Pritchardias, Arecas, Cocos, Pseudophoenix, Chambeyronia, etc

[stygiana]

Hi palm lovers,

I've been working for almost two years on a garden project within a historical hotel on the island of La Palma (Canary). We started planting in April and here are the first acceptable photos of this garden. Until now, it looked more like a battle field than a garden. My wife and I had the pleasure to design and plant it (helped by a few young chaps, of course). Planting sessions are not over, so I will post more soon.

Can you name all the palms you see on these pics?

Most are easy and big, but a few are small and maybe not that easy...

[stygiana]

On the photos, one can see several Ravenalas. They are not the common R. madagascariensis, but R. 'honkondambo'. While both are equally happy in the lowlands of La Palma, I noticed from the ones I grow in my garden (located at mid-elevation and therefor much cooler) that this plant seems more cold sensitive than R. madagascariensis. I have no frost at all, so I base this on the effect of several cold weeks we had during the last two winters (a wet cold last year and a dry cold this winter with similar effect). We had several nights in a raw with minimum temperatures below 15ºC / 59ºF (reaching 10ºC / 50ºF up here on one occasion) and cool maximum temperatures during the day (below 20ºC / 68ºF, usually around 18ºC / 64ºF and as low as 15ºC for the coldest day). R. madagascariensis looked totally fine which didn't surprised me as I knew it was quite cold hardy, but R. 'honkondambo' seemed to belong to my "borderline" list (which includes Artocarpus camansii, Calophyllum inophilum, etc). It quickly started to show brown spots and necrosis when the thermometer reached 15/16ºC (60ºF). It is however a very fast grower with, at least here, a darker green colour. I quite like it in the end!

[stygiana]

More photos?

Here you can see that the gardens are surounded by banana fields. In fact, the whole valley bottom is just like a sea of banana trees.

On the second photo, there are some of my favourite fan palms in the background, and, in the forground... What could it be???

[empireo22]

very nice garden! Thanks for the pictures! The coconuts look strange though? Are those bananas commercial and sold locally or sent off to rest of EU?

[stygiana]

Hi Empireo22,

Thanks for your comment. These coconuts don't look perfect, I agree. They have only been planted recently and had to be imported from Tenerife island. They suffered from shipment stress and waited longer than expected before they were planted in the ground because of some delay in the building works... We will feed them and water them copiously to compansate...

Bananas are grown for export. They represent the main income of the island's economy (almost no tourism here), but disastrous commercial policies lead to disaster, as cheap bananas from countries where work force is less expensive now compete seriously this production. While the EU imports its expensive organic bananas from distant countries, there is hardly any organic banana grown and exported on La Palma... And if you want to buy banana flour (for tropical recipies or as a substitute to weat flour for celiac people) or banana crips here, they are always imported from Peru or Ecuador!!! Mad world.

[stygiana]

This Areca produces an outstanding perfume. It is actuallythe most fragrant plant in the garden. It can be sented from a long distance. It's not heady at all, but on the contrary quite fresh and delicate. In fact, it smells just like Hyacinth. It's quite confusing actually to smell hyacith (which, to me, evokes one of the few fragrances one can enjoy during the freezing high latitude winters of cold countries) under such a heat and with such tropical looking plants...

I first thought it was a typical Areca catechu, but this fragrance makes me wonder if it actually is catechu... or not?

In any case, Arecas are, with Pinangas, becoming more and more some of my favourite palm genera.

[MattyB]

Beautiful garden Sebastian! I love the hardscape and all the colors that swirl down below the taller palms. Nice work! Love the Pritchardias!!!!!

[Gileno Machado]

Lovely Areca...maybe concinna?

[stygiana]

Thank you very much, MattyB and Gileno Machado for your nice words.

I love Pritchardia pacifica too. We planted also a few small P. thurstonii and unfortunatelly we don't have enough space to add my favourire Hawaiian species in that genus (P. martii).

Gileno, I don't think it's A. concinna, but I can be wrong. I thought A. concinna was a kind of variant of the common A. triandra. Besides, those two seem to need shade, while the palm tree on the photo comes from a nursery rigjht by the sea where it grew in full sun in an open spot. It looked perfect while other species had slightly burnt leaflets...

