Dypsis Pembana

[LauraAnu]

I see there is limited information about dypsis pembana out there. For palmtalkers growing this plant, I read there are suckernig and non suckering varieties. How long does it take for you to know which type you have? Also they are reputed to be fast growers. I am planting sone one gallon specimens how long do they take to mature (start trunking)? Is it wise for me to plant three plants together? I amusing them as a light plant screen at the front of my garden, and I am located in the Caribbean where we recieve about 45" of rain and hot tropical sunshine all year .

Any help and other information will be appreciated.

Laura

[MattyB]

Laura,

From what I've seen, they don't show suckers until the main stem is about 2-3 inches in diameter and has leaves several feet long. In other words, they need to get a bit larger before you know.

Planting several together is perfectly fine and will look great whether they sucker or not.

They are good growers so if you plant a one gallon out I think you'll start getting trunk in 2 years approximately.

Here in SoCal they sunburn when young but can eventually take the full sun once established.

[Really full garden]

Laura,I have 12 and they range in size from 1m to 2m and all were germinated from the same batch of seed six years ago.Two of the 12 seem to be single trunked.The others are doubles or triples.I have one planted at the beach in what is a protected spot and it burns.It really only looks good during our rainy season.The ones I have planted in my highland garden are spectacular and do well in partial shade or full sun.They do like lots of water.

[Walter John]

They can get quite tall Laura so I would still use some further fill plants for that screen.

[Moose]

Not in Califonia, fast!

[realarch]

Laura, this cluster of D. pembana was one of the first palms I planted before living here full time. They are about

three years old and I planted two one gallon plants which were already clustering or maybe planted in multiples.

I really didn't know what to expect or how fast they might grow, but where they are now is perfect because of the

privacy screen they provide. They sat as little one gallons for about a year which I thought strange, but have been growing

fast since then. There are four main stalks and three smaller ones and they have not yet formed trunks. I suspect

if it were a single it would have 3 or 4 feet of trunk. They are in full sun all day.

I put the one gallon pot there for scale.

[palmcurry]

Lately here in CA there have been some tuff specimens of Dypsis with the 'pembana' tag for the species going around. Don't know how they will look down the line but the ones I have grow a bit faster than the usual Dypsis with tolorance for our conditions.

[LauraAnu]

Thanks for all the responses. Tim, that picture is great. This shows exactly what I can do with this palm. I will post some pictures after I plant them this weekend (hopefully) .

Laura

[industrio7]

Can this plant tolerate full sun better than D.lutescens in southern CA and does it grow as dense?

Wayne

[palmcurry]

Can this plant tolerate full sun better than D.lutescens in southern CA and does it grow as dense?

Wayne

I have grown about 30 of these from seedling size and have not seen any of them sucker or clump like lutescens, which is quit dense. However I have seen pics of mature D.pembana that are in dense groups so go figure.

As far as sun acclimation goes I have had mixed results: my 3 gals are taking sun on willingly but I have bought huge 5gals that fried down and even died easily with just 2 hours of sun a day. I think this because there are different Dypsis palms going around with the 'pembana' tag on it. Whatever the case, I think the more lutesecens/baronii like Dypsis take 2 years to fully acclimate to full sun here in SoCal...pembana falling into this group.

Here are 2 pics I collected from this site. Hopefully I don't get sued. One is a 'clumping' of D.pembanas...I think?!?! What a cool palm.

[ariscott]

I have 5 planted. 3 in the full sun & 2 in the semi shade (soon to be shade as my Cassia has grown enormous!!). I found them quite fast, although the one in the shade are relatively faster that those in the sun. I think it has something to do with competing for the sun(??). None of them burned in the sun, and they take the sun like a champion for me. I think it will depend on how they were grown as seedlings and how much you acclimatise them before planting them out.

Regards, Ari

[MattyB]

Can this plant tolerate full sun better than D.lutescens in southern CA and does it grow as dense?

Wayne

Wayne,

I see that you've asked this question a few times so I'll try and respond here. If you want that medium sized clumping dypsis look, and you want a palm that's going to look perfect year round, and it's gonna be in full sun, always go with Dypsis onilahensis. There's many different forms of D. onilahensis but all of them perform like champs! Or if you can find the plant that is labled Dypsis ambositrae, but isn't actually ambositrae but a clumper, or form of D. onilahensis, that one is a super fast grower that will give you the look you want as well.

[industrio7]

Thanks, Matt. Sorry for the dual posts, wasn't sure where to pose the question. But I appreciate the recommendation. Will definitely look into it.

Wayne

[MattyB]

Wayne,

I'm growing 5 different plants, all labled D. onilahensis, all different, but the one thing in common is how well they're adapted to SoCal.

[palmmermaid]

I planted 5 3-gallon ones 2 years ago. They sailed through the brutal winter we had last year. They have grown very fast and are beautiful. They are in full sun all day and haven't had any problems. I will take some pictures tomorrow and post them. One of my favorite palms.

I live in PalmBeach County in south Florida.

I have had more success with this Dypsis than any other.

[industrio7]

Can this plant tolerate full sun better than D.lutescens in southern CA and does it grow as dense?

Wayne

I have grown about 30 of these from seedling size and have not seen any of them sucker or clump like lutescens, which is quit dense. However I have seen pics of mature D.pembana that are in dense groups so go figure.

As far as sun acclimation goes I have had mixed results: my 3 gals are taking sun on willingly but I have bought huge 5gals that fried down and even died easily with just 2 hours of sun a day. I think this because there are different Dypsis palms going around with the 'pembana' tag on it. Whatever the case, I think the more lutesecens/baronii like Dypsis take 2 years to fully acclimate to full sun here in SoCal...pembana falling into this group.

Here are 2 pics I collected from this site. Hopefully I don't get sued. One is a 'clumping' of D.pembanas...I think?!?! What a cool palm.

Thanks for the pics and info. You convinced me to bite the bullet and begin the acclimation of my pembanas to full sun, albeit slowly. Wish me luck!

Edited October 25, 2010 by industrio7

[PalmatierMeg]

Dypsis pembana: a great palm. What more can I say? See evidence below.

New spike

Trunk

Trunk closeup

[Peter Pacific]

Hi Laura,

I have two, gifts from Meg, and they are beautiful. They´re still small, perhaps two feet tall, are in pots and full sun all day long. Give them lots of water and you will have a great addition to your garden.

Peter

[Walter John]

Hi Laura,

I have two, gifts from Meg, and they are beautiful. They´re still small, perhaps two feet tall, are in pots and full sun all day long. Give them lots of water and you will have a great addition to your garden.

Peter

Good point Peter, these respond to water like no other Dypsis.

[Wai`anae Steve]

I planted 3 clumpers back around 2005-6 in full sun. I get a lot more sun here than Tim does on the big island. Here is a picture of the lower sections taken last year.