Trachycarpus indoors

[Zeeth]

I was given seeds for T. fortuneii, T. winsan and T. princeps by our member Succulentum. I want to grow these indoors, and maybe attempt a few T. fortuneii outdoors. You can grow them indoors, right? I know they don't like hot summers, so it seems like they would be similar to Howea forsteriana in that respect, which makes a great houseplant. Any comments on indoor growing of this species? Thanks

Keith

[sarasota alex]

Keith,

Trachycarpus fortunei is frequently grown indoors in Ukraine and Russia from seeds collected in the south of the country. I think Serj or Yuri could provide better info on this or correct me if I am wrong.

From what I heard T. latisectus is the only one that is suited for our climate.

[BigBpalms]

I have t. fortunei , wagnerarius, takil, latisectus, and martianus all growing well here in central florida- babies start in the greenhouse and upon 4 leaves go outside on a mat under the oak trees- super hot summer days have only affected them when the soil really dries out, u have to keep an eye on them, but no more than anything else- these are all pretty easy to deal with compared to some other tropical palms

[Yuri]

You certainly can try to grow them indoors, especially if you have a cool basement. Place them there for like 2 months in summer, and they will reward you with some growth in winter. They really need some chill period - I know some plants that are ca. 10 years old, but have only 4-5 mature leaves, and suffer from RSM.

If you try to grow them outside, make sure it's a shady place. I'm sure that Florida's humidity and and moisture will suit them well, as they naturally occur in monsoon climate. Mine didn't stop growing at 100F and above, provided daily waterings. Give tham a try!

[serj]

Zeeth, you need not to worry! I have heard that tr. fortunei grow in Egypt with some success. You should try it at the north side of the house. If you have a great desire to grow trachie species outdoor you shold try tr. wagnerianus.

[Zeeth]

Thanks for the info everybody! Since I got so many seeds, I will definitely try some outdoors, but to know they can be grown indoors too is good. I will probably have them outside in winters, so they still get some sort of chill period.

[iamjv]

Growing T. fortunei, wagnerarius, takil, and martianus outdoors here in central Texas. They do better if given some shade from the heat of the day but there are many fortunei around town that are in full sun. Those of course need additional irrigation to look good. Jv