We planted it in full sun again and it's now surrounded by concrete. It went through calima wind (the equivalent of Santa Ana, but coming from the Sahara here) and thermonuclear heat without any problem. I was amazed. As tough as nails!

[Mike Evans]

On the photos, one can see several Ravenalas. They are not the common R. madagascariensis, but R. 'honkondambo'. While both are equally happy in the lowlands of La Palma, I noticed from the ones I grow in my garden (located at mid-elevation and therefor much cooler) that this plant seems more cold sensitive than R. madagascariensis. I have no frost at all, so I base this on the effect of several cold weeks we had during the last two winters (a wet cold last year and a dry cold this winter with similar effect). We had several nights in a raw with minimum temperatures below 15ºC / 59ºF (reaching 10ºC / 50ºF up here on one occasion) and cool maximum temperatures during the day (below 20ºC / 68ºF, usually around 18ºC / 64ºF and as low as 15ºC for the coldest day). R. madagascariensis looked totally fine which didn't surprised me as I knew it was quite cold hardy, but R. 'honkondambo' seemed to belong to my "borderline" list (which includes Artocarpus camansii, Calophyllum inophilum, etc). It quickly started to show brown spots and necrosis when the thermometer reached 15/16ºC (60ºF). It is however a very fast grower with, at least here, a darker green colour. I quite like it in the end!

Hi Sebastian. Thanks for posting the pics. Could you post some close ups of the R. 'honkondambo'? Even better if you could post some mature ones from your garden. I understand they produce red leaf bases. I bought a few thousand seed from RPS, so far I have 1 coming up.

[empireo22]

Sebastian,

Please post more pictures of the garden and other gardens in The Canries! You are lucky to live in a climate with such a vast variety of plants. Would like to see some of the gardens at high elevations also.

Thank you

[stygiana]

Hi Sebastian. Thanks for posting the pics. Could you post some close ups of the R. 'honkondambo'? Even better if you could post some mature ones from your garden. I understand they produce red leaf bases. I bought a few thousand seed from RPS, so far I have 1 coming up.

Hi Mike,

I had a busy day tosay but I will post some close ups tomorrow as well as a photo of the one growing in my garden.

[stygiana]

Sebastian,

Please post more pictures of the garden and other gardens in The Canries! You are lucky to live in a climate with such a vast variety of plants. Would like to see some of the gardens at high elevations also.

Thank you

Empireo22, there is indeed a huge variety of plants here. With coconuts (and rare but still sometimes found breadfruit trees, noni, cacao tree, Adonidia, etc growing up an elevation of 400 m (1200ft), while you may see snow on the mountain top, the contrast is striking indeed. Wild pansies and Sorbus up there and Ceropegia hians down here...

The following pics are not mine but I don't think there is a big problem if I attach them, as I either found them on PalmTalk, or as copyright free or, for one of them, I know well the author... They give you an idea of the surroundings of the garden we are planting.

I will post photos of gardens from the green and cool windward side in another topic soon (well, I'm over busy at the moment, so "soon" may mean... in a few weeks or months!!!).

There is no big garden that I know at high elevation. However, some farmers sometimes have nice small gardens and patios up there. It's a totally different world (Camelias, chesnut trees, Hydrangeas, apple trees, cherry, etc).

[Walter John]

great pics..great job..

[empireo22]

Thanks Sebastian! Canary Islands are great so beautiful. I would love to visit! I await for your future pics and posts!

Alex

[redant]

Sebastian,

Please post more pictures of the garden and other gardens in The Canries! You are lucky to live in a climate with such a vast variety of plants. Would like to see some of the gardens at high elevations also.

Thank you

Empireo22, there is indeed a huge variety of plants here. With coconuts (and rare but still sometimes found breadfruit trees, noni, cacao tree, Adonidia, etc growing up an elevation of 400 m (1200ft), while you may see snow on the mountain top, the contrast is striking indeed. Wild pansies and Sorbus up there and Ceropegia hians down here...

The following pics are not mine but I don't think there is a big problem if I attach them, as I either found them on PalmTalk, or as copyright free or, for one of them, I know well the author... They give you an idea of the surroundings of the garden we are planting.

I will post photos of gardens from the green and cool windward side in another topic soon (well, I'm over busy at the moment, so "soon" may mean... in a few weeks or months!!!).

