Syagrus schizophylla x Syagrus romanzoffiana AKA the Super Parrot. AKA Coconut queen.

[ErikSJI]

My partner Mark Lynn and I did this hybrid this year and the seeds are getting ready to drop. Would anyone else out there like to share photos of this palm. Syagrus schizophylla x Syagrus romanzoffiana. I know these have been done in Cali as well as overseas and it would be interesting to see how they are doing now.

First few photos are of the hybrid.

Second two photos are of some of the Schizophylla that we pollinated.

[SanDimas]

Nice.

Great subliminal effect there Erik

with fruiting C.nucifera in the background.

Other nurseries alsready marketing this one

as the Coco Queen Hybrid.

Cheers

[ErikSJI]

Yes they are SanDimas. Which is why I would love to see photos of who are growing them.

[sonoranfans]

also called syagrus x montgomeryana. I have a seriously root bound 15 gallon, its 5' tall and the leaflets arent fully divided yet. Mike Evans has a large mature one, 20' or so and 3/4's that wide. It has a huge crown with many fronds. My understanding is that these like shade and frost burn readily(from mike). I initially planted mine out from a 3 gallon and it was burnt to the ground in dec 2010 frost/28F. It looked dead, but I dug it up with little care, threw it in a pot and it came back strong. I am looking for a frost free place to put it in my yard. It has a pretty medium green color, like schitzophylla, not the deep green of a queen. I don't have a recent pic, try to get one next week when I get back to florida...

[ErikSJI]

Thanks Tom. That is good information to know. I will not try to grow any in our area. As we are right down the road from you. I have seen photos of Mikes before. Thought there would be more Cali and overseas growers of this hybrid.

[ErikSJI]

San Dimas I believe the guy in Cali trademarked the name COCO Queen for this cross. Prior to that I believe it was called the super parrot in FL By Redland nursery? Or they got the name from someone else?

[granadahillsmike]

The mentioned palm is sold by Jungle Jacks in Vista, So Cal. My understanding is his Father in Thailand does this Hybrid sold as "coco queen". They have another 15 or more Syagrus Hybrids they sell at the Vista nursery.

It takes full blazing inland sun here in the San Fernando Valley (zone 9b). The sun here is a few levels harsher here than Fallbrook. At least 1 level above Escondido. Not to mention the worse Santa Ana winds that start in late October and blow thru May. We get gust over 70 mph here that last for days. So its DD temps up to 110f in the summer (17 days in a row above 100 last august) followed up with dry, desiccating winds fall thru spring.

That being said, the two I have (see pics) handle the harsh conditions and look better than most stuff I have planted. First pic is a 24" box I planted in 2010 and gets 3/4 day full sun. It sports a fuller crown and nice green leaves. The second pic is a 30" box planted in 2011 and has a looser crown and a darker green leaf but its in full sun 100% and is just starting to find its groove, After seeing the ones in the ground at Jungle Jacks in Vista with over 30-40 leaves I feel the ones

i have will only get better with time.

[SanDimas]

The only 1 Ive seen is being sold at

Seabreeze Nursery thats also in Florida.

I like their Hyophorbe hybrid and the

decaryi x pembana hybrid.

Ritchy

[ErikSJI]

Great looking trees you have there. Good to hear they are handling your summer heat. I have seen the ones at sea breeze when I visited this summer.

[TikiRick]

I too have a mature one. It's been setting what i thought was sterile seeds, however two or three did sprout in the ground. Of course, they may have been pollinated by something else.

This is a great palm. I only wish I had planted it in a more conspicuous spot in my garden. I love it, sans the non self cleaning fronds with all Syagrus.

It grows in partial sun, is about 30' overall, and holds about 25-30 fronds. The petioles do have teeth. I have been at 38F here with absolutely no damage. Once established it appears to be drought tolerant, and suffers from the typical manganese/magnesium deficiencies as other Syagrus in South Florida.

[fastfeat]

Just visited Legoland in Carlsbad for the first time on Wed where I saw Syagrus x montgomeryana for the first time. This was an interesting-looking palm for me, helping me to overcome the withdrawal of three months in central and SoFla.

Most seem to be doing very well despite their growing on reclaimed water (many) and some growing well near the water park chlorine mist. I believe most of these have been in for less than five years from Jungle Jacks in Vista.

[JD in the OC]

This is a beautiful hybrid.

I made a couple of these using pollen from a S. romanzoffiana 'Super Nova'. It is still small, but showing huge strap leaves. Could be a winner.

More work should be done with interspecific Queen hybrids as they set F1 seed easily and germination rate is high.

JD

[Mike Evans]

Hope you & Mark have good luck w/ this hybrid. It is a very beautiful palm. Here is a recent pic of my natural hybridized Syagrus x montgomeryana. It is shade grown, because I thought it was straight schizophylla when I planted it. It sprung up pretty fast when small, now it seems to be growing pretty slow. Maybe too much shade.

[Tassie_Troy1971]

I saw these at Jungle jacks when pogobob took me there . They were in high demand and even the large ones in the ground were "spoken for "

[sonoranfans]

here is my x montgomeryana from mike evans. It really doesn't look like it has the same leaf texture as a queen, more schitzophylla like perhaps. Its in a 15 gallon here about 5' overall, just before I planted it last week. the green color is arresting, a very striking color. this palm was in the ground in dec 2010 as a recently planted 3 gallon seedling, and was just fried by frost, all the way to the ground. I though it dead, roughly dug it out and threw it into a pot and gave it a daconil/peroxide treatment. A month later it was pushing new growth to my amazement.

Edited September 11, 2013 by sonoranfans

[Mike Evans]

here is my x montgomeryana from mike evans. It really doesn't look like it has the same leaf texture as a queen, more schitzophylla like perhaps. Its in a 15 gallon here about 5' overall, just before I planted it last week. the green color is arresting, a very striking color. this palm was in the ground in dec 2010 as a recently planted 3 gallon seedling, and was just fried by frost, all the way to the ground. I though it dead, roughly dug it out and threw it into a pot and gave it a daconil/peroxide treatment. A month later it was pushing new growth to my amazement.

Hi Tom, that hybrid you have is an F2 from John Demott (Redland). It was open pollenated, so no telling what it was crossed with again, since he has every imaginable palm growing around the nursery. It looks like it will be pretty unique. Thanks for posting.

[sonoranfans]

here is my x montgomeryana from mike evans. It really doesn't look like it has the same leaf texture as a queen, more schitzophylla like perhaps. Its in a 15 gallon here about 5' overall, just before I planted it last week. the green color is arresting, a very striking color. this palm was in the ground in dec 2010 as a recently planted 3 gallon seedling, and was just fried by frost, all the way to the ground. I though it dead, roughly dug it out and threw it into a pot and gave it a daconil/peroxide treatment. A month later it was pushing new growth to my amazement.

Hi Tom, that hybrid you have is an F2 from John Demott (Redland). It was open pollenated, so no telling what it was crossed with again, since he has every imaginable palm growing around the nursery. It looks like it will be pretty unique. Thanks for posting.

thanks for the info mike! This palm is a stunner, the leaves are the most astounding green, a very glossy medium green appearance. Its planted in a frost free spot now, under oak, and a big royal. Probably will never know its genetics fully, but I will add this info to its history in future updates.

[LJG]

Legoland has a bunch of these by their water park. Some are huge.

[ErikSJI]

7 months later. Success. Seeds are ready and have embryos. Hope to have some good germination