SFPS Spring 2010 Palm & Cycad Sale

[Palmarum]

- Saturday, 8:22AM: This was the fourth time the South Florida Palm Society has held their spring sale at Montgomery Botanical Center, and it seems to get better every year. These are the usual 'photocopy' of the booth I do after we finish setting up on Saturday morning. A record of what was brought and where it was placed.

- Licuala peltata var. sumawongii grouping on the left, with a Heterospathe phillipsii in the center, and a group of 3 gallon Carpoxylon macrospermum on the far right.

- The left edge corner of the booth went to the Kerriodoxa elegans gathering, with Dypsis canaliculata in the middle, followed by Red Sealing Wax Palms, Cyrtostachys renda, on the right.

- The path that draws people into the booth and gets them hooked on the tables. That 10 gallon palm on the edge to the right is a Dypsis heteromorpha.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 8:23AM: The center of the booth, with a Heterospathe cagayanensis on the right in the 10 gallon.

- Across from the tables...

- ...and the tables themselves, with various one gallon palms and cycads.

- The very back of the booth, looking towards the front, through the familiar white tent. That tent has many miles on it for sure.

Ryan

[Peter Pacific]

- 8:23AM: The center of the booth, with a Heterospathe cagayanensis on the right in the 10 gallon.

- Across from the tables...

- ...and the tables themselves, with various one gallon palms and cycads.

- The very back of the booth, looking towards the front, through the familiar white tent. That tent has many miles on it for sure.

Ryan

Hi Ryan,

I went to Montgomery Botanical Center the last time I was in Miami...it was just beautiful.

Your palms are always a delight to see and thanks for the post. It makes me feel like I was there and part of the sale.

Good luck to you, Peter

[LauraAnu]

Ryan,

You have me wanting to move to Florida just to get all these large palms and then move back here to grow them in tropical bliss

Laura

[paulgila]

were there any PEOPLE there?

[Jeff Searle]

were there any PEOPLE there?

Yeeeaa, there was. It started at 9:30 am. And then about 10 people showed up.

[Palmarum]

LauraAnu Ryan,

You have me wanting to move to Florida just to get all these large palms ... and then move back here to grow them in tropical bliss...

Laura

There were a few customers from far and wide that either drove far or flew to the sale to get palms for back home. They seemed eager to start planting back at the ranch.

pohonkelapa

were there any PEOPLE there?...

Yes, I am busy airbrushing out their imperfections...

- 8:26AM: The booth was spaced out as much as possible, as we created paths or blocks of plants, usually with a focus specimen on the corners, like this Kentiopsis oliviformis.

- The paths were designed to trap and ensnare customers, sort of like how a casino does. We had to clean out the tent of stranded people now and then.

- Dypsis fibrosa caught the eyes of the browsing collector, with a new emergent set of red leaves.

- The tent protected some of the more sun sensitive palms, while giving us a place to hide from the weather. Those two tall palms to the right of center, were the newly described Pinanga fractiflexa. They have grown very well and easily for a Pinanga in South Florida, and have promise for the landscape.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 8:27AM: All the signs have been put out, leaves trimmed, small touches finished... All we need is customers.

- The first customer of the morning surprised me, coming around the corner in a hurry heading for the holding area. The gates were not closed so customers entered the sales area early as soon as they arrived.

- 8:28AM: We were not sure if there was going to be a show or not, so we brought a very large Dypsis canaliculata for Dypsis enthusiasts to ogle.

- It is still quite happy in just a 7 gallon container. I forgot to add a scale object, but the diameter of the pot is 14 inches (36cm) so you can tell how beefy this palm can get compared to its container. It only had a few small roots extruding from the bottom.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 8:31AM: The art vendors scurry about getting their wares ready for the morning...

- Vendor Steve Stern brought this Licuala mattanensis var. mapu to sell some of his smaller seedlings.

- 8:39AM: A pair of extremely well priced Cuban Petticoat Palms, Copernicia macroglossa, hang out waiting to be sold. And they do get sold quickly.