There is no big garden that I know at high elevation. However, some farmers sometimes have nice small gardens and patios up there. It's a totally different world (Camelias, chesnut trees, Hydrangeas, apple trees, cherry, etc).

So this last picture is cocos with snow in the background? Small picture but thats what it looks like.

[stygiana]

Could you post some close ups of the R. 'honkondambo'? Even better if you could post some mature ones from your garden.

Here is mine. It still looks like a normal Ravenala madagascariensis, except that the normal madagascariensis don't get all these black spots in winter (I think you can see them, especially on older leaves, if you click in order to see the photos in full size).

Tomorrow I will take some photos of the ones we planted in the garden I'm currently planting on the coast. While they looked just like mine before we brought them down to the Hotel-Museum in Tazacorte (they were growing in pots at my altitude before), the ones we planted in this new garden down there took a darker, slightly purple colour. Those Ravenalas look different now compared to the other typical Ravenala planted in this new garden.

You'll see that tomorrow!

[stygiana]

Sebastian,

Would like to see some of the gardens at high elevations also.

Thank you

This is a photo of my orchid garden today. Forth time this year that I have such a nice flower spike on the Vanda. A very tough and easy orchid. You may also notice Dendrobium, Ancelia and Cattleya. Easy too but not as floriferous...

This is not what I would call "high elevation", but my garden is located on the mountain slopes and experiences a much cooler climate compared to the south-western coast (especially at night, year round, but also during the day in winter, particularly if we have a cloudy weather). However, it gives you an idea of what grows here...

Quite honestly, I'm more than busy with work and kids and all the rest. These orchids grow with almost no care except some watering in the last 12 months. They nearly grow on their own on the lava rocks. Fertilizer??? No. Nothing!

[stygiana]

Hi Sebastian. Thanks for posting the pics. Could you post some close ups of the R. 'honkondambo'?

Sorry for the delay, but here is one of the 4 Ravenala 'honkondambo' we planted at the hotel-museum (Hacienda de Abajo) where I work.

The ones growing there have less of that kind of glaucous hue one can see on the common Ravenela and, on the contrary, have some purple especially near the base.

Note that I said the difference wasn't that clear with mine, growing at higher elevation: Why? I don't know...

[empireo22]

Sebastian,

Is it possible to grow Cyrtostachys renda or Euterpe oleracea unprotected from cold there?

[stygiana]

Good question, Alex,

I'd like to find out!!!

The problem is that it is prohibited to import palm trees to the Canaries, so you have to start from seeds. Carlo has a small Cyrtostachys which is doing rather well.

I don't think there would be any problem, as Artocarpus camansii and mangosteen grow well in Tazacorte. And I saw several very happy Cyrtostachys at Mango (Tontouta) in NC, where winter nights can be much colder than Tazacorte, while average maximum temperatures are more or less identical (and the same with summer nights). I remind you that the datas below are for my garden, on the mountain, while Tazacorte is about 2 or 3 degrees warmer in winter (more or less the same in summer, as the sea cools the air down there). Record low is around 12ºc / 13ºC (53,5 / 55,5ºF) in Tazacorte.

If things go well, we may buy quite a few seeds next year to expand the palm tree collection. Euterpe oleracea is in the top 3 of the "must have" species list.

[empireo22]

Sebastian,

It sounds like cold wont be a problem, but irrigation for these palms since they love lots of water.

[stygiana]

Sebastian,

It sounds like cold wont be a problem, but irrigation for these palms since they love lots of water.

Here is the problem indeed. While I have an excellent spring water for my garden, the soil and water for this garden in Tazacorte is not that great. Plant actually show signs of chorosis and deficiency... We'll have to make big efforts (compost / organic matter, mulch, algae, etc) and above all use a lot of beneficial fungi.

[stygiana]

Here are more photos.

[stygiana]

I found this Ptychosperma in a nursery with no label on it. The nurseryman didn't remember what it was (he told me he grew it from seeds he imported).

As you can see it has a very narrow trunk, with a kind of yellowish colour, an olive green crownshaft and a compact, rather upright, crown of leaves.

The garden is not finished... and it shows!

[Peter Pacific]

Sebastian, to have palms and be in the Canary Islands...doesn't get much better than that! Good job. Peter

[stygiana]

Sebastian, to have palms and be in the Canary Islands...doesn't get much better than that! Good job. Peter

Thank you Peter.

