Ken Johnson made his west coast tour and dropped off a couple palms at my new place(moved in last april) in palmetto Florida. I ordered a copernicia hospita and sabal mauritiiformis and Ken brought them yesterday. For some reason I thought the hospita was about half the size container it came in, a 95 gallon pot. Watching Ken and his helper take that thing off the truck, I was more than a little concerned as what I was going to do with that. I am not a small guy(6' 210), but I am not nearly as big or strong as Ken Johnson. When I asked Ken how much does it weigh, he responded, uh, about 600. With advice from Ken, this is how I planted it by myself. Below is the hole I dug.

Edited December 31, 201015 yr by sonoranfans

The hole was about 3 1/2' deep before I backfilled with sand to 22" and it was 38" by 40" oval. Next Ken and his assistant lowered the opt down a ramp on 3 2x4's, snapping one of them near the end of the process. When I looked at the palm by the hole, the hole was obviously too small. Ken advised me to dig a ramp and use the 2 by 4's to slide the pot down the whole.

Edited December 31, 201015 yr by sonoranfans

SO I dug the whole out and made a ramp using the 2 by's

Next I slit the pot along the bottom and two places on the side for later removal. I left some uncut sectons so it wouldnt fall apart under movement. this thing was heavy, I was moving it 1 inch at a time it seemed even going down hill. Once I got it in the hole it had plowed some dirt at the leading edge as expected, but I had oriented the palm in the direction of the tilt. Note how the pot is angled but the palm trunk is not.

Edited December 31, 201015 yr by sonoranfans

Then I finished cutting the pot, added some dirt and removed the pot.

And finally today I added the mulch and topsoil.

Todays job is much easier, a 10' overall sabal mauritiiformis going in. This one cant weigh much more than 200-250, so I am relieved, piece of cake. I dont know if I will ever try planting a 600 lb palm again, but I thought it might rain and then it would have been 700-750(?) pounds if wet. I was really impressed with the quality of these palms, BIG palms in very good condition. Large containerized palms are often not so happy, these are some of the happiest containerized palms I have ever seen. Thanks Ken for some nice palms!

Edited December 31, 201015 yr by sonoranfans

Those are true beauties, great lookin' sabal too. Good job!

Damm Tom you did it. Great job!

Isn't it awesome to look back and go "I did that all by myself."

I did one very similar, but I cheated. Dug a little slide down into the hole and used a 4-wheeler and tow strap to drag it into the hole.

I was a little scared planting that thing, now I am more relieved than anything that its over. I thought I might lose it coming down the ramp. Later, I might feel awesome about the achievement. But I'll tell you what, I got a pretty good workout and the beer I had after tasted better than any beer I have in many years. I wanted a hospita pretty bad, and I am quite happy with the newly improved view from the dining and nook areas. I am digging the hole for the sabal now, its almost ready to go in.

Damm Tom you did it. Great job!

Thanks for the advice Ken, it made all the difference. I felt a bit like a cave man with only basic tools. I used a wood chisel to cut the pot, it was pretty tough. I would have had to wait 2 days for the help, and I can get a bit obsessive trying to get something done.

those are great looking palms. good work on planting em,too!

Thanks paul. And here is the sabal in the ground and looking very happy. I am a big sabal fan, and its nice to get one with some size since they tend not to be fast growers when small. Ken sells these mauritiiformis for an incredible price of $15 a foot overall height. This is the best buy I've ever seen on a sizable palm. This maruitiiformis is really growing on me, I like it more every time I look at it. I tried to give it a spot with sun but not too much sun because I want it to stay this nice green color. Its on the east side of the house and will trap heat near the area of garden where we keep more tropical plants.

Edited December 31, 201015 yr by sonoranfans

Looks good Tom!

I've done some big plantings... (actually, almost all of them, by myself...) It gives you a definite sense of accomplishment after!!

Oh yes, your layered soil looks interesting...

Nice scores Tom, both are real beauties. You're lucky to have Ken nearby, I imagine it won't be your last purchase from him. How much land are you working with there? Let's see some more pics of the lay of the land.

Looks good Tom!

I've done some big plantings... (actually, almost all of them, by myself...) It gives you a definite sense of accomplishment after!!

