Unusual Places you Believe palm trees could grow

[Aceraceae]

On 5/31/2020 at 4:11 AM, Palmfarmer said:

On 5/31/2020 at 2:50 PM, oasis371 said:

Closer to home, from Cape Cod down to south, coastal Connecticut, Long Island, Metro NYC, down the Jersey Shore to Cape May, NJ, Delaware, and coastal points south, gradually expanding westward as one proceeds south (basically, minimum zone 6B/7A climates).

 

A Washington Post article had a pretty simple way of putting this at least for the East Coast US, and it was that palms are basically found only where the mean temp in the coldest month is above freezing. 

[SeanK]

13 hours ago, Aceraceae said:

A Washington Post article had a pretty simple way of putting this at least for the East Coast US, and it was that palms are basically found only where the mean temp in the coldest month is above freezing. 

Not Surprised. Palms not native to areas where the ground freezes. The roots are herbaceous, not woody.

[Aceraceae]

On 12/23/2020 at 12:45 AM, SailorBold said:

Anyhow..as far as a different location.. I suppose it would be interesting to see palms in Santa Fe.. at an elevation of over 7200' !!

Santa Fe and maybe even the mildest parts of Colorado could grow a needle palm or sabal minor. 

[Las Palmas Norte]

On 5/31/2020 at 1:11 AM, Palmfarmer said:

...Sable Island, Canada. 

Should at least be able to grow some Sabal on Sable Island. 

[Aceraceae]

On 7/27/2022 at 10:06 PM, Aceraceae said:

Ketchikan might be a little too wet considering it does freeze a lot more than north western europe and have ice and snow. 

Faroe islands are a bit too cold and windy.

Falkland islands are cold for only 51 latitude compared to north Atlantic current locations. Annual average temp is below 7c 45 f. At least they are much drier than southern Alaska. 

If sable island could grow one then Nantucket should be teeming with them.

The northern British isles should be able to support a windmill palm. The cities are Stornoway, Kirkwall, and Lerwick, at 58, 59, and 60 degrees north latitude. Northern Scotland. Slightly farther north than SW Norway (Stavanger), where the northernmost palm island subtropical botanical garden is. 

Lerwick is over 5 c in the winter and over 10 c in the summer. It doesn't get a ton of rain and little snow. It it is windy, but not as bad as the faroe islands. 

Look at this summer forecast and large broadleaf trees. Scotland was deforested but some canopy is returning, and all the northern and western isles have a patch of trees in town. 

Edited July 29, 2022 by Aceraceae

[Foxpalms]

On 7/29/2022 at 5:06 PM, Aceraceae said:

The northern British isles should be able to support a windmill palm. The cities are Stornoway, Kirkwall, and Lerwick, at 58, 59, and 60 degrees north latitude. Northern Scotland. Slightly farther north than SW Norway (Stavanger), where the northernmost palm island subtropical botanical garden is. 

Lerwick is over 5 c in the winter and over 10 c in the summer. It doesn't get a ton of rain and little snow. It it is windy, but not as bad as the faroe islands. 

Look at this summer forecast and large broadleaf trees. Scotland was deforested but some canopy is returning, and all the northern and western isles have a patch of trees in town. 

They probably have palms growing there but I imagine you would be very limited to what you can grow, pretty miserable climate with those summer temperatures! Look at the forecast difference of Lerwick Vs London which is 550 miles further south.

[Aceraceae]

Here's at @Ivorhooper windmill palm at 56.6 degrees north in Western Scotland. 

1 hour ago, Foxpalms said:

They probably have palms growing there but I imagine you would be very limited to what you can grow, pretty miserable climate with those summer temperatures! Look at the forecast difference of Lerwick Vs London which is 550 miles further south

At the very least Western Scotland has some palms including this one at near 57° north, but I don't think the northern isles do. Day temps of 15 (60F) and overnights above 10 (50F) should allow windmill to grow a little bit and the winters rarely go below -5 (low 20s). The record is about negative 10 or between 15 and 20 f. 

Shetland at 60° North is a cold zone 9. Not zone 8 as shown on the homemade British and Europe hardiness zone maps. 

https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?/topic/56253-northmost-cultivation/&do=findComment&comment=862878

Edited August 2, 2022 by Aceraceae

[Foxpalms]

@Aceraceaeyes the British hardiness maps are not the most accurate and need to be updated. Alot still show London even central London as zone 9a, I don't think bougainvillea, jacarandas,kentias, archontophoenix cunninghamiana and Norfolk Island pines would survive in central London all unprotected if it was a zone 9a more like a high zone 9b with very small areas being a zone 10a and the majority of the outskirts a high end of zone 9a with some being on the lower end of 9a as you leave the urban heat island. There are lots of cordylines growing around the coast of Scotland.

[Josh76]

21 hours ago, Foxpalms said:

@Aceraceaeyes the British hardiness maps are not the most accurate and need to be updated. Alot still show London even central London as zone 9a, I don't think bougainvillea, jacarandas,kentias, archontophoenix cunninghamiana and Norfolk Island pines would survive in central London all unprotected if it was a zone 9a more like a high zone 9b with very small areas being a zone 10a and the majority of the outskirts a high end of zone 9a with some being on the lower end of 9a as you leave the urban heat island. There are lots of cordylines growing around the coast of Scotland.

There are unprotected Bougainvillea and Norfolk Island Pine in Fulham, West London!

[Foxpalms]

4 minutes ago, Josh76 said:

There are unprotected Bougainvillea and Norfolk Island Pine in Fulham, West London!

