New to Palmtalk and palms in general. Parrish, FL. Need help with planting a sylvestris or possibly beccariophoenix alfredii.

[Fbordon]

It’s been a while since my last update. They’ve recovered well, practically doubling in size after breaking through the liner in my pond and gaining 24/7 access to water. They’ve had their ups and downs since I put them in, but they were finally looking amazing—until Milton happened.

[Fbordon]

So, I’m curious if you guys think they’ll bounce back or survive. The hurricane took almost all of their fronds, and now they’re left with only a few new ones growing out. With winter coming, I’m concerned that if they’re still recovering from the hurricane, the cold might be too much for them. Do you think it’s worth trying to save them, or will winter be the final straw even if they survive for now?

Before the storm hit, I was already contemplating transplanting them to the backyard because I planted them too close to the house, and one ended up  breaking the liner in water feature. My plan was to transplant one to the back, redo the front, and repair the pond. But now, with the hurricane damage, things have changed. I’m wondering if this is a good time to transplant, given the situation. If they’re going to die, they’re going to die—but would transplanting now finish them off? Or do you think, considering winter is right around the corner and they’re already struggling, there’s no chance they’ll survive, and I might as well bring them down? I’m not sure what to do at this point—any advice would be appreciated!

[Merlyn]

@Fbordon my first thought on seeing the planting locations was, "Ooooo that's too close to the roof."  After having queen palm fronds whack the gravel off my shingles and tear up the soffit aluminum, I am in the process of moving (or just cutting down) everything within expected frond distance of the house.  For that reason I would definitely move them.  However, my gut feel is that they would survive transplant if you did it now, but might not survive the winter.  I'd guess they would regrow several new fronds by winter (if you leave them) and probably would survive a typical winter.  Then maybe move them in March?

[Fbordon]

The pictures are a bit deceiving—they’re actually at least 15 feet from the house, so there’s no issue with the roof. But they’re still too close for what I’m trying to accomplish. Unfortunately, I can’t wait until March to move them. If I move them now, do you think they’d go into shock and it would slow down their healing process too much before they can put on some growth ahead of winter?

[sonoranfans]

MY royals were some of my hardest hit palms from MIlton, we had 105-110 mph max winds.  ROyals will be fine but it may take a couple years to recover.  They lose their leaves in self defense.  I found taller palms got hit harder, regardless of species,  I would not move them, very tough to stake at that size, and they will have a setback.  I am likely west of you very near 75/275 junction, I can see 75 when I leave the neighborhood about 1/4 mile to the west.

[Merlyn]

@Fbordon gotcha, it looked from some photos like they were overhanging the roof by a lot.  If you *must* move (or remove) them before winter, then I suppose it doesn't really matter when you do it. 

1. If you wait a month they might grow a new leaf or two.  But then there's less time to re-root before winter hits, and maybe less chance of survival to spring.
2. If you transplant now then they won't have much in the way of greenery to support new root growth...BUT they will have ~2 months before the first early December cold front.  If they get defoliated by cold in December or January then they'll have more roots to hopefully regrow.
3. You could just cut them down and buy new smaller Royals next spring to plant in the back yard. 

To be honest, I am not sure how to guess which is the best, or which of option 1 or 2 has the best chance of survival.  My current guess is that option 2 or 3 might be the best.  I also have no idea how much it costs to transplant three big Royals vs buying 3 new ones in the spring.