Psyched Over Lemurophonix halleuxii

[Jim in Los Altos]

If there's any palm I visit at least once a day (and often more) it's this Lemur palm in my front yard. Besides its colorful nature, it's the fastest growing palm I own. This is supposed to be a tropical palm and yet it continued growing all winter through chilly and mild periods alike. Each time a new spear appears it's redder than the last. The spear pictured just appeared three days ago and is really popping. I hope I can nurture it to maturity.

Can any of you with maturing examples of this species post pictures? Are any of you outside the tropics growing this too?

My size 11 shoe for scale

[NApalm]

She's looking good jim

[comic097]

Well done Jim, looks sweeeeeet mate

[willo68]

What a pretty palm, i hope she keeps growing great for you. Please keep us updated.

[Tyrone]

If anyone can grow one in cooler areas, you can Jim.

[Daryl]

Glad to see it sailed through winter!

[colin Peters]

Wow Jim, that is looking very healthy, my next purchase will hopefully include one of them. Haven't had much luck so far. Even

one at Lyon arboretum looks a little bit under the weather.

aloha

[Josh-O]

Jim's got the green thumb touch for sure

[gob1]

Jim, there is one guy (of questionable intelligence) growing one in his pot ranch in Melbourne.

[Pedro 65]

Jim, I assume the below Mtn View weather is the same as yours @ Los Altos ? You get cool in winter but well free of Freezing( our winter nights are like yrs but our winter day aves rarely drop below 20c, we are cool sub tropics. Thats enough weather rav'n Jim, your Lemur's growth is "very" remarkable indeed, you have certainly planted it in a "primo location" of your garden that it agrees with.. Ive planted many very small Lemur's( in wrong locations ) and they survived but just "never grew" ( planted way too small) and ended up just like the 1 leafer below and eventually died. The below 3 Lemurs are "all" the same age, yes hard to believe but they all germinated in Far Nth Qld in 2005, the largest of the 3 is in a "primo location" with 50%s/cloth above and its "always" moist, its now "finally" picking up speed but @ present no more than 3 new leaves a yr... Jim, yours is "home and hosed", and once again the growth is "very remarkable" indeed, well done Pete

Average Weather For Mountain View, California, USA

Over the course of a year, the temperature typically varies from 6°C to 26°C and is rarely below 3°C or above 31°C.

Daily High and Low Temperature

The daily average low (blue) and high (red) temperature with percentile bands (inner band from 25th to 75th percentile, outer band from 10th to 90th percentile).

The warm season lasts from June 12 to October 5 with an average daily high temperature above 24°C. The hottest day of the year is September 1, with an average high of 26°C and low of 15°C.

The cold season lasts from November 26 to March 6 with an average daily high temperature below 16°C. The coldest day of the year is January 14, with an average low of 6°C and high of 14°C.

[BS Man about Palms]

Hey Jim, I hope you don't take this wrong, but do you think its just a superior example? ( I don't really mean "just" in that sense) But you can read where several people in more favorable climates than ours have struggled, OR like Jeff Marcus, he has a monster one and a much slower one, both planted about the same time. Pete more or less alluded to the same thing. Is this your first try at a Lemur (I forget if you said)

Do you think you have done anything more exceptional than anyone else to get it to grow like you have? (Actual question, not sarcasm, believe it or not )

Bottom line, I REALLY think you got a fantastic example of the breed and I'm very happy YOU got it, because if it does struggle at all, you are a great caretaker to help it along! I actually believe it will do well!

[trioderob]

if I was a betting man I would bet on this as the reason

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-warm-winter-weather-20150220-story.html

[trioderob]

conditions in central California have been:

"extreme and exceptional"

it was 100f at my house this weekend.

this is an extremely not normal winter and for sure cant be used to judge the long term viability of a new plant.

(still hope his lemer makes it................. )

Edited March 16, 2015 by trioderob

[bgl]

Jim,

I can see why you're psyched over this Lemurophoenix! Very exciting to see it do so well and look so fantastic! And I have to add a minor correction to what Bill said above about the two Lemurs at Floribunda: actually the "monster Lemurophoenix" was planted many years after the first one, so the difference in growth rate has been even more extreme. And who knows why this happens - superior examples? Soil conditions? Something else like different levels of fertilizer application? Or a combination of all of the above. Maybe get a second Lemur for comparison?

Bo-Göran

[humangenomaproject]

I REALLY hope your Lemur makes it. I have four in the ground and I find extreme variability between all four in growth rates. The ones in more sun seem a little more stunted. It's hard to answer the question "what's your favorite palm?" but this would easily make the top five list for me.

