Mature Phoenix dactylifera in the UK discovered!

[Gan Eden]

This is a current thread on the Growing on the Edge forum. Very interesting. I reckon it's a hybrid of some sort but still amazing.

http://www.growingontheedge.net/viewtopic.php?t=3257

[Mark Heath]

Cool find! I would've never thought that it would make it there in a cool damp place! It's a big one!

[markpeters77]

This is a current thread on the Growing on the Edge forum. Very interesting. I reckon it's a hybrid of some sort but still amazing.

http://www.growingontheedge.net/viewtopic.php?t=3257

Lovely palm, surely not 150 yrs old tho - even taking into account a cooler climate on the British Isles (even the southerly ones!). Who cares if it's a hybrid, if hybrid = hardy, I'm in!!

[John in Andalucia]

If I may throw in some factual information, this spectacular find is in the British Isles (as mentioned above) on the island of Jersey, in the Channel Islands - quite distinct from the United Kingdom (UK) which comprises mainland Britain & N. Ireland. The Channel islands form part of the British Isles by sovereignty only, and are not physically part of the island group, being situated off the French Normandy coast. The lowest temperature for Jersey is 3°C in January whilst annually, it receives more sunshine than any other place in the British Isles. I hope this helps to explain the marvel of a mature Date Palm in Northern Europe.

[Gan Eden]

If I may throw in some factual information, this spectacular find is in the British Isles (as mentioned above) on the island of Jersey, in the Channel Islands - quite distinct from the United Kingdom (UK) which comprises mainland Britain & N. Ireland. The Channel islands form part of the British Isles by sovereignty only, and are not physically part of the island group, being situated off the French Normandy coast. The lowest temperature for Jersey is 3°C in January whilst annually, it receives more sunshine than any other place in the British Isles. I hope this helps to explain the marvel of a mature Date Palm in Northern Europe.

Yes I knew this but most people haven't hence my "UK" title. The Ch Islands are still under the Queen though.

[John in Andalucia]

If I may throw in some factual information, this spectacular find is in the British Isles (as mentioned above) on the island of Jersey, in the Channel Islands - quite distinct from the United Kingdom (UK) which comprises mainland Britain & N. Ireland. The Channel islands form part of the British Isles by sovereignty only, and are not physically part of the island group, being situated off the French Normandy coast. The lowest temperature for Jersey is 3°C in January whilst annually, it receives more sunshine than any other place in the British Isles. I hope this helps to explain the marvel of a mature Date Palm in Northern Europe.

Yes I knew this but most people haven't hence my "UK" title. The Ch Islands are still under the Queen though.

That's OK Gan, it's for everyone's benefit. I like to enhance topics wherever possible. People here either appreciate it, or aren't bothered by it, so it's never seen as a criticism.

[Corrosion]

Wonder how many palms are in Gilbraltar! That´s UK too. At least the language is english and people but everything else is like south spain.

[Gan Eden]

Wonder how many palms are in Gilbraltar! That´s UK too. At least the language is english and people but everything else is like south spain.

Probably quite a lot, but they don't have a cold climate.

[Gan Eden]

If I may throw in some factual information, this spectacular find is in the British Isles (as mentioned above) on the island of Jersey, in the Channel Islands - quite distinct from the United Kingdom (UK) which comprises mainland Britain & N. Ireland. The Channel islands form part of the British Isles by sovereignty only, and are not physically part of the island group, being situated off the French Normandy coast. The lowest temperature for Jersey is 3°C in January whilst annually, it receives more sunshine than any other place in the British Isles. I hope this helps to explain the marvel of a mature Date Palm in Northern Europe.

Yes I knew this but most people haven't hence my "UK" title. The Ch Islands are still under the Queen though.

That's OK Gan, it's for everyone's benefit. I like to enhance topics wherever possible. People here either appreciate it, or aren't bothered by it, so it's never seen as a criticism.

No worries.

[Tyrone]

They should try Howea and Hedyscepe there.

Best regards

Tyrone

[bubba]

Europe and the UK never cease to amaze me in the range of Palms that can be grown at incredible Latitudes.That Phoenix looks better than some I have seen in the Georgia Sea Islands around 30 degrees latitude.

On a side note, I had a great client who was incarcerated in a German prison Camp on the Island of Jersey during WWII. He escaped and wrote a book on it. It may become a movie. He was part of the Yale Class of 1937 that came in with a Hurricane and left with a War.

[Gan Eden]

Europe and the UK never cease to amaze me in the range of Palms that can be grown at incredible Latitudes.That Phoenix looks better than some I have seen in the Georgia Sea Islands around 30 degrees latitude.

On a side note, I had a great client who was incarcerated in a German prison Camp on the Island of Jersey during WWII. He escaped and wrote a book on it. It may become a movie. He was part of the Yale Class of 1937 that came in with a Hurricane and left with a War.

And he may have seen that palm when it was a tiddler! lol

[Gan Eden]

They should try Howea and Hedyscepe there.

Best regards

Tyrone

They might do better than some Ive seen around Perth!

[Roaringwater]

Jersey has hotter summers and more sunshine than anywhere in the geographic British Isles, but its proximity to the continent means that it gets hit by the occasional arctic blast from the east. Long-term, it is nowhere near as mild as the Isles of Scilly or coastal Ireland. Pure CIDPs were killed in Jersey in the winter of '87, while they survived in Guernsey, which is further from the Normandy coast. The hot summers mean that they have some interesting native wildlife though, like the Green Lizard, a much bigger and more brightly coloured animal than any of the lizards found in Britain.

[Kelern]

Like this one taken in my garden with my mobile phone (sorry for the low quality). It was impressive, nearly 10'' long

For the Phoenix, it looks like a cross between Phoenix canriensisXsylvestris.

Edited June 21, 2009 by Kelern

[Roaringwater]

What a beautiful Lizard Yves, you are very lucky to have them in your garden. I saw one many years ago on Tresco, where there is a colony. Here, we only have Viviparous Lizards, which hardly ever come out in the open (too many Kestrels, Peregrines etc). There is at least one colony of Green Lizards on the UK mainland. For an interesting blog about them, look here:

Green Lizards in the UK

And a short summary of introduced reptiles in the UK:

Introduced Reptiles in the UK

Your suggestion about the Phoenix is interesting. Do you have any photos of a Phoenix sylvestris/canariensis cross? There is an old Phoenix on one of the islands on Lake Maggiore that has survived many hard freezes, which is supposed to be this hybrid, but I've never seen a photo.

Edited June 22, 2009 by Roaringwater

[Tyrone]

They should try Howea and Hedyscepe there.

Best regards

Tyrone

They might do better than some Ive seen around Perth!

It depends which ones you mean, and some don't look so great, but I think I know what you mean. Perth ones can look great, especially along the coast under a bit of canopy. LHI is the same lat as Perth. Now as regards Hedyscepe, I've never seen any in the ground in WA except in my garden.

Best regards

Tyrone