaves of rhododendrons curled up. When the weather warmed up, they went back to normal.

The monthly precipitation in Laredo is an inch or less for the months of November, December, January, February. The only months. Naturally induced dormancy!

My sister is currently building her retirement home in the actual forest outside Grass Valley, CA. It is completely off-grid, with photovoltaic panels, battery storage, a well, and septic tank system. The code requirements are incredibly strict. Fortunately she has employed a top notch, local architect. One of the requirements is that the domestic water system must include a large storage tank of several thousand gallons, with fittings compliant for use by firefighters. The house also has, (of course) a metal roof and 3 hour fire rated exterior walls.

Looks fine if you ask me. I have a number of examples just as close to my house.

Looks like Hydriastele beguinii Obi Island to me.

It's pretty staggering how anyone in the nursery business could come to the conclusion that by crossing two species which grow to at least 20m you could end up with a 4m tall palm! Your scepticism is well founded...these will get very tall, usually very quickly.

Still expecting 40deg at my house. Bought a comforter and wrapped my Lipstick and placed two space heaters at the base. Not taking any chances. Luckily it's trunking so fairly mature. I've been told they hate drought more than they hate a bit of weather in the 40's

Unless it is a long run of subfreezing temps, as was in my neck of the woods. Some of my folded fronds on my windmills will remain that way and actually become crispy this spring. It is a defense mechanism but it can be permanent in extreme cold. I'll be doing a YouTube video on this in a few days when I get a true warm up and one can see the difference, or in some cases how the fronds remain the same or similar looking after the cold event.

I recognise those tags. Good one merc top looking palm. I won’t ask where you got the seeds?