- 8:40AM: Birds! A common sight around South Florida is the feeding flock of White Ibis, Eudocimus albus. They did a number on the insect population.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 8:48AM: Let the browsing, shopping and grabbing begin... We had to yet again, don jackets as the cold weather would not go away. On the left, Vendor Ronnie Croci readies his booth as collector Andre Joris and Jeff Searle walk around trying to be the first to spot a deal.

- 8:49AM: The front of FM. and Vendor #68 Ellis Brown's booth all ready and full of the rare and rarer.

- This large Burretiokentia hapala stood out in front on sentry duty... until someone bought it.

- 8:53AM: Time to turn your head sideways and start reading tags. You literally had to read every tag as you never know what you will find, or who will find it before you do.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 8:53AM: Strange, bizarre, weird... The different adjectives were shared between viewers of this peculiar Chamaedorea with an unusual variegation. The majority of the suckers growing from the bottom were all completely devoid of chlorophyll.

- I thought this was a neat idea when I saw it. These are Zamia pseudoparasitica seedlings growing in octagonal net pots.

- 8:54AM: Another view of the strangely variegated palm...

- 8:55AM: It's nice when you can photograph as you shop. Ellis had custom benches setup to hold all his small pots and conetainers.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 9:03AM: "Yoink!" Andre grabs a nice sized Actinokentia divaricata from the selection, as FM. and new grandfather Ellis Brown (EllisB) finishes the tagging of plants.

- 9:13AM: As I was making my rounds of the sales area, I went by vendor Claude Roatta's booth to find a few things of interest, including this Roscheria melanochaetes in bloom, sitting above a Ravenea xerophila.

- A closer view of the inflorescence as it curves away from the light purplish-pink crownshaft.

- 9:17AM: The first customer back in Jeff's booth was one of Montgomery's own. Assistant Curator John Harshaw, a cycad junkie in the best way, looks over the front table while carrying his new Zamia pseudoparasitica.

Ryan

[paulgila]

were there any PEOPLE there?

Yeeeaa, there was. It started at 9:30 am. And then about 10 people showed up.

there "were."

[Palmarum]

- 9:18AM: John proudly holds up his new cycad while looking through the rare smaller plants on the front table. He was one of a few cycad enthusiasts at Montgomery B. Center that were eyeing that plant, he got to the booth early to grab it.

- 9:21AM: As the sale approached the official opening time of 9:30, more customers and society volunteers began to arrive. The early customers who were ready to buy had to wait for the registers to be set up and tested. IPS Director and Forum member John Demott (Redland) [r. in white] approaches the sales area in the right of the photo.

- 9:22AM: The curse of the holiday cup. When we arrived in the morning, we noticed this holiday-themed plastic cup sitting atop the soil belonging to the larger Licuala peltata var. sumawongii. How did it get there? No one knows, but it seemed to give the feel of a 'sold' tag to customers as many did not ask about the plant. Later in the day, it was 'retired' by Jeff.

- 9:23AM: No need to carry or watch your stash of rare palms when your girlfriend wants to do it for you. Andre, the ever-present collector made his way from booth to booth, with his significant other, Jamie, not far behind.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 9:35AM: Andre is out of the shot on the right adding to his hidden stash, while he carries on a conversation with Jeff and Jamie. On the right, far-traveling Forum member Tom Walsh (tew) had again, made the journey down from Baltimore, Maryland to attend the sale. He has racked up some serious frequent flyer miles in attending the spring sales at Montgomery B. Center.

- 9:40AM: "Wow, look at that price!" Jeff reacts to reading the tag and price on a large Hydriastele beguinii brought to the sale by Vendor #50, Faith Bishock.

- 9:44AM: In Claude Roatta's booth we had a similar reaction to these Mazari Palms, Nannorrhops ritchieana that were busting at the seams.