[Jim in Los Altos]

if I was a betting man I would bet on this as the reason

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-warm-winter-weather-20150220-story.html

Rob, My Lemur shrugged its shoulders at 32.5F and several other mid to upper thirties nights typical here every year. We had a lot more clear cool nights than usual in winter but, on the other hand, we had more sunny warm days than usual. The temperature swings were fairly dramatic, not what Lemurophoenix are at all used to in their native climate. My foxtail palms spotted up as did a few of my other marginals but the Lemur palm continued growing all winter during both chilly and warm periods. It's a real trooper.

[Jim in Los Altos]

Jim, I assume the below Mtn View weather is the same as yours @ Los Altos ? You get cool in winter but well free of Freezing( our winter nights are like yrs but our winter day aves rarely drop below 20c, we are cool sub tropics. Thats enough weather rav'n Jim, your Lemur's growth is "very" remarkable indeed, you have certainly planted it in a "primo location" of your garden that it agrees with.. Ive planted many very small Lemur's( in wrong locations ) and they survived but just "never grew" ( planted way too small) and ended up just like the 1 leafer below and eventually died. The below 3 Lemurs are "all" the same age, yes hard to believe but they all germinated in Far Nth Qld in 2005, the largest of the 3 is in a "primo location" with 50%s/cloth above and its "always" moist, its now "finally" picking up speed but @ present no more than 3 new leaves a yr... Jim, yours is "home and hosed", and once again the growth is "very remarkable" indeed, well done Pete

Average Weather For Mountain View, California, USA

Over the course of a year, the temperature typically varies from 6°C to 26°C and is rarely below 3°C or above 31°C.

Daily High and Low Temperature

The daily average low (blue) and high (red) temperature with percentile bands (inner band from 25th to 75th percentile, outer band from 10th to 90th percentile).

The warm season lasts from June 12 to October 5 with an average daily high temperature above 24°C. The hottest day of the year is September 1, with an average high of 26°C and low of 15°C.

The cold season lasts from November 26 to March 6 with an average daily high temperature below 16°C. The coldest day of the year is January 14, with an average low of 6°C and high of 14°C.

Pedro, It looks like you've found the sweet spot that your Lemur wants. It looks great. As far as our climate is concerned, it's similar to Mountain View with some small differences. Los Altos is warmer by a few degrees in the summer and our hottest weather is in July and August with the coldest being the last two weeks of December. We had our lowest low this winter of 32.5F (0.2C) in December. Also there are microclimates within microclimates all over the Bay Area. My own neighborhood has chilly low spots and warm elevated areas. Areas near the main creek running through the area are much colder as the creek funnels cold mountain air into the area. I'm in a sweet spot that, even though it's not elevated much, it is protected from the cool descending air from the nearby foothills by rows of houses, fences, etc.

[Jim in Los Altos]

Jim,

I can see why you're psyched over this Lemurophoenix! Very exciting to see it do so well and look so fantastic! And I have to add a minor correction to what Bill said above about the two Lemurs at Floribunda: actually the "monster Lemurophoenix" was planted many years after the first one, so the difference in growth rate has been even more extreme. And who knows why this happens - superior examples? Soil conditions? Something else like different levels of fertilizer application? Or a combination of all of the above. Maybe get a second Lemur for comparison?

Bo-Göran

Bo and Bill, I could very well have a genetically superior example and I hope I do! I bought two last year and the happy one was planted outside from its 4" container right away and the other I kept potted inside. The one inside hated it and died within days most likely from air that was too dry inside. It was well watered and not allowed to dry either but its leaves crinkled up anyway.

[Tassie_Troy1971]

Jim you never cease to amaze me with your voodoo "done a deal with the devil" superior growing skills !

Looking at the plant it is 100 % healthy and has every chance of becoming the Northern most Lemur in the World - move over Newport coconut another star is coming through

[NApalm]

Jim you never cease to amaze me with your voodoo "done a deal with the devil" superior growing skills !

Looking at the plant it is 100 % healthy and has every chance of becoming the Northern most Lemur in the World - move over Newport coconut another star is coming through

Here here. Go Jim!!!

[Daryl]

There is so much variation in this species as far as growth goes...2 plants purchased on the same date and roughly the same size...one is now 15 feet tall, the other was only 12" tall last year and is now dead...

[Jim in Los Altos]

There is so much variation in this species as far as growth goes...2 plants purchased on the same date and roughly the same size...one is now 15 feet tall, the other was only 12" tall last year and is now dead...

It's why I always buy seedlings in multiples. It's survival of the fittest.

[Jim in Los Altos]

Jim you never cease to amaze me with your voodoo "done a deal with the devil" superior growing skills !

Looking at the plant it is 100 % healthy and has every chance of becoming the Northern most Lemur in the World - move over Newport coconut another star is coming through

Troy, thanks but I don't do anything special. I just keep a close eye on it and NEVER let it dry out.