Phoenix sylvestris in Austin Texas

[MASOALA JASON]

I came upon this palm recently in Austin, Texas. Looks like it might be Phoenix sylvestris and like it has been around for a while in this 8b climate. 

 

 

[Allen]

Have no idea on ID but it is a really cool palm. 

[DAVEinMB]

Super healthy, def has some Sylvester characteristics

[necturus]

There's a number of these in Austin. That one's a real beaut. These should be planted more widely in Houston along with Phoenix reclinata.

[mnorell]

That's a beauty. Something in those upper leaves tells me there's something like a little canariensis mixed in with that Sylvester...and perhaps some hybrid vigor explains its strength in the cold? I lost my big P. sylvestris 'robusta' in Natchez, MS (9a, rather similar climate to Austin, though wetter) in the terrible winter 2-3 years ago when it hit 13F. It had made it through 18F previously in 2010 without any real difficulties. But it may not have gone quite so cold in Austin during that bad freeze around 2017? I think mid-teens and P. sylvestris (at least the 'robusta' form) are more or less toast in a humid climate.

[Austinpalm]

18 hours ago, MASOALA JASON said:

I came upon this palm recently in Austin, Texas. Looks like it might be Phoenix sylvestris and like it has been around for a while in this 8b climate. 

 

 

I would say that palm definitely has some Canariensis in it.  Really nice and green.  Mine is bluer. Here is a link to a roadside picture of it. (https://www.google.com/maps/@30.1814946,-97.8117911,3a,39.7y,46.56h,93.62t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s3s5dA4U-EU07vjVy9p4aEA!2e0!5s20180501T000000!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D3s5dA4U-EU07vjVy9p4aEA%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D111.90139%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192) 

Unfortunately this picture was taken recently after the winter of 2017/2018 in which we had night-time lows in the upper teens.  The palm has totally regrown its crown and is looking good now.  It is also about 3 feet taller.  I need to get the scaffolding out and trim the live oak above it so it can continue growing straight instead of out towards the road.  The other Phoenix across the driveway is a reclinata x canariensis I believe.  Please let me know if you think it might be something else.

[Dimovi]

wow this looks amazing, where is it?

It does look like it could be a mix, but I'm not sure.

Edited December 16, 2019 by Dimovi

[Merlyn]

On 12/12/2019 at 1:11 AM, mnorell said:

That's a beauty. Something in those upper leaves tells me there's something like a little canariensis mixed in with that Sylvester...and perhaps some hybrid vigor explains its strength in the cold?

That's what I was thinking too.  The new fronds look like they are kind of "flat plane" like a Canariensis, with leaflet lengths that get shorter near the tip.  The "pure" Sylvestris are more "blunt" near the end of the frond and have leaflets in a very staggered angle, even on new fronds.  I'd bet it's a part hybrid like two of mine.

[Jcalvin]

On ‎12‎/‎12‎/‎2019 at 3:18 PM, Austinpalm said:

I would say that palm definitely has some Canariensis in it.  Really nice and green.  Mine is bluer. Here is a link to a roadside picture of it. (https://www.google.com/maps/@30.1814946,-97.8117911,3a,39.7y,46.56h,93.62t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s3s5dA4U-EU07vjVy9p4aEA!2e0!5s20180501T000000!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D3s5dA4U-EU07vjVy9p4aEA%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D111.90139%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192) 

Unfortunately this picture was taken recently after the winter of 2017/2018 in which we had night-time lows in the upper teens.  The palm has totally regrown its crown and is looking good now.  It is also about 3 feet taller.  I need to get the scaffolding out and trim the live oak above it so it can continue growing straight instead of out towards the road.  The other Phoenix across the driveway is a reclinata x canariensis I believe.  Please let me know if you think it might be something else.

The houses on google earth don't match the houses in your pic.

There are two palms on the googole earth link. The one on the left side of the driveway looks like a badly damaged canary. The one on the right side definitely looks like a sylvestris.  

[Austinpalm]

1 hour ago, Jcalvin said:

The houses on google earth don't match the houses in your pic.

There are two palms on the googole earth link. The one on the left side of the driveway looks like a badly damaged canary. The one on the right side definitely looks like a sylvestris.  

Huh... the houses looked correct just now when I checked google earth.  Maybe you are getting an earlier picture somehow.  ??  Here are some pix I just took today to show how they have recovered over the summer.  It is hard to see, but the phoenix hybrid in the second picture has multiple trunks.  I need to grab a saw and start removing some of the trunks.

Edited December 19, 2019 by Austinpalm

[Jcalvin]

47 minutes ago, Austinpalm said:

Huh... the houses looked correct just now when I checked google earth.  Maybe you are getting an earlier picture somehow.  ??  Here are some pix I just took today to show how they have recovered over the summer.  It is hard to see, but the phoenix hybrid in the second picture has multiple trunks.  I need to grab a saw and start removing some of the trunks.

The leaves in the 2nd picture don't look like Sylvester fronds. Not sure what it is.

[Merlyn]

The Google Maps picture is scary burnt!!!  But that's a great recovery on them.  The second one looks like it's on the Reclinata side of the Phoenix family.  I have a similar giant cluster of trunks, planted in the spring of 2018.  Here it is in the summer of 2018 in the center:

1 year later it's gotten pretty big:

It's even larger now, the above photo was from July.

[Austinpalm]

14 hours ago, Jcalvin said:

The leaves in the 2nd picture don't look like Sylvester fronds. Not sure what it is.

First picture is P. sylvestris.  2nd picture is P. reclinata x canariensis I believe.