Jump to content
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT LOGGING IN ×
  • WELCOME GUEST

    It looks as if you are viewing PalmTalk as an unregistered Guest.

    Please consider registering so as to take better advantage of our vast knowledge base and friendly community.  By registering you will gain access to many features - among them are our powerful Search feature, the ability to Private Message other Users, and be able to post and/or answer questions from all over the world. It is completely free, no “catches,” and you will have complete control over how you wish to use this site.

    PalmTalk is sponsored by the International Palm Society. - an organization dedicated to learning everything about and enjoying palm trees (and their companion plants) while conserving endangered palm species and habitat worldwide. Please take the time to know us all better and register.

    guest Renda04.jpg

Walnut Creek, California, The Dick Douglas Garden


freakypalmguy

Recommended Posts

I had the opportunity to visit Dick Douglas a few days back on one of my layovers in San Fransisco. I was limited on time so I got up early in the morning and took the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) 40 minutes north to Walnut Creek. Dick met me at the station at 6:30am and we started the day off with breakfast at one of the local restaurants then headed to his place for a tour. It was early in the morning so the lighting was not the greatest for picture taking, combine that with a bit of fog that rolled through, and my pics did not come out the best, but I think it's hard to get a bad shot of Dick's garden.

In this first shot, I was demonstrating to Dick how I shimmied up the Cocos nucifera in Miami to collect pollen. He didn't think I could do it, but I had stepped on some gum while riding the BART and my fingernails were badly in need of a trim, so it wasn't a problem. Anyone can hug a Jube at ground level.......

060x.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The front of Dicks house,

056.jpg

The famous Butia X Jubea

052.jpg

Up the skirt

053.jpg

A different angle, showing the twisting fronds

054.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sable

055.jpg

Butia and a Mule in the Bamboo grove

071.jpg

Butia X Jubea through the bamboo

073.jpg

This mule is engulfed in the bamboo.

074.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Trithrinax campestris

046.jpg

Up close shot of the trunk

047.jpg

Waggies and a Parajubea tor tor

057.jpg

Dick for scale

085.jpg

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dicks amazing Butia X Parajubea cocoides. This is a really killer palm.

062.jpg

The next three are all shots of the trunk and the massive amount of excelsa.

065.jpg

066.jpg

091.jpg

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sneaker/Jube trunk

070.jpg

Jube, Braheas, and Nannorrhops

075.jpg

076.jpg

077.jpg

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Blue Serenoa repens

088.jpg

And now, to the backyard.

092.jpg

093.jpg

Monster Nannorrhops

098.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

100.jpg

102.jpg

104.jpg

107.jpg

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

110.jpg

111.jpg

Brahea edulis

126.jpg

Brahea nitida

129.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Phoenix ?

109.jpg

Hybrid

002.jpg

003.jpg

004.jpg

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

005.jpg

006.jpg

007.jpg

008.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

009.jpg

010.jpg

011.jpg

012.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fantastic photo's....what a great, mature garden !! :drool:

Regards

Michael

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

013.jpg

014.jpg

015.jpg

016.jpg

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

019.jpg

Lot's of hybridizing

025.jpg

026.jpg

028.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

029.jpg

Butia paraguayensis

032.jpg

Rhapidophyllum hystrix

035.jpg

037.jpg

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

B. paraguayensis again

038.jpg

039.jpg

Dick's giant Oak

040.jpg

A plate of Trithrinax campestris seed we collected.

108.jpg

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, that's all. Thank you again Dick for your hospitality.

Matt

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Its a dream, came to reality, to have this kind of palm comunity!

Thats a realy nice overcroweded yard!

Thanks a lot for the views!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Matt,

Thanks a lot for the great photos of an outstanding garden (and thank you Dick!). Lots of palms that you never see here in Hawaii! :) Garden looks just as good, or maybe even better, than it did in May 2007 when I was there with the other IPS Directors. That was an unforgettable day!

Bo-Göran

Leilani Estates, 25 mls/40 km south of Hilo, Big Island of Hawai'i. Elevation 880 ft/270 m. Average rainfall 140 inches/3550 mm

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Very enjoyable topic.......... surely one of the best palm collections in the world. It was nice to see Dick in a couple of shots !

Resident in Bristol UK.

Webshop for hardy palms and hybrid seeds www.hardy-palms.co.uk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

WOW! First you have Matt the Monkey in his new avatar pose...

THEN, you have great pictures of Dick Douglas' epic garden WITH the Maestro himself!

Epic thread, pure gold! :drool:

Thanks Dick and Matt!!

PS- I have to say, There have been a few photo threads of Dicks place, but this is the first one that really gave me a taste of the size and grandeur of whats there.

Zone 10a at best after 2007 AND 2013, on SW facing hill, 1 1/2 miles from coast in Oceanside, CA. 30-98 degrees, and 45-80deg. about 95% of the time.