- 9:51AM: The day included visits from a few recognizable people familiar in the South Florida plant world. Don Evans, long time curator and director of horticulture for Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardens (now retired) took some time to browse the selections and talk to vendors at the sale.

A little after lunch time, Ron Magill, the well-known Miami MetroZoo Communications Director, made his way through the sale. He knows the SFPS and its volunteers through the society's work at the zoo, he also knew his palms fairly well.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 9:53AM: The flow of customers picked up a bit after the morning started to turn into noon time. It was a steady flow of customers and locals who were surprised to see the Center open to the public. Many, and I do mean many, turned out to take the tour. Vendor #31 Albert Livingston carries a palm to the holding area.

- 10:00AM: If anyone asks you what 'filtered light' resembles, here is your example. The area in front of Faith's booth seemed to attract a lot of attention from passers by, as it was a hub of activity so early in the morning...

- The back part of the sales area, or the back 'loop' of booths. It might look slow, but many of the customers were in the booths as it was easier to go from one to the other, without walking across.

- 10:01AM: SFPS Director Lenny Goldstein gives a bit of palm info to the volunteer on the left. The society of had a nice spread of free plants and free seed to distribute.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 10:02AM: I was caught off guard by the sight of these palms, as this species is one you seldom see at plant sales. This is Gaussia princeps, the real deal western Cuba native in all its slow-growing glory. Their stout habit makes the average collector do a double take. They were in Susan Casey's, #26 booth.

- 10:04AM: Vendor #35 Steve Stern describes the growth habits of a few different palms to an interested party of customers.

- 10:18AM: The cooler weather was definitely customer friendly, as there was little need to find shade.

- 10:30AM: "Hmm..." On the right, FM. Jeff Cramer (street124) looks over the large Dypsis prestoniana in the booth that Jeff Searle had originally brought to sell the smaller plants. Jeff Cramer decided to get it, leaving the smaller plants to fend for themselves...

Ryan

[BS Man about Palms]

I hope Jeff Cramer plants that Dypsis right out in the sun by the front corner of his house!

And oh yes, Mr Andre has a very nice well trained Ranch Hand too!

[Shon]

I hope Jeff Cramer plants that Dypsis right out in the sun by the front corner of his house!

And oh yes, Mr Andre has a very nice well trained Ranch Hand too!

Your so predictable.

[Palmarum]

- 10:30AM: The Dypsis prestoniana was more than ready to go into the ground, as it was almost root bound in the pot. Those petioles are more than an inch (2cm) in diameter.

- 10:32AM: Customers continued to arrive and plants continued to leave throughout the morning hours. A few of the vendors and customers noticed the usual society BBQ grill was not present, and wondered what would be for lunch.

- 10:33AM: Sold. Jeff Cramer grabs the D. prestoniana with assistance and carries it to the registers. I figure that palm has been planted now for a few days somewhere in Jeff's collection.

- Every sale topic deserves the ubiquitous shot of an emerging red leaf on a Chambeyronia macrocarpa. This specimen was doing a good job of selling the smaller plants, but remained in the booth until purchased later.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 10:34AM: For a few customers, it was their first time visiting Montgomery Botanical Center and a SFPS palm & cycad sale, so they found it a lot to take in at one time. I talked to one couple who live right down the street and had no idea that the center existed here, not to mention the collection of plants residing within. It is a mutual fact, that both newcomers to palms and veteran collectors enjoy some free seed and a free palm, or two.

- "Yeah Dude!" IPS Director, Vendor #50 and FM. Faith Bishock (budrot) takes a moment to pose with her friend Jim in her booth.

- 10:35AM: A nice grab was made by FM. Randy Wiesner (palmisland) as he brought over a nice sized Dypsis lastelliana in a 3 gallon pot. I didn't notice the palm on my first look through earlier in the morning. It had a nice coloration on the emergent petiole and rachis.

- 10:38AM: An eager collector reaches through the crowded front table in the booth to grab a tall Orania ravaka [obscured] at the back of the table. They had been reading the card for a while and once they asked if it was the only one, they went for it.

