Best Indoor Exotic Palms

[Dan OKeeffe]

I am thankful for my SF micro-climate. It affords me to grow Ceroxylons, Howeas, Rholpalostyils, Hedys and a few other exotics palms. So I try my marginal palms indoors. Currently in doors I have an orange Areca vestiaria doing great (Pic to Follow), a super slow Bizzie, a ugly Malayan Dwarf, and a Chambeyronia that I just moved outside (Cross your fingers for me, its tough one).

What are you indoor palm recommendations/experiences?

thanks

Dan

[Walter John]

Hi Dan

Most Chamaedoreas do well, especially elegans, atrovirens, and seifrizii.

Jason of Western Australia or Col Wilson of New South Wales may know the better ones for indoors. I've seen a Dypsis lutescens go okay too. I actually tried Areca triandra and a Reinhardtia simplex in my inner city building office area but both succumbed to neglect very fast.

[Palm Guy]

I've seen alot of Adonidia's do great indoors.

[TikiRick]

From my own personal experience the top winners are Cham. metallica and Syagrus schizophyllum. Both do extremely well indoors with only filtered light.

[Dan OKeeffe]

Thank you for the advice!

[Really full garden]

Raphis excelsa cannot be beat.It tops my list for indoor palms that look great.I also had a Arenga undulatifolia that did very well next to a window.

[Mark_NoVA]

There was a nice thread on this a while back on the Hardy Palm forum, archived at http://exoten.dyndns.org/cgi-bin/hardy.cgi...2297A5BEB85BDEE .

Hyophorbe verschaffeltii has done very well indoors for me. This year I decided to just get the palms I most want, and see how they do indoors. Many are rainforest plants that take low light levels when young, which sounds good for indoors, but of course they want more humidity than found indoors. We'll see what happens!

[PalmGuyWC]

I'd vote for most Rhapis, but Cham. metallica is trouble free and prob the best. Got to watch those Rhapis to not dry out. If the do, their gonners.

Dick

[MattyB]

One that no one mentioned, that I've had some success with indoors, is Basselinia gracilis. It grew very well for me for a couple of years, but suddenly died. It can be a touchy plant so I don't think that it was the indoor cultivation that killed it. Nice an small too, for a quaint little spot.

[Neofolis]

I think the best palms for indoors in terms of ornamental appeal are the smaller Calyptrocalyx, Iguanura, Geonoma and Pinanga species and those of similar genera that have numerous small understorey species. Many offer colourful new foliage amd most are very elegant. They are less likely to outgrow their surroundings than many of the more popular indoor palms, which often grow into large palms and all cope with relatively low light and pot culture. The main stumbling block for most of these species is their need for high humidity, but in a well humidified environment, they should look great.

[JakeK]

I've had great success with Calyptrocalyx, Dypsis, Burretiokentia, Alloschmidia, Actinokentia, Kentiopsis, Chambeyronia and even Areca vestiaria indoors in a relatively cool apartment (temps in low to mid 60's.). Pinanga has been a colossal failure for me. Many Pinangas cannot tolerate the extended cooler conditions with the exception of P. kuhlii.

I think the key factors are temperature, humidity, and moisture. I keep the temps down, which limits growth, but also limits water intake. I also wick all excess moisture away from the soil after watering.

[Alberto]

In Brazil a very commonly cultivated indoor palm is Lytocarium wedellianum. I have one growing in the bathroom for ten years now and three growing outside.

[Dan OKeeffe]

Wow so much to try.

Thanks

[kahili]

I have had pretty good luck with quite a few different ones inside. I just brought them all in for the winter so actually wrote down what I had, and it ended up to be about 75 palms. They do surprisingly well inside. I put a 4 x 4' skylight in a room with no windows that I wasn't using. and other than watering them periodically-they just stay there or other rooms that have skylights. I never mist them during the winter.

Here are some that do really well for me:

Pinangas, Licualas, Veitchia (only have the spirals), Arenga, Syagrus, Verschafeltia, Pritchardias, Actinorhytis (just calapparia), Caryotas, Calyptrocalyx, Ptychospermas, Hydriasteles, Hyophorbes, Wodyetia, Schippia, Dypsis , Archontophoenix, Arecas (vestiaria-maroon and orange), Chambeyronias, Kerriodoxa, Geonomas, Asterogyne ( martiana-one of my favorites and one that does so well inside that some summers I leave inside), Ravenea, Marojejya (darianii).

The majority of these have gone through several winters inside, so thats a good sign. I also suspect that coming out for the summer and experiencing our hot, humid summers does them good as well. that is when I see the most growth on them. This fall I did something different. I added iron, bloodmeal and magnesium (just a small amt) to them for the winter, and also just a very small amt of slow release fert as I don't have time in the spring until late may to fertilize them.

[palmdudetx]

This palm group has already been mentioned, but thought that I would show a shot of my Adonidia merrillii. Started this one from seed about 10 years ago and it has always been inside. Also, sorry to admit it but also has been neglected some of the time. Have two of them inside and I have not had any problems at all.

Marvin

[ghar41]

Ive tried quite a few inside. My problem has been, even though I am careful about my outdoor watering...inside, I forget! So, I only have Howea's inside. Mine will wilt for over a week, halfway to the ground and recover without any problems. I lost a nice Rhapis that I let get too dry once. C. metallica can get by away from light sources quite well, although Id be hesitant to let it get too dry.

[JD in the OC]

Caryota zebrina, Crysophila albida, Licuala sumawongii, all Livistona sp., Cyrtostachys, and Kerriodoxa all do well indoors for me.

As Colin in Australia told me a while ago, the trick is to put moss on top of the soil and take the plants outside every couple of weeks to leech the soil. Allow all water to drain completely, then move back inside. This prevents salt and mineral build-ups in the soil which causes black leaf tips and eventually death. (NEVER water indoor palms periodically with a cup of tap water!)

[palmtreesforpleasure]

Hi JD

Looks like you are enjoying Florida

Hello Dan

Humidity and fresh rain water to flush the salt build up in the soil works well, Move the palm out side when raining (when it is warm enough), the rain water and fresh circulating air is great for the palms. This worked on my Lipstick palm for 5 years. Did not have to water it very much during winter, The Spagnum moss on the top of the pot kept the soil moist and help keep the humidity up, In the case of palms from a hot, humid climate the pot was suspended over tray of water which in my case was the container base turned sideways which suspended the container above it.

Went away for a week this winter and the power went off, the lipstick did not survive the 5c nights and 9c day but it did last 5 years. Do not let the soil be wet all the time, it must dry out like it does in nature.

regards

Colin