"The great workman of nature is time."   ,  "Genius is nothing but a great aptitude for patience."

-George-Louis Leclerc de Buffon-

I do some experiments and learning in my garden with palms so you don't have to experience the pain! Look at my old threads to find various observations and tips!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It was quite a surprise to sign on to Palmtalk this morning and see Matt (freakeypalmguy) purched high on one of my Jubaeas. Maybe we should rename him Spider Man. Of course it's a trick photo, and he was on the ground, but it's almost become a ritual for palm folks who visit to want to hug my Jubaea. It's a strict growing one, but has the thickest trunk of any of my Jubaeas. It takes 3 people with arms outstretched to reach around the trunk. Thanks Matt for taking the time and posting the great photos.

There were just a few palms that I wanted folks to see since the ones Jason posted from Aug 2nd, 2009, those being, Parajubaea TVT, Butia X Para cocoides, Butia yatay, and Butia Paraguayensis and Butia yatay. The B yatay is the one with a ladder propped up against it. Both the B. yatay and the B. Paraguayensis were planted about the same time, but you can see how squat and bulbous the Paraguayensis trunk is and how much taller the B. yatay has grown.

My temps. dropped to 24F for two nights in early Dec. and the only palm in my garden that got nipped was the Parajubaea TVT which substained about 10% damage on the horizontal fronds. It's growing about 20 ft, away from the Butia X Para which got no damage at all. For me, the Para TVT grows about 6 new fronds a season, so it should look good by the end of summer......if we don't get anymore hard freezes this winter.

Matt got some nice shots of the trunk of the Butia X Para trunk and you can see it's covered with fiber like a Parajubaea, and the petioles are unarmed. It has even grown very slowly this winter. The base of the trunk is about 14" thick and still seems to be expanding.

As to what Patrick crossed with the Syagrus, I have no idea. I can't keep up with all of his hybrids. They were pollinated late in the summer, and the fruit/seeds quit growing in the winter, but they should resume growth when it warms up here. He covered the immature fruit for frost and rain protection. In recent years, he's been using Syagrus as a mother plant, and it's not known yet how cold hardy they will be, but probably less than using Butia or Jubaea as a mother plant. I only have 2 of his Syagrus hybrids, Syagrus X Para TVT and Syagrus X Jubaea, but they are in pots and had overhead protection this winter. I expect the S X P will be more cold hardy than a pure Parajubaea.

Well, I'm beginning to ramble, and thanks again, Matt for posting the photos.

Dick

Richard Douglas

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You almost had me there, Matt! :lol: I was looking for the ladder... Awesome photos of a most impressive garden. It would give me chills to walk among those mature Butia and Jubaea. Nice work, Dick!

Kim Cyr

Between the beach and the bays, Point Loma, San Diego, California USA
and on a 300 year-old lava flow, Pahoa, Hawaii, 1/4 mile from the 2018 flow
All characters  in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You almost had me there, Matt! :lol: I was looking for the ladder... Awesome photos of a most impressive garden. It would give me chills to walk among those mature Butia and Jubaea. Nice work, Dick!

I have no idea what you are talking about Kim, That's me, up in the tree, that's my story, and I'm stickin to it :rolleyes:

Matt in Temecula, CA

Hot and dry in the summer, cold with light frost in the winter. Halfway between the desert and ocean

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wonderful garden! Thanks for sharing.

David

Hollywood Hills West, Los Angeles, CA USA

Southwest facing canyon | Altitude 600 - 775 feet | Decomposing granite
USDA Zone 10b | AHS 6 | Sunset Zone 23 | Köppen Csb | No frost or freezes
Average Low 49 F°/9.4 C° | Average High 79 F°/28.8 C° | Average Rainfall 20"/50.8 cm

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow. Great shots of this killer garden. Dick, I know you posted before by I forget, what is the history behind it? When did you first plant?

Also, love how you let the bamboo run around.

Len

Vista, CA (Zone 10a)

Shadowridge Area

"Show me your garden and I shall tell you what you are."

-- Alfred Austin

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Matt, Thank you ! for sharing your tour with us. Spectacular ! Dick, I see a lifetime of palm enthusiam. Truly Awesome !

I would love a tour some day when I make it up north. :D

Dave

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Matt, your photos are great of Dick's wonderful garden. And what a palm garden gem! :mrlooney: Dick, you make us proud of your fantastic palm specimens! Also love the bamboo!

Los Angeles/Pasadena

34° 10' N   118° 18' W

Elevation: 910'/278m

January Average Hi/Lo: 69F/50F

July Average Hi/Lo: 88F/66F

Average Rainfall: 19"/48cm

USDA 11/Sunset 23

http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cgi-progs/queryF?MTW

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I live on a private street that is maintained by our neighborhood association, so my property line runs to the middle of the street and then there is another strip along the street for parking in case I have an overflow in my circular diveway. The property is about 1.10 acre. The place looks larger than it is because I have left a couple of vistas from the patio area and one can see all the way to the back of the property. I've also left 3 vistas across the property so you can can see from one side to the other.