Ryan

[palmislandRandy]

This was my first time at Montgomery & wow what a collection. Per my personal tour guide, Larry Noblick (Mongomery's head palm biologist & collections manager!) all the palms at Montgomery Botanical Center are grown from habitat collected seed! I had to correct Larry on a few of the palm pronunciations Great to see everyone again & pick up some rare palm bargains.

[Palmarum]

- 10:42AM: "Hmm... what is that great, sweet bar-be-que smell coming from?" At a little before eleven in the morning, two trucks drove in behind the sales area pulling behind them a pair of giant BBQ grills. One of them stopped for a moment just behind the booth and proceeded to fill the area with tasty BBQ smoke. The solution to the lunch dilemma had arrived.

- 10:50AM: There was plenty of room for parking and it was well used throughout the weekend. I do remember a few of the closer spots being fought over.

- 10:51AM: Get 'em Lenny. SFPS Director Lenny Goldstein is at the ready to answer any palm related question.

- 10:52AM: FM. Tom Walsh (tew) looks over the Licuala peltata var. sumawongii gallon plants to see which one would best handle the trip back to Maryland.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 10:56AM: One group of customers brought their own cart and added an assortment of palms from different booths.

- 11:27AM: Too bad this photo isn't scratch-n-sniff or you too could have enjoyed the BBQ. There was plenty of ribs and chicken to go around.

- 11:34AM: FM. Rob van der Borg (Borgy230) and Jeff decided to split a full rack of ribs and a side of bread. Somehow, Rob only got the bread in the deal.

- Jeff was deciding between smiling or eating, but his hunger won out.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 11:55AM: From everyone's reactions, I concluded that the ribs with the special sauce were amazing. People could not get enough. Jeff walked over to the tent and tried to barter palms for more food. While he was there he noticed they also had desserts.

- 12:00PM: The seating area next to the BBQ tent had a mix of the lunch crowd and those waiting for the next tour.

- Jeff got in line to get a dessert, a type of key lime cake I think. Rob was in 'too cool to be in line' mode.

- 12:02PM: It was high noon on Saturday, and the sale was as busy as it was going to be. Customers continued to come for plants and tours, but the rate started to diminish after noon.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 12:02PM: The sales area around lunch time was a bit empty, as people ate over by the tent, made a run to parts unknown for lunch, and other drinkable 'supplies'.

- 12:03PM: The register tent had its procedures all ironed out, and had two lines for cash or credit card sales. The palms on the right were part of the holding area.

- 12:08PM: Andre looks over his stash and makes sure he got what he came for before checking out for the day. Jamie did her best not to laugh as their friend Danny on the right pointed out her 'holding area' status.

- 12:09PM: A nice sized Sabal uresana gets hauled over to the registers along with a Ceratozamia sp.

Ryan

[Moose]

Very nice visual coverage as usual Ryan. According to your time-line, there is another day and a half of the PRA remaining?

[sick1166]

great pics

[Palmarum]

moose knuckle

Very nice visual coverage as usual Ryan. According to your time-line, there is another day and a half of the PRA remaining?

Yes, there are a few more photos from Saturday and a small amount from Sunday. Sunday was slow so I didn't take that many.

- 12:10PM: While positioned in front of the booth, you get a good view of which plants get taken to the registers. Like an overview of what is popular, between species and who's plants are being purchased. This customer moves with purpose, as I think that Licuala sp. was heavy to carry.

- 12:25PM: Asking Faith's friend Jim to be in a photo was redundant. He would grab anyone nearby to pose with him as soon as he saw me coming with the camera, in this instance it was Jeff.

- 12:45PM: This cart load represented a great start to a Caribbean palm collection, including a Buccaneer Palm, Pseudophoenix sargentii and a Coccothrinax sp., probably an Old Man Palm, Coccothrinax crinita.