I don't know at what altitude you are, but I imagine there are some areas in mountainous parts of Central America where you can be just at the right altitude: not too high for the warm temperature loving species but still high enough so it's not not too hot for species which come from cooler regions.

[stygiana]

I found this Ptychosperma in a nursery with no label on it. The nurseryman didn't remember what it was (he told me he grew it from seeds he imported).

As you can see it has a very narrow trunk, with a kind of yellowish colour, an olive green crownshaft and a compact, rather upright, crown of leaves.

The garden is not finished... and it shows!

So no one knows what it is?

[stygiana]

More photos...

Please, understand that the works are not finished. We stll have to plant hundreds of ground covers. The Adenium is not even planted! It is with its small plastic pot inside the big terracota...

I'll post more pics when the garden will look nicer and tidier.

[empireo22]

I found this Ptychosperma in a nursery with no label on it. The nurseryman didn't remember what it was (he told me he grew it from seeds he imported).

As you can see it has a very narrow trunk, with a kind of yellowish colour, an olive green crownshaft and a compact, rather upright, crown of leaves.

The garden is not finished... and it shows!

So no one knows what it is?

Im not sure but I would guess elegans

[Carlos Simón]

I found this Ptychosperma in a nursery with no label on it. The nurseryman didn't remember what it was (he told me he grew it from seeds he imported).

As you can see it has a very narrow trunk, with a kind of yellowish colour, an olive green crownshaft and a compact, rather upright, crown of leaves.

The garden is not finished... and it shows!

So no one knows what it is?

Im not sure but I would guess elegans

I agree, It is P. elegans. Too long in a pot I fear.

The Piper auritum will end up invading the banana plantation .

Hola Sebastián

[stygiana]

I found this Ptychosperma in a nursery with no label on it. The nurseryman didn't remember what it was (he told me he grew it from seeds he imported). As you can see it has a very narrow trunk, with a kind of yellowish colour, an olive green crownshaft and a compact, rather upright, crown of leaves. The garden is not finished... and it shows!

So no one knows what it is?

Im not sure but I would guess elegans

I agree, It is P. elegans. Too long in a pot I fear. The Piper auritum will end up invading the banana plantation . Hola Sebastián

Hi Empireo22, Hola Carlos ¿Que tal? So nice to see you here!I'm not sure about P. elegans, I am very familiar with this species and whereas I noticed it is strongly variable, those look quite distinct. Plus they were in very very big pots when I purchased them, so I'm not sure that was the problem. The nurseryman had other P. elegans (that I bought actually) and they looked quite different compared to those and I could tell they were elegans straight away...I found they looked a bit like P. salomonense stressed by the climate where they used to grow at the nursery (arid, windy, open, in full sun, etc).

[stygiana]

Sorry folks for that long silence, but here are some recent shots of the garden. It's winter time now and you may notice things have changed...

[stygiana]

More views. All the photos were taken this morning: grey sky, cool wind and almost temps, around 21ºC (70ºF).

[stygiana]

And more... (I looooove Plumeria pudica...)

[stygiana]

Ylang-ylang (Cananga odorata) and Marcetella moquiniana, a Canarian endemic.

[stygiana]

Small gardens with Areca catechu...

[empireo22]

very nice. Do you know if the banana in the last picture is gran nain?

[Alicehunter2000]

Sebastian, I've actually had the oportunity to visit your beautiful island chain via cruiseship about 15 years ago with my family. Can't remember if your island of La Palma was one of the stops. I remember going down a hill on a gondola with a guy pulling it. Also remember the island that looks like the moon, rode camels on Christmas Day. Can you tell me what your island is known for tourist-wise? I need to talk to my mom and find out which islands were visited. You are very lucky to be living in a beautiful place such as that...do you visit the other islands much? How about Morrocco? It is strange to believe that there are palms that are marginal in your area 13C or 55F lows is not very cold. The gardens are beautiful.

[stygiana]

very nice. Do you know if the banana in the last picture is gran nain?

Hi Alex,

Thanks for your comment. I don't think the bananas are 'Grand Nain'. In fact, I'm sure they are not. 'Grand Nain' used to be one of the major crops here, but it's been gradualy replaced by new cultivars. The one on the photo is probably 'Palmerita', one of them.