Brahea nitida

[Zac in NC]

Here are some pics from a trip I took with Richard Travis(richtrav) and Lee Fleming(Lee in Tucson) to Sonora, Mexico in July of this year. I promised some pics of nitida earlier on another post, so without waiting any longer, here they are.

Zac

[Zac in NC]

Some more.

Zac

[Zac in NC]

Zac

[Zac in NC]

And one last one.

Zac

[Nigel]

Zac, lovely pics, it looks like you had some fun there.

I saw a Brahea nitida in Spain last year , it had a silver underside to leaf, but unlike the one in your pic, the surface of the leaf in bright sun appeared almost black. It was kind of a dark matt green , but it looked surreal in strong sunshine.

Yours look plain green or did the leaf have an unusual appearance in sun ?

[Zac in NC]

Well, Nigel, they did have a silvery underside. Not quite as pronounced as Brahea moorei, but most of the ones we have close-ups of were in a shaded canyon on the other side of the ones we have the distance shots of. We had to hike in about 10 minutes to get to the ones we had closeups of and climb over large boulders to do so. I think that since they were shade grown, there was less glaucousness? Also, the ones that are far away were in a western facing canyon and the sun was going down( it was late afternoon when we got to this population) and the other on was in a canyon with less light so the  pictures aren't as good.

Zac

[SubTropicRay]

Cool stuff Zac.  They're popping up like weeds everywhere.

[Kris]

Dear Zac  

those stills are fentastic,hey are you working for

the geographic society or like socities ?

because i used to watch your stills in webshots

before i become a member in this forum.

they are all simply superb_Pal.

great work,iam a person who wants to travel &

travel till i loose my breath.

but i see many are just living my dream seeing new

places,plants & perticulerly mountain cliff & desert snakes.

I love your dedication_My Friend.

Kris(India).

[MattyB]

Thanks for the pics Zac.  Those juvenilles are really pretty in the way he leaves are so round.  Tough palm.

[paulgila]

cool pics,zac.looks like a tough place to get to.

[Zac in NC]

Thanks All, These were taken with Richard T's camera and yes, they were difficult to get to. I was wondering when I would get more comments on them. It was bouldering and hiking and climbing under  barbed wire fences to get there, as well as avoiding running into bulls and cows, which were also on this ranch. Scrambling up the mountains too was fun. All in all, a great experience.

Kris- I am glad you have been following my pictures on webshots. No I do not work for anyone like that. I am a Botany student at a University.  I just love to travel and now is the time to do it while I am unattached. This was a great location and quite unexpected. I am finally getting my own digitak Camera for Christmas, so I can share more pics of my own plants( for what its worth, since I just have Trachycarpus and Sabal and Rhapidophyllum and some other hardy tropical looking stuff)  

Also Kris, that is how I took all the trips to Mexico. I saw Richard Travis' webshots gallerys and started talking to him on here. Then it was just a matter of getting out to Texas.

I enjoyed sharing these, as thats a perk of the trips to Mexico. It is my favorite travel destination so far.

Zac

[Jeff Searle]

Zac,

 Thanks for the photos in habitat. The conditions there look a bit harsh. I was wondering, did you come across any cycads? Dioons or Zamias? Sounds like you had a good time.

Jeff

[Zac in NC]

Dave- No Zamia or Dioons in Sonora, but I have seen Dioon edule in Tamaulipas, and I discovered Zamia loddigesii in Tamaulipas on my first trip there. It had not been recorded in Tamaulipas before then and I shouted out "Cycad" as we were going quite fast on a coastal road. I managed to get the driver of the truck to turn around and sure enough, there they were. I have supposedly seen a Ceratozamia, but I couldn't see them well enough to feel confident about it. It could ahve been a Chamaedorea radicalis.

Zac

[tropicalb]

WOW Zac...

great pics! that is some rough terrain there...

[DoomsDave]

Zac!

You certainly are the intrepid explorer.

Hmm.  Why stay in the NC?

dave

[Zac in NC]

Why stay in NC?? Well, Dave, I don't plan to be in NC any longer than I have to be. This winter's low so far of 17 has really gotten to me, but really, this winter so far has been very mild, with tons of temps in the 50s, 60s and 70s.  I am thinking of transferring to one of the Colleges in Hawaii to finish my botany degree and possibly continue the education for a masters or PhD or something. I like to think I am an intrepid explorer. Its kinda cool thinking about places I have been where other botanists have been before me.  

Zac

[PalmGuyWC]

Zac,

The first photo you show from the rim of the canyon is fantastic.  It takes us all back millions of years. It's amazing how palms growing in a hostile enviroment can find a protected "nitch" and survive and reproduce over so many years.

I notice all the photos of the palms in cultivation are about the same size. I suspect most of them came from the same seed batch. Does anyone have a large one?

Most of the Brahaeas seem to require full sun, but my B. nitidas get about 50% shade and seem to be growing fine. All of the Braheas seem to do well in the hot inland valleys of N. Calif. with the exception of B. Brandegii, which is a little tender to anything below 24F, but mine has survived much lower temps with foliage damage. B. edulis seems to require less heat than the others and some of the most beautiful I've seen grow on the west side of the Oakland hills. B. edulis even grows in San Francisco, but they always look stunted.

Dick