- 12:47PM: Who needs a cart anyway? These two customers knew how to carry multiple palms at once, and recreated this maneuver at least two more times later in the day.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 12:48PM: A quick photo showing one busy instance under and around the register tent. The procedure used in checking out customers has been well practiced for years and ran smoothly during both days of the sale.

- This is one tough palm you don't have to worry about damaging with wind. A Cuban Petticoat Palm, Copernicia macroglossa, gets a ride to its new home.

- 12:50PM: Forum member and grower Justin Dobbs (JD in the OC) does the popular multitasking of grabbing rare palms while talking on the phone. It was a common event during the weekend. He is carrying a Super Dwarf Lady Palm, Rhapis excelsa cv. nana and a variegated Lady Palm with a nice color pattern.

- 12:53PM: "Who Said Red Sealing Wax weren't cold tolerant?" Here is a photo of one growing in Colorado, up in the mountains...

Ryan

[BS Man about Palms]

[Palmarum]

- 2:21PM: I took advantage of the slower activity to do another sweep of the booths. When I returned I noticed this Lady Palm, Rhapis excelsa, wheeling its way up to the registers, by itself apparently. When it got closer, Ellis Brown's head appeared through the stems and leaves.

- 2:52PM: When Ellis's daughter Heather arrived to show her new son Aiden to everyone, I was lucky to have been asked to take a generational portrait of the occasion. During the show, I had Rusty Brown pose with her daughter Heather and her grandson Aiden. You might remember Ellis's topic announcing his birth not that long ago.

- 3:09PM: Try to guess the age on this one. In the center of Susan Casey's booth, I saw this very old Coccothrinax argentata with a few feet of clear trunk for sale.

- "Hey Man, need a drink?" I got within range of Faith's booth and heard that phrase echo on over in my direction. I turned and captured Jim sitting with vendor Tom Olson.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 3:12PM: "Alright ladies, line up for a group photo." With only a small amount of insistence, I photographed three vendors at one time. Artist vendors Perri Cox and FM. Linda Talbot (Linda Apriletti), along with Faith Bishock lined up as a group under a nearby tree. I got a cookie out of the deal as well.

- 3:18PM: Linda has been painting fine art for a long time and she has routinely sold artwork at the sales in South Florida for just as long. Her booth was filled with some of her latest work. She will often paint a subject close by, during the sale.

- Her work focuses on palms and nature around South Florida, but she has also traveled to many locales to paint scenes and subjects. Linda does a little Vanna White action while posing in front of her artwork. She also has smaller renderings of her paintings on postcards and small format art paper, for those who love her paintings but cannot get the originals.

- 3:19PM: The booth next door belonged to two artists, Perri Cox and Jeanine Watkins, who couldn't be here on Saturday. One of them paints with oils while the other does water colors, I can't remember which, but all the artwork was exquisite.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 3:40PM: Closing time for the day was almost upon us, and another Saturday of a SFPS sale was in the books. The typical late day conversations sprung up in booths all over as we amused ourselves in multiple ways. In Jeff's booth, FM. Ron Kiefert (moose knuckle) discussed the finer points of the day with first-time vendor and FM. Brett Emery (MBPalms). Brett was wondering what he had gotten himself into...

- 3:52PM: Open Bar. The day was coming to a close, but the activity was just starting for a few vendors and customers in and around Faith's booth. Faith points out a few of the beverage choices to Jeff and Ron. On the right, Jim talks with collector Rosita Stoik.

- Faith had sold quite a bit out of her booth, as I knew Jeff and myself got a number of items from there. Her tables are often the first destination for collectors on Saturday morning. Ron walks around and looks over the remaining palms on the table.

- 3:57PM: "YEAH... Dude!"

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 4:51PM: "Last Call..." I heard Bill Olson yell from the other side of the sales area, so I knew it was closing time and time to make the long drive back up to Broward. I finished the day browsing through Ellis's booth, looking for more possible add-ons to my stash. As I was walking back, I saw this large Pelagodoxa henryana looking quite well along one side of the booth. It was the largest one of its group, and largest specimen at the sale.

