About 6 years ago I bought two of the palms pictured below as Dypsis lastelliana & clearly they are not. I think that they are being called "mealy bug redneck" but there appears that about 3 different versions of the plant floating around.

The plants are very slow here where I live & I get only about 2 new leaves a year.

This is the underside of the leaf showing the "mealy bug" markings.

Edited July 17, 200817 yr by Ntheastpalms

Dypsis leptocheilos for me.

and a wider shot of the other plant.

That is a possibility ffeuillade but I'm almost certain that they are not D leptocheilos as I have many D leptocheilos in my garden & they grow very quickly here. Another reason is that the leaves on the Dypsis sp twist about two thirds of the way up near the end of the frond, its the only Dypsis sp that I have that does this.

Hi Matt, i've got a couple in the ground as well and i purchased these from Clayton. He described them as Highland form of dypsis lastelliana or Mealy bug dypsis! .They too are slow for me (1/2 leaves per year ). Cheers Mike Green (Newcal)

G'Day Mike

I bought these plants from the Chinderah palm nursery just before they retired. Your right they are very very slow.

I hope Bill Beattie or Clayton see the post they, may have a little more info about them.

Hi Matt, i've got a couple in the ground as well and i purchased these from Clayton. He described them as Highland form of dypsis lastelliana or Mealy bug dypsis! .They too are slow for me (1/2 leaves per year ). Cheers Mike Green (Newcal)

They need to grow here... . Send them over...

Regards, Ari

I reckon your right Ari

Matt, I am pretty sure they are a form of D. lastelliana. Not to be confused with what was being called the 'Highland Redneck' which is the species with the long mottled petioles.

regards,

Daryl

Matt, I am pretty sure they are a form of D. lastelliana. Not to be confused with what was being called the 'Highland Redneck' which is the species with the long mottled petioles.

regards,

Daryl

I believe I just planted mine, look here:

http://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=12926

Bill, here is one I saw about 8 years ago...one day yours may look like this?

Daryl

Heres hoping Daryl!!!

Matt, I am pretty sure they are a form of D. lastelliana. Not to be confused with what was being called the 'Highland Redneck' which is the species with the long mottled petioles.

regards,

Daryl

Agree. I too have one, it is a slow lasty that's for sure.

G'Day Daryl

I have a "Highland redneck" (a fairly sad one at that) & it is not the same palm. They do look a little like a lastelliana but are much sloooower. I have a couple of the normal Lastelliana I bought as 3 leaf seedlings & even during winter they are producing new leaves.

Hi Matt, as far as I know, there are several forms of lastelliana here. Some are fast and some are slow. One has almost black fur and is a slender 'upright' grower. There is another that is really large and quite fast growing. Another that was sold as 'Masaola' Form, which also appears to have the red new spear. The one sold as 'Highland lastelliana'. Maybe there are more. They all have subtle differences and all grow differently. I don't know what other forms are grown in the US or Hawaii..maybe they have different ones again? And of course the species I mentioned earlier, which is slow as a wet week as you said!

Daryl

Off hand, I can think of 4 "versions" around here.

Big red- bluish green leaves, super dark tomentum and petioles, Very slow growth.

Normal? -dark tomentum, green petioles, green leaves, avg speed. (slower than a lepto)

Highland mealy,- kinda the mottled white markings, less tomentum, green leaves, slow growth, although I think they all grow faster with age.

Mealy bug lasteliana? - Kinda as one of the first pics shows, colored petioles with white streaks, green leaves with slow to avg growth.

Are there others you all know of? I currently have 1 of each.

Here's a 2 year old thread about what I believe is the same palm.

http://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?sh...and+lastelliana

I'll see if I can get some pics soon to compare the growth after two years.

Thanks for posting that link to the old post Dean. I think we will have to wait & see what they turn out to be.

Man, if I would just get all mine in the ground I could start posting old pix...

Hi Dean, they look like the same palm to me.

Here are some more lastelliana photos...

Big fast growing form

Upright dark form

Masaola form

Daryl

Thanks Daryl for posting those, it's such a lovely palm, doesn't matter how slow the growth, or the specific type, you just have to have one or two or three.,

Matt/Dean, does this look like a young highland lastelliana? Did yours have a red emerging spear like this? Thanks to fellow ratpacker, Randy Rat I now have one of these...maybe the same, but maybe not?

I also forgot earlier, there is also the different form that Bill Beattie has growing. Maybe a lastelliana? Bill?

Daryl

Daryl...the photo you posted are of a palm I got from Alfred about 12 yrs ago. The seed was very large ...circa 30x20mm...90% weevil infested...but 5 germinated. Two went to Michael Ferrero who was then at Nong Nooch and I have three here. Allegedly from 1500m...it is quite different to other forms of 'lastelliana'. It may even be related to D. leptocheilos. It has flowered but no seed set.

The original photos that started this thread look like a form of 'lastelliana' from Ile St. Marie which...up here in NQ...were the first lastelliana grown...at Mission Beach. Tediously slow growing and very much a hardwood...after 25 years it now has a short trunk! Will post photo tomorrow. I got mine from Terry Mead ca. '88. The reason I think this is a form from Ile St Marie is that I saw a few there ca. 2003. One of its distinguishing characteristics is the upright habit of its leaves. More later.

Bill.

I've got the same palm that I got from floribunda and it is labelled "dypsis lastelliana v. c. masaola"

It is very slow growing for me, but it is growing with little care in a shady spot.

Edited July 27, 200817 yr by Central Floridave

Hold that thought, I may have the variety wrong. Let me go check my records. I may have spoke to soon.

Dypsis lastelliana v. Cape Masoala from floribunda back a few years back.

Daryl- I think maybe that last big pic you posted is of "Big Red"? It looks very similar to the one Ron Lawyer has out here.

Hey matt, how is this palm going? Any updated pics?

Cheers

Harry

Hi Harry

These palms are growing but at a fairly slow pace, they have not yet started to trunk but are still large plants.

I will have to get an updated photo tomorrow.

That would be great, I think I have a smaller one with that same horizontal growth with the 'twist'. Cheers

I think we all can agree, this is D. lastelliana, and a much slower growing species than D. lepto.

Hi jeff, no doubt it is a form of lasteliana, but which one? and what will it look like?

Hi jeff, no doubt it is a form of lasteliana, but which one? and what will it look like?

Yes its 100 % a Lasteliana..common name Big Red because of the red new spear..no guesses to what it looks like

Think mine is the Masoala form also .

these 2 pics taken today .

this is an old one taken when I purchased it in '07

I like that red spear. Very cool