What would you expect to pay?

[DAVEinMB]

Found this gem today and price was too good to pass up. Livistona chinensis with 8' or so of trunk. I haven't seen any this large for sale in the area before so I have no point of reference for price.  7 gallons typically go for $150. After tax this one was $290. 

[Ben in Norcal]

Crazy good deal in my book!

[Allen]

Looks nice! No idea on pricing on that variety.

[Brad Mondel]

True blue?

[Jeff985]

You stole that thing. That’s about half what I’d expect to pay. You should be ashamed of yourself. Go back and give them some more money. Kidding aside, well done. 

[DAVEinMB]

41 minutes ago, Brad Mondel said:

True blue?

Yes sir. My first time there, place is awesome 

 

35 minutes ago, Jeff985 said:

You stole that thing. That’s about half what I’d expect to pay. You should be ashamed of yourself. Go back and give them some more money. Kidding aside, well done. 

Hahaha, I had no intention of buying it until they told me they wanted for it. My attitude quickly turned to "here.... take my money" 

[Jeff985]

14 minutes ago, DAVEinMB said:

Yes sir. My first time there, place is awesome 

 

Hahaha, I had no intention of buying it until they told me they wanted for it. My attitude quickly turned to "here.... take my money" 

I’d have done the same thing. There’s no way I’d have been able to pass that up. I bought a triple with about a foot of trunk a couple months ago. It was marked for $300 but since it was fall/winter it was 70% off so I got it for $90. $300 for one that size is an awesome deal. 

[DAVEinMB]

12 minutes ago, Jeff985 said:

I’d have done the same thing. There’s no way I’d have been able to pass that up. I bought a triple with about a foot of trunk a couple months ago. It was marked for $300 but since it was fall/winter it was 70% off so I got it for $90. $300 for one that size is an awesome deal. 

That's a damn good deal. That's also roughly the size I've seen them for sale prior to today. I've never seen a large one in person, they're gorgeous palms. Now I just have to figure out where it's going and patiently wait for spring 

[Jeff985]

14 minutes ago, DAVEinMB said:

That's a damn good deal. That's also roughly the size I've seen them for sale prior to today. I've never seen a large one in person, they're gorgeous palms. Now I just have to figure out where it's going and patiently wait for spring 

There are several in my neighborhood with 10-15+ feet of trunk. They’re one of my favorites. Especially when they’re shade grown. Their fronds grow really long. 

[Brad Mondel]

At my grandmas house in Murrells Inlet I planted a L. chinensis and it defoliated each winter. It was planted in the wooded area and it was beautiful in summer when it grew back. 

[DAVEinMB]

1 hour ago, Brad Mondel said:

At my grandmas house in Murrells Inlet I planted a L. chinensis and it defoliated each winter. It was planted in the wooded area and it was beautiful in summer when it grew back. 

How big was it?

Im having trouble figuring out where to put this one. Im running out of protected spots, especially ones with shade

[RJ]

20 minutes ago, DAVEinMB said:

How big was it?

Im having trouble figuring out where to put this one. Im running out of protected spots, especially ones with shade

I'll come get it 

[OC2Texaspalmlvr]

22 minutes ago, DAVEinMB said:

How big was it?

Im having trouble figuring out where to put this one. Im running out of protected spots, especially ones with shade

I'm thinking a protected spot with morning sun would be a better place for it

[DAVEinMB]

6 hours ago, OC2Texaspalmlvr said:

I'm thinking a protected spot with morning sun would be a better place for it

Unfortunately I think it's going to have to be planted in a full sun location. My front yard gets sun early on but it's north facing. I'll post some pics of potential spots this week sometime. I'm picking the tree up on Tuesday. 

[Brad Mondel]

It was a small 5 gallon.

[DAVEinMB]

10 hours ago, Brad Mondel said:

It was a small 5 gallon.

Gotcha. Im wondering if the size of this one will help with defoliation at all. Guy I spoke to on the lot said these handle cold better than washies. Guess we'll see. 

[Fusca]

I think the size will help once it's established.  They are incredibly bud-hardy but can show leaf damage in the mid 20's.

[DAVEinMB]

Welp, it's in the ground. 

I may have put it a tad too close to the washingtonia but with how fast they grow its crown should be over the livistona in no time. Still have to clean up the area around it and whatnot but here you go. I'll get some better pics tomor. 

P.s. that sucker was HEAVY

 

[Fusca]

Looks good - I did something similar planting a Phoenix silvestris just 5 feet from a Washingtonia due to lack of space.  I figured that I could just take out the washie if it doesn't look good.

[DAVEinMB]

36 minutes ago, Fusca said:

Looks good - I did something similar planting a Phoenix silvestris just 5 feet from a Washingtonia due to lack of space.  I figured that I could just take out the washie if it doesn't look good.

Thanks man, I wanted to keep it fairly close to keep real estate open. When I dug the hole I just kept creeping closer towards the washie until I started seeing its roots then stopped. Once we dropped it in the hole I immediately started thinking it may have been too close but there was no moving it at that point haha. If it gets really crowded I'll prolly just trim up the fronds that are in the way until it's tall enough to not be a problem. 

How long ago did you plant yours? Are they getting along?

[Fusca]

So far so good but they are both still fairly small and only about 4 feet total height each.  The washie was planted in 2017 and the Phoenix in 2018.  My only concern is having the Phoenix getting shaded for a while when the washie outgrows it.  The washie has more filifera traits so it may not outgrow it as quickly.  Your new Livistona won't mind part shade anyway so no worries there.