Sunday to follow...

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- Sunday, 10:06AM: Sunday morning opened very slow, as it usually does. The day starts to pick up around lunchtime. To try something different this day, a few select palms were taken from the booth and placed across the path.

- 10:07AM: This was to showcase a few of the larger specimens and to space out the booth a bit more for today's customers.

- A recent topic on the Forum focused on the unique species Heterospathe phillipsii. I knew there was a large specimen in the booth this weekend, so with a suggestion from Jeff, I took photos to post here and on that other topic.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 10:09AM: The first visitors to the booth this morning were also the first customers. They came with a short list of palm species, and Chamaedorea radicalis was at the top.

- I noticed there was a bit of loading going on next to the register tent. When I went over to take a closer look, I saw vendor Albert Livingston doing all the loading into a large, familiar suburban.

- 10:13AM: The palm-laden vehicle belonged to a pair of collectors known as the "Two Sisters". I will get their names one of these days. For now, Albert wanted to be in a photo with them, so I captured this one seconds before they drove home with their new haul.

- 10:17AM: These two customers carrying a Florida Thatch Palm, Thrinax radiata, could pass for brothers, if they weren't already related.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 10:37AM: Vendor #66 Ronnie Croci [orange shirt] helps a customer carry over a few of his palms over to the registers.

- 10:38AM: Describing details about various palm species takes patience and practice. Vendor Steve Stern does it carefully while standing next to his large Caryota zebrina.

- 11:48AM: One collector did well, as this cart heading upfront was full.

- 11:53AM: As the cart arrived at the tent, one palm lost all its soil after falling off the table. A common 'oops' during a plant sale. SFPS Director George Alvarez goes off in search of replacement soil. Clouds began to gather and the wind picked up as it was supposed to rain later in the day.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 12:00PM: The staff running the tours at Montgomery Botanical Center were doing a good job of keeping everything organized and customers informed. The tour itself was very popular and quite successful over the two day event. I know they sold just over 100 tickets on Saturday and more people were lining up to go as I was taking photos on Sunday.

- 12:19PM: There were a few more Forum members that showed up during Sunday afternoon, including FM. Jerry Pezzeminti (Pez). We were discussing everything from palms to fishing and before he journeyed on, I had him pose with the Dypsis heteromorpha. Shortly after this photo was taken, I noticed Forum members Dale Holton (MAPU 1) and Bill and April DeBoe (PiousPalms, CuriousPalm) in the booth but got too busy to take a photo. The customers I was with were grabbing palms and had a lot of questions.

- 12:52PM: Lunch, round two. The BBQ crew were back and had more than enough food for the hungry crowd.

- 2:43PM: The afternoon continued on, and we avoided the rainfall which was a good thing, but it continued to stay overcast and windy. It was getting slow, as it got very quiet except for the wind and car traffic outside along Red Road/Old Cutler Road.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 2:43PM: Out in front of the booth, Vendor #4 and FM. Bill Olson (Bill Olson), and his father William Olson, Sr. take a moment to discuss the sale and society activity with Jeff. All in all, I think there was a slightly better turnout than the spring sale a year prior. They had more people taking the tour, and a society board member mentioned that the sale revenue was also higher this spring.

- 2:45PM: Vendors Mark Katz and Rick Johnson share a BBQ lunch under the Montgomery canopy.

- A few customers continued to stroll in and purchase plants, but it was definitely winding down. Jeff had an unavoidable appointment so he and I would be leaving at three instead of 4:30. His brother Larry had arrived to take care of the plants.

- We were treated to music by a blues band for most of Sunday afternoon, an added treat for those attending the sale on the second day. I took this shot as Jeff was shouting for us to go, as he didn't want to be late.

The society activity wasn't waning just yet, as they had planned their spring garden tour for the following weekend. I attended and took about 400 photos so I am getting them ready for that topic coming up shortly...

Ryan

--<