Texas Tough Plants Nursery & Mail Order.

[Collectorpalms]

16 minutes ago, N8ALLRIGHT said:

Texas A&M soil testing laboratory.

Never used it but a site I frequent has many users that do.  

Thanks I should have guessed there was one here but I never heard of it or had seen the building. 

Edited April 20, 2021 by Collectorpalms

[Dewberry]

Arbutus unedo, aka Strawberry Tree. I think it should do well in most of Texas. It's an amazing tree (ornamental and edible berries that ripen over a 12 month period, nice flowers, beautiful smooth red bark, broadleaf evergreen leaves). But I think it takes its time growing from seed or cutting to a size big enough to sell. That's probably why it's hard to find, even though I know it grows well in at least some parts of the state. Gorgeous in 4 different ways even if it didn't have a cool Mediterranean look.

You could also graft the finicky Texas Madrone onto Arbutus unedo rootstock. 

 

"Shadow Dancer" climbing rose thrived in Lubbock, TX, which is impressive given the heat, aridity, and alkaline, salty, clay soil. I can't find it now except at one mail order nursery (Rogue Valley Roses). And it's really beautiful and smells like raspberries. 

Cape Mallow (Anisodontea Capensis). It can bloom almost year-round.

Turk's Cap is a tough little booger. Bloomed into December for me near Austin.

Shrubby bindweed. Much more beautiful than it sounds (Convolvulus cneorum). Silvery, low shrub covered in white morning glory-like blossoms for a long time. Also Convolvulus sabatius. 

Lantern Tree (Crinodendron Hookerium). Trees don't get much cooler looking than that! Especially if you grew the red-lanterned cultivars instead of the pink ones.

Geum seems to be underused. 

Hardy hibiscus. Why on earth are the nurseries in greater Austin selling TROPICAL hibiscus instead of hardy hibiscus? Hardy hibiscus is every bit as dramatic and tropical looking and it comes back every year!

Blue Potato Bush (Lycianthes rantonetti) blooms spring to early fall and looks amazing, especially as a standard.

Alyogyne huegelli (Blue Hibiscus). Beautiful plant, flowers forever. The only nursery in my area I can find selling it sells it in big, like 10 gallon, containers for more than $50. 

Ceanothus x delileanus 'Gloire de Versailles.' It's supposed to be happy in a variety of soils and temperatures, and it looks like a lilac bush - that blooms spring through fall. 

Abutilon used to be really popular as a house plant, and some varieties should be hardy enough for most of Texas. Blooms most of the year.

Coral vine (Antigonon leptopus) is lovely. I've seen it recommended, but rarely (if ever) available locally.

Everywhere sells Star Jasmine, which isn't actually jasmine, but hardly anyone sells Poet's Jasmine/Common Jasmine (Jasminum officinale), which is. And it doesn't require tropical weather or anything. 

You could sell Texas dewberries if you want to sell edibles. Also, some carefully selected pomegranate cultivars with soft seeds, good taste, and good cold hardiness.

Edited April 20, 2021 by Dewberry

[PricklyPearSATC]

Yum! Dewberries!

You can buy coral vine at most independent nurseries in San Antonio. 
I used to own a blue potato bush.  I have not seen them for sale lately.
I saw several hardy hibiscus varieties at the local nursery on Friday

Another good one would be the real red hamelia patens (fire bush)..Nowadays, all they sell is that dull orange-yellow one...

[JohnAndSancho]

2 hours ago, Collectorpalms said:

what HEB has trademarked is the design on the packages, not the slogan alone.

AS best as I can tell from what I researched just now. 

Good deal. Not trying to crap on your efforts, but I don't want to see a bunch of lawyers crap on your efforts. 

[Chester B]

12 hours ago, Dewberry said:

Arbutus unedo, aka Strawberry Tree. I think it should do well in most of Texas. It's an amazing tree (ornamental and edible berries that ripen over a 12 month period, nice flowers, beautiful smooth red bark, broadleaf evergreen leaves). But I think it takes its time growing from seed or cutting to a size big enough to sell. That's probably why it's hard to find, even though I know it grows well in at least some parts of the state. Gorgeous in 4 different ways even if it didn't have a cool Mediterranean look.

These are very common here, and often used in commercial plantings.  I have 7 alone in my landscaping so I don't think they are too slow growing to be commercially viable.

 

I would suggest as many Sabal species as you can produce

Eucalyptus - I got to think these would do well in Texas

If Mediterranean plants do well in Texas, I would also put focus on these too.  You could look at flowering shrubs like Cistus, Ceanothus and Halimimium.

I would also look at plants from Australia like Callistemon and Grevillea.

[Dewberry]

Def]]]]]

57 minutes ago, Chester B said:

These are very common here, and often used in commercial plantings.  I have 7 alone in my landscaping so I don't think they are too slow growing to be commercially viable.