[jimmyt]

@DAVEinMB how did you get that beast out of the truck bed?  Manually or Mechanically?   Excellent purchase BTW!

jimmyt

[Chester B]

With the truck for scale it really shows how big that thing was. The only big palm I planted was with the help of a tractor. Great job. 

[NOT A TA]

Looks good! AND much bigger in the yard than it looked in the nursery pic!

[Chester B]

Trachycarpus typically run $150/trunk foot here for comparison. They grow moderately quick here. 
 

You got a great deal. 

Edited February 5, 2020 by Chester B

[DAVEinMB]

@jimmyt @Chester B @NOT A TA

My whole body is paying the price right now lemme tell ya haha.

It was a 2 man operation of my buddy and I - mostly manual with a bit of mechanical help from the pickup. The nursery laid the tree down rootball against the back of the cab (picture attached). Once we got it back to my place we could not for the life of us get it to budge. So we backed the truck up to the woods, tied a rope around a tree, and pulled the rootball far enough away from the cab to where we could stand it up. From there we backed the truck up against the retaining wall and physically rolled the tree out. I manually planted all the trachies at my place, some of which are 15-16' tall, and this livistona has all of them beat. I would not recommend it to anyone haha. 

My biggest concern with the whole operation is the beating the rootball took. It'll prolly be fine but I guess we'll see. 

[Chester B]

I’m kinda glad I’m not your friend. I rather live your exploits vicariously. 

[DAVEinMB]

1 hour ago, Chester B said:

I’m kinda glad I’m not your friend. I rather live your exploits vicariously. 

Sh*t gets tough at times 

[DAVEinMB]

Well David strikes again. 

I stared at the tree for awhile when I got home last night and decided it had to be moved.  What's a few more hernias right?

Pics to follow. 

[DAVEinMB]

Alrighty, move is complete. Both crowns now have adequate room. There's still a bit of overlap but they're touching fingertips rather than interlocking arms. 

[RJ]

Looks good, hopefully you don't get too much wind tonight. We are supposed to get hit pretty hard with winds later this afternoon and tonight. They sent my kids home from school early. 

 

[DAVEinMB]

1 minute ago, RJ said:

Looks good, hopefully you don't get too much wind tonight. We are supposed to get hit pretty hard with winds later this afternoon and tonight. They sent my kids home from school early. 

 

Man I was just thinking I got it secured just in time. It's getting rough out here. It feels solid but it looks like it's about to get tested. 

[RJ]

2 minutes ago, DAVEinMB said:

Man I was just thinking I got it secured just in time. It's getting rough out here. It feels solid but it looks like it's about to get tested. 

Anyway you can make some stakes out of 2x4's much like they do with new sabal plantings? It's windy here but nothing too drastic currently just wind mixing down. Lots of wind sheer in the atmosphere with a good 65mph 850mb jet overhead. Could get nasty later 

[DAVEinMB]

8 minutes ago, RJ said:

Anyway you can make some stakes out of 2x4's much like they do with new sabal plantings? It's windy here but nothing too drastic currently just wind mixing down. Lots of wind sheer in the atmosphere with a good 65mph 850mb jet overhead. Could get nasty later 

Unfortunately I'm on night shift for the next 2 weeks and ran out of time before having to leave. Fingers crossed it's standing when I get home. Really don't want to mess with it again haha

[Jcalvin]

Do your palms defoliate during winter, or do you protect them some how?

[mdsonofthesouth]

On 2/2/2020 at 11:56 AM, Brad Mondel said:

At my grandmas house in Murrells Inlet I planted a L. chinensis and it defoliated each winter. It was planted in the wooded area and it was beautiful in summer when it grew back. 

I did division chinensis here in Maryland and it was essentially a perennial with 8 to 10in of hardy trunk. Sad thing was they took a little while to start looking solid and had such a short window of looking good. But they were pretty hardy for me at mid to high teens before burning the fronds and 15 or bellow was a nearly guaranteed bronzing. Love the weeping tips too!

[DAVEinMB]

1 hour ago, Jcalvin said:

Do your palms defoliate during winter, or do you protect them some how?

This is the first winter for my tender palms and it hasn't really been a winter so I haven't had to do much. We had a few dips into the 20s but the duration was short. I wrapped the Sylvester and a couple of the mules in burlap and Christmas lights. All the mules, the washingtonia, and the Sylvester got a daconil drench in the crown prior to the cold event. I made sure to apply during a sunny day to help dry it out quicker.  I imagine the Sylvester is going to be the most difficult to keep alive long term. I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to protect it yet, but an integrated pergola is one idea. It's up in a fairly tall planter which helps it get sun early however it's entirely exposed to wind. I started this venture knowing I may lose a palm or two (hopefully not more). But uncertainty is part of the fun, right? 

[DAVEinMB]

Well we had a pretty good frost this morning so this guy is now starting to show signs of shock - likely transplant along w the frost. The 2 fronds that are pointing downward were upright this morning. I don't have any knowledge of livistona, should I do anything special or just let it be. 

[Jeff985]

I’d just let it be. Wait for them to turn completely brown then cut them off. 

[PalmatierMeg]

Agree. Those two leaves appear to be the oldest. I don't know how cold you got but L. chinensis can take into the 20s.