I moved to Walnut Creek on Jan, 1973, and once the move was completed the first project was to put in a swimming pool. The back of the property was an open field with 3 giant Oak trees and nothing else. I studied landscape architecture at the Univ of Ga, so after careful measurements I drew up a rough plan of what I wanted, nothing palm specific but just a general plan. My idea was to have 3 raised islands of palms with open space around so they could be viewed from any angle.

The excavation from the pool was used to make the mounds. The pool was completed in the late spring and there were lots of projects going on. I didn't realize that when adobe clay drys out, it becomes hard as brick, so I ended up having many, many truck loads of soil amendments hauled in and then I rototilled the entire back of the property. (several times) I must have walked 100 miles behind the 8 HP rototiller until the amendments were mixed with the native soil and it became tillable. I wanted to get plants in right away but it must have taken a year to prepare the soil. I wish I had kept better records, but I estimate it was about 1975 when the palms started being planted, and then they were planted for several years after that.

One of the large Oaks on the property, the one closest to the house, came crashing down on April 1st shortly after the move in. Fortunately, it fell away from the house into the open field. If it had fallen the other way half of my house would have been wiped out. I decided to make lemon aid out a lemon as I had to plan the garden with nothing growing under the Valley Oaks as they get Oak root fungus if they are watered in the warm months. This only gave me more room to plant palms, and I had firewood for many years.

During that period I was buying palms faster than I could plant them, so it looked like a nursery around here for awhile. Back in the 70's we didn't have the selection of palms that are available today. Many of the palms came from S. Calif if I wanted anything out of the ordinary. There were several U-haul trips down to Santa Barbara and other locations in the South. I had left several palms in Miami and some of them came to Calif., folded up, in a suitcase. Most of the palms were 5 gal. size and it took about 5 years after they were planted until it looked like I had a palm garden.

I know many of you are impatient to have some size on your newly planted palms, but half the fun is watching them grow, and then finally fruit. The only large specimen palms that I bought were the Chamaerops planted near the front of my house. They were in large boxes and very old, also singles, and kind of expensive. I did a lot or research on which palms would take the harsh climate of Walnut Creek, and I noticed there were several Chamaerops growing around town that had survived many hard freezes. I wanted a fool proof palm growing in the front, and Chamaerops have proven to be that.

I've learned that a garden is an evolving, living being, and one must make adaptations as the years evolve. All I had in the begining was sun, and now with the palms so large I get very little sun in the winter time. I have to really search to find a sunny spot now. I wish I had some of the Cocoid hybrids available when I started my garden, but I'm lucky enough to have 3 large mules and the Butia X Jubaea. I was lucky enough to find the Jubaeas early on and I spaced them far apart, not really realizing how beautiful and valueable they would become. It's not really true that only your grand children will enjoy the Jubaeas, as once they form a trunk they speed up in growth, and I've enjoyed them for many years.

The one cardinal rule in planting a palm garden is to give them plenty of room as they always seem to grow larger than you might think. I was always very careful with spacing, but some are still to close together now that they are mature, but they seem to adapt.

Dick

Richard Douglas

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dick, your garden is an inspiration. I wish I had the room to space the palms out as you did.

Los Angeles/Pasadena

34° 10' N   118° 18' W

Elevation: 910'/278m

January Average Hi/Lo: 69F/50F

July Average Hi/Lo: 88F/66F

Average Rainfall: 19"/48cm

USDA 11/Sunset 23

http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cgi-progs/queryF?MTW

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Matt, fantastic photos. I always wanted to know what Dick's garden looked like after hearing so much about it. What a magical place! Thanks for the tour.

Meg

Palms of Victory I shall wear

Cape Coral (It's Just Paradise)
Florida
Zone 10A on the Isabelle Canal
Elevation: 15 feet

I'd like to be under the sea in an octopus' garden in the shade.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow, Thanks for sharing the pictures Matt! :drool: Dick your and inspiration to many of us in zone 8/9!

That Butia X Jubaea has nice form! Does it make viable seed? And who can resit the granduer of the Jubaeas?!

Dick, do you still have the 'Douglas Delight' Chamaedorea hybrids? What about C. Radicalis (aborescent forms)?

Cold Hardy palm get BIG, its hard to find small hardy palms.

Luke

Tallahassee, FL - USDA zone 8b/9a

63" rain annually

January avg 65/40 - July avg 92/73

North Florida Palm Society - http://palmsociety.blogspot.com/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now



  • Recently Browsing

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...