Oh yes, your layered soil looks interesting...

Thanks Bill,

Im sure the accomplishment will sink in more after the stiffness in the back subsides. the layered soil is the reason for my madness in digging to 40+ inches. The dark player is from dredged lake (swamp) clay, the grey sand was put there on top by the builder. they dug out the lake across the street and use the dig to raise the homesite levels. Unfortunately, this also hurts drainage if you dont dig deep enough. I dug way down until the clay was just about gone and backfilled with the grey sand to the required depth. It drains like a champ now. Time for a nice tall one, er I should say another nice tall one...

Edited December 31, 201015 yr by sonoranfans

Great work Tom!

I have been down that road a number of times myself.....and midway through a few of them thought "How the heck am I going to actually get this palm in there?" But in the end, it always worked out, as it did in your case (probably because we are all palm obsessive nutjobs).

That Sabal is a real beaut.....for sure mauritiiformis is my favroite Sabal. It might even take off speed-wise from that size. I had a number of yapas and domingensis (which the HOA forced me to remove) that really started shooting up once they got some size.

Kudos to you Tom for getting the job done....

...i have to laugh, because almost everyone has their 'war stories', and i have had more than a couple over the years....

...way back when, when in Maryland i bought a Trachy with 8 ft of ct that was in a 50 gal container, and had to get it off the trailer and move it 175 feet to the hole, and push it up a 4 foot incline in back of one of my ponds...

The next day later i noticed that my glutes and legs were bruised yellow and blue from the effort...

Didn't mater, got it done.

BTW, great plants...it's all that Mr. Johnson sells!!!!

Rusty

Tom - Having seen what you accomplished in Arizona, it will be fun watching you recreate your new property in Florida. 2 great palms there, and I'm betting you are sore tomorrow.

Are you thinking of changing your ID/name?

Thanks matt, Larry, Rusty, Terry. The lot is 12500(110 by 115). I have 35' on either side of the house for the full 115' depth of the lot. Some of it has wiring from boxes to the house, so I may have to explore how tight I can plant... In the back, the fence is 24' off the porch, so its in close. I have planted out some small palms and have a bunch in containers. I have (2) 25' live oak that I planted for canopy in the back corners and 4 more 20+ footers that are on the other side of the fence(HOA property). I am setting up the back yard as a warm microclimate with overhead canopy. So its not a huge lot, and I have planted a few non palm trees that will survive my saw if the produce canopy for palms. I have already been warned by my wife not to cut them down, but I think that that maple tree, bare in the winter, is not providing any canopy... I will try to find some pics of before the frost...

Yes you could say I like the palms Ken brought and when the "ripples in the(wifes) pond" settle a little I will be looking to see what Ken has in one of his future trips up the coast.

Rusty, I just have a few bruises on one leg, not bad. But the back is a little stiff and its gonna take more than advil. I have been doing the tai chi stretches, but its just gonna take time. I just have to plant a few more big ones before I get too old to do this anymore.

Terry, I still miss my yard in AZ, but Kens delivery is a good start on a new beginning. Its hard to leave something you did yourself and I'm here for the long haul in this house. I have thought of changing my name, but Im kind of attached to it still, it reminds me of my yard in AZ. It may take a few more trips from Ken and some time for my little palms to grow for me to forget and move ahead.

Thanks guys, and happy new year all over out there!

Edited January 1, 201115 yr by sonoranfans

Most impressive. I refuse to deal with any plant above a 25 gallon. Those palms look to be in perfect condition and made an imediate impact to your garden.

Dear Tom

Great effort ! And that's a beautiful palm....

Thanks for the visuals.

Love,

kris.

Tom- I finally stopped long enough to sound and read out your name.. I get it! haha

I want you guys in Florida to know how much of loss Arizona has when Tom left here. His knowledge and keen sense of placement of plants and fertilizer will surely be missed here in Arizona. His back yard was truly amazing. Wait until he really gets going and finds out everything he can grow there that he couldn't in Arizona. Hopefully, people in Florida will take him under their wings (it won't be long until he will be giving advice and having a palm oasis everyone will envy). Keep an eye on this guy!

Rod

Phoenix

Great Job!

I've planted several big palms like that by myself, and I'm still agog.

It's a big job.