Palms in Maryland...

[jfrye01@live.com]

Hello all, I was doing some research on hurricanes when I came across this photo of Hurricane Irene striking Ocean City, MD...According to the caption on the photo, this picture was indeed taken in Ocean City...However, the palms look like cocos...so my question is, are these actually cocos that are dug up and replaced every season, or are they something hardier, such as parajubea?

Link: http://www.toledoblade.com/image/2011/08/29/800x600_b1cCM/Palm-trees-Ocean-City.jpg

[Xerarch]

Those definitely are cocos, the question is, is that really Maryland? If it is, they must do as you say and dig them up every year, either replace them or move them indoors.

[tjwalters]

Those are what I suspect are known as annual coconuts - simply replaced every year, shipped up from the south. You will also see a lot of queens used in the same manner.

[aztropic]

Yup.Every year, many businesses in the Ocean City area plant out large common landscape size palms imported from FL. Literally thousands of queens and washys with an occasional foxtail, coconut, or Christmas palm thrown in for good measure.

[jfrye01@live.com]

Pretty cool! Thanks for clearing that up! That's what I thought as well, is that really Maryland? I know how the media gets things wrong sometimes...I think it's cool they do that though! I imagine they find a way to buy cheap cocos...

[tjwalters]

Yep. Really Maryland (Ocean City).

[MDPalm]

There is also a place called Secrets in OC that has a ton of palms. If you search for them you will see a ton of coconuts that they put in each year, you can even see them all if you look on Google maps - they are at the end of 49th st. They even have their own radio station there and play rock, reggae, etc.

Secrets also has a billboard 10 or 15 miles from OC with 2 coconuts on each side. It seems each year more and more places are putting up 'annual' palm trees. There are some hardy ones that have been around for a while, but I haven't been down to see if any survived the cold this winter. There are a few companies (or people) that I know of that bring palms up or have them shipped up and sell them. The prices are outrageous once you see what they sell for in Florida but I guess when you factor in the shipping the prices make sense.

[jfrye01@live.com]

I imagine trachies and maybe Sabal palmetto would survive there with no problem ?

[PalmatierMeg]

Pretty cool! Thanks for clearing that up! That's what I thought as well, is that really Maryland? I know how the media gets things wrong sometimes...I think it's cool they do that though! I imagine they find a way to buy cheap cocos...

Maryland should be too cold for most Sabals, except perhaps in a warm micro climate on the coast. To my knowledge S. palmetto doesn't reliably survive beyond NC. I've seen Trachycarpus for sale at a nursery in south Alexandria VA, but I have my doubts about their long term survival in the mid-Atlantic. Sabal minor might make it there but isn't a native. And I know of needle palms that survive in MD northeast of Washington DC. I don't think any of them can survive the mountains.

[Zeeth]

There is also a place called Secrets in OC that has a ton of palms. If you search for them you will see a ton of coconuts that they put in each year, you can even see them all if you look on Google maps - they are at the end of 49th st. They even have their own radio station there and play rock, reggae, etc.

Secrets also has a billboard 10 or 15 miles from OC with 2 coconuts on each side. It seems each year more and more places are putting up 'annual' palm trees. There are some hardy ones that have been around for a while, but I haven't been down to see if any survived the cold this winter. There are a few companies (or people) that I know of that bring palms up or have them shipped up and sell them. The prices are outrageous once you see what they sell for in Florida but I guess when you factor in the shipping the prices make sense.

Crazy! I bet it costs a lot of money to do that every year. I also can't imagine they would last very long, maybe 6 months?

[Keith N Tampa (ex SoJax)]

I imagine trachies and maybe Sabal palmetto would survive there with no problem ?

Not with "no problem". Trachies are best permanent trunking palm, S. palmetto...nope; too cold though they may struggle through a winter or 2. S. minor and R. hystrix are reliable landscape palms.

[MDPalm]

I had heard that someone in Ocean City digs a huge hold in the beach and puts palms in it, covers it up and lets them 'hibernate' during the winter. I have no idea if that was true or not or what kind of palms they were. But I would be curious if that would work?

[Keith N Tampa (ex SoJax)]

I had heard that someone in Ocean City digs a huge hold in the beach and puts palms in it, covers it up and lets them 'hibernate' during the winter. I have no idea if that was true or not or what kind of palms they were. But I would be curious if that would work?

Shrt answer...no. But do plant the super hardy palms. They are tough enough with only minimal protection the first winters during establishment.

[Dave-Vero]

Up there, Rhapidophyllum should be happy in sheltered spots away from salt spray, along with Trachies. Sabal minor is native almost to Virginia (and grows happily in my yard down here).

[MDPalm]

I had a chance to drive through Ocean City, MD this past weekend, didn't have a lot of time to look, basically just drive down Costal Hwy but didn't see any palms at all except a few dead coconuts until I got to Sandals. Here is a picture of some still standing, it isn't the best picture but the road was blocked with construction. There were also 2 roll off dumpsters in the parking lot that had a lot of palm parts sticking out.

[Xerarch]

That's amazing, look at all the $ just standing there dead, not only dead but planned to be that way. That's a lot of expense to go through just to do it all over again every year, I do admit though, it is pretty cool to have that palmy atmosphere in place like Maryland, even if only for a few short months at a time.

[jfrye01@live.com]

I had a chance to drive through Ocean City, MD this past weekend, didn't have a lot of time to look, basically just drive down Costal Hwy but didn't see any palms at all except a few dead coconuts until I got to Sandals. Here is a picture of some still standing, it isn't the best picture but the road was blocked with construction. There were also 2 roll off dumpsters in the parking lot that had a lot of palm parts sticking out.

Ouch:( That's sickening...

[Island mnt.]

we have a spot across from secrets, can swim there. Its ashame to see so many palms waisted every year. They have alot of the Australian bottle palms which are for zone 10.  Shiped up from florida every year. And i think i saw some tall robustas by the pirate flag spot.  Windmills and may b jellys, and Mediterranean fan can survive there, not sure at all why they dont smarten up.  I know the palm guys aren't saying a whole lot cause they obviously love the return biz. 

[SEPalm]

Seems having mature Trees replaced yearly will certainly drive up the costs of these palms over time due to the time investment to get them to the larger sizes. 

[Brad Mondel]

Seems like it would be more cost effective to build a giant heated conservatory and keep them alive forever. 

[EastCanadaTropicals]

On 4/24/2014 at 8:31 PM, PalmatierMeg said:

Maryland should be too cold for most Sabals, except perhaps in a warm micro climate on the coast. To my knowledge S. palmetto doesn't reliably survive beyond NC. I've seen Trachycarpus for sale at a nursery in south Alexandria VA, but I have my doubts about their long term survival in the mid-Atlantic. Sabal minor might make it there but isn't a native. And I know of needle palms that survive in MD northeast of Washington DC. I don't think any of them can survive the mountains.

I assume they'd do well in the zone 8a parts of Maryland, like Crisfield.

[EastCanadaTropicals]

On 4/30/2014 at 2:30 PM, Xerarch said:

That's amazing, look at all the $ just standing there dead, not only dead but planned to be that way. That's a lot of expense to go through just to do it all over again every year, I do admit though, it is pretty cool to have that palmy atmosphere in place like Maryland, even if only for a few short months at a time.

Its super pointless just plant sabal palmetto "Bald Head Island" in a warm microclimate.

Edited December 17, 2020 by EastCanadaTropicals