I know there's no way it's not atleast a zone 9b in Fulham but the UK hardiness maps are not updated in my opinion so alot still show all of London as zone 9a it isn't. Norfolk Island pines are a solid 9b/10a plant

Edited August 3, 2022 by Foxpalms

[Josh76]

3 minutes ago, Foxpalms said:

I know there's no way it's not atleast a zone 9b in Fulham but the UK hardiness maps are not updated in my opinion so alot still show all of London as zone 9a it isn't. Norfolk Island pines are a solid 9b/10a plant

https://goo.gl/maps/LHxgbvL5abUR747Q9

Edited August 3, 2022 by Josh76

[Josh76]

5 minutes ago, Foxpalms said:

I know there's no way it's not atleast a zone 9b in Fulham but the UK hardiness maps are not updated in my opinion so alot still show all of London as zone 9a it isn't. Norfolk Island pines are a solid 9b/10a plant

Here's a Bougainvillea

https://goo.gl/maps/XBVpmf2HQBwSA11z9

[tarnado]

Oh BTW @Palmfarmer and @Aceraceae I just was puttering around in google maps; there is a photo taken from Stanley, Falkland Islands, in front of Government House - there are two trunking palms. A chilly, unwarm, damp place with average minimum temps below freezing four months out of the year (not *too far* below freezing, but damp and chilly). 

[Geoff58]

Those are not actually palm trees. They are cordyline australis, which do resemble palm trees, but they can branch out. They are native to New Zealand and varieties of them grow well in cold maritime/oceanic climates like coastal Scotland. 

[Than]

Russia! Apparently, there are many palms on the Black Sea coast of Russia, especially in and around Sochi. 

[Las Palmas Norte]

13 hours ago, tarnado said:

... Falkland Islands, in front of Government House - there are two trunking palms. ...

Terrible photo quality in those pics. No wonder you missed the ID's.

[tarnado]

On 1/14/2026 at 9:00 AM, Las Palmas Norte said:

Terrible photo quality in those pics. No wonder you missed the ID's.

 

On 1/13/2026 at 7:49 PM, Geoff58 said:

. They are cordyline australis, which do resemble palm trees, but they can branch out.

Y'all are 100% correct. I had been looking at loads of pictures of Cordyline in Argentina, and Chile, and around. I wasn't getting confused until this *very low quality* photo popped up. They aren't branching, either - another giveaway. 

I reached out to the Falkland Islands government to ask for a positive ID, since the plants are growing in front of the seat of the government. I heard back this morning from the Falkland Islands Ministry of Agriculture who stated that these are, indeed, Cordyline spp. 

Naturally, I followed up with a question as to whether there are any true palms growing in the Falklands... I will let you all know if I hear back!

[Palmfarmer]

On 1/19/2026 at 4:01 PM, tarnado said:

 

Y'all are 100% correct. I had been looking at loads of pictures of Cordyline in Argentina, and Chile, and around. I wasn't getting confused until this *very low quality* photo popped up. They aren't branching, either - another giveaway. 

I reached out to the Falkland Islands government to ask for a positive ID, since the plants are growing in front of the seat of the government. I heard back this morning from the Falkland Islands Ministry of Agriculture who stated that these are, indeed, Cordyline spp. 

Naturally, I followed up with a question as to whether there are any true palms growing in the Falklands... I will let you all know if I hear back!

cool, always wondered if the Falklands could have palms

[tarnado]

3 hours ago, Palmfarmer said:

cool, always wondered if the Falklands could have palms

I replied to the Falklands Ministry of Agriculture, asking if any palms were known in the Falklands. Should I send them some Trachycarpus fortunei seeds

[Palmfarmer]

On 1/26/2026 at 12:56 PM, tarnado said:

I replied to the Falklands Ministry of Agriculture, asking if any palms were known in the Falklands. Should I send them some Trachycarpus fortunei seeds

Yes that would be awesome. If cordyline australis grows there Trachys should grow unless the wind is perhaps very strong. Trachys are sensitive to strong winds right? 

[tarnado]

2 hours ago, Palmfarmer said:

Trachys are sensitive to strong winds right

Hrmmmm dunno. We get a lot of strong winds here, but they come with storms, usually. The Cordylines in the Falklands were protected by the structure, too. I think it would be a great place for them to grow!

[IrishPalm22]

Not an extreme northern point, but I want to try more cocoid hybrids, Ceroxylon, Juania, Parajubaea and oceanic 9b/10a palms in Ireland. Very favourable microclimate, warmer than Earlscliffe in Howth (has a Wunderground station, famous massive Juania palm garden) by a half zone, past two years in Tresco look like zone 10b or 11, and Menton, France looks like 11 based on Wundergound information (zone 11 in France), parts of Atlantic fringe Norway appear zone 9. The microclimate in littoral southwest Ireland is warmer than Biarritz and San Sebastián (in minima) and Lugano and Locarno but the gales are awful; no heat (OK for some species, but gales are not). The Gulf Stream collapsing would truly be catastrophic for plant (and human) life in Atlantic Europe.

 

Extreme Minima

West Cork Littoral Garden

2025: -0.61 C / 30.9 F / Hardiness Zone 10a (10 January)

2026: -1.11 C / 30.0 F / Hardiness Zone 10a (14 February)

Cork City

2025: -4.00 C / 24.8 F / Hardiness Zone 9a (10 January)

2026: -3.51 C / 25.5 F / Hardiness Zone 9b (5 January)

 

 

[ChicagoPalmsss]

I feel like souther Chicago or just in general southern Illinois should have more palms and zone pusher down there due to the fact that our winters up in the Midwest just haven’t been really challenging in the last 5 years. The trend doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon tho. I just had one windmill survive our winter in something other than a foam board box. Super green too!