 

I would suggest as many Sabal species as you can produce

Eucalyptus - I got to think these would do well in Texas

If Mediterranean plants do well in Texas, I would also put focus on these too.  You could look at flowering shrubs like Cistus, Ceanothus and Halimimium.

I would also look at plants from Australia like Callistemon and Grevillea.

I agree - Mediterranean and Australian plants. Also, some South African plants are really cool and some of them would probably do well. 

And I don't think a Texas Tough Plants nursery would be complete without mesquite trees.  

California Poppies seem to hit it out of the park - perennial poppy-mimic that blooms spring through fall and is drought tolerant. There are red, yellow, and cream cultivars so you aren't stuck with the orange kind.

Calliandra "Sierra Star" supposedly blooms all year, and it somehow manages to look like a stereotypical Texas native plant, Mediterranean plant, desert plant, and tropical plant all at once. That or a similar Calliandra would be great. Any with some cold-hardiness. 

Again an edible: grapevines resistant to Pierce's disease (so cultivars from US native grape species, such as Concord or Niagara). And frankly, seedless table grapes like the two I mentioned would probably sell better than wine grapes. Everyone eats grapes. Only a few people MAKE wine. Texas native grape species and their hybrids are usually wine grapes, I think, but the US has more grape species, and there may be some Texas hybrids that work as table grapes.

In my humble and non-expert opinion, you should sell only grapevines that are Pierce's disease resistant, generally Texas tough grape varieties for fresh eating. If you state upfront that all your grapes are tough, self-fertile (almost all grapes are), and make good off-the-vine snacking,  your customers would just have to pick their favorites.  Whereas if you make buying a grape a research project for your customer (disease tolerance, wine vs. jelly vs. table, etc.) they'll be less likely to buy.

Okay. That was WAY too much about grapes.

Edited April 20, 2021 by Dewberry

[Fusca]

@Dewberry, welcome to PalmTalk!  I'm interested to know what palms/plants you have growing.  Are you in zone 8a or 8b?

[jimmyt]

@Collectorpalms  like your idea!  Suggest shippable size plants as well.  Texas is a large state and though you are near the center Some world be deterred driving several hours to the nursery.  

[Dewberry]

@Fusca I'm in zone 8b. 

At the moment I'm just growing one Trachycarpus fortunei, but I'd like to plant at least one Sabal minor and maybe some trunk palms. 

I have a variety of fruit trees, a couple grapevines, a couple roses, some perennials (calliandra, plumbago, turk's cap, russian sage, catmint, etc.) and a baby prickly pear cactus. I had a bottlebrush tree, but it seems to have died in the winter storm. I have a common jasmine (finally! it was hard to find), a blue passionflower vine, and some honeysuckles. I'd like to get some more interesting ornamentals - goldenball leadtree, Chilean lantern tree, etc. I'd also like to get some agaves and a cactus.

I moved into a new house last fall, and I've planted a lot but I have a lot of space to plant more. 

What about you? What are you growing? 

[Dewberry]

@Collectorpalms I think every perennial I suggested except for hardy hibiscus can bloom for five months or more - a lot more in some cases. 

[Fusca]

3 minutes ago, Dewberry said:

I had a bottlebrush tree, but it seems to have died in the winter storm.

Same here - one of my favorite non-palms and it hasn't come back (yet).  Also lost a tangelo, sunquat and kumquat but seed-grown calamondin and Meyer's lemon are coming back from the roots.  Loquat survived as did a brown turkey fig.  Interestingly I had a few surprise unprotected survivors:  giant bird of paradise, tropical hibiscus, and a purple bougainvillea.  Texas olive and other perennials survived also.

Current surviving palms in the yard are Jubaea chilensis, Sabal minor, Sabal guatemalensis, Sabal uresana, Sabal 'Riverside', Chamaerops humilis (green and blue), Chamaedorea radicalis, Chamaedorea microspadix, Butia odorata, Butia x Jubaea F2, Parajubaea sunkha (with protection), Livistona chinensis, Livistona saribus (green petiole form with protection), Copernicia alba (with protection), Syagrus romanzoffiana (with protection), Butia x Syagrus, Bismarckia nobilis (with protection), Brahea armata, Brahea clara (with protection), and Hyphaene coriacea (with protection).  Previously growing without issue but now dead were Brahea calcarea, Arenga engleri, Phoenix sylvestris hybrid, Phoenix theophrasti, Phoenix canariensis, Livistona nitida, Livistona decora, Washingtonia filibusta, Rhapis excelsa and Copernicia prunifera.

[Collectorpalms]

it is interesting listening to everyone’s thoughts. The scope of plants is daunting... 

For reference Austin is a nursery Mecca. I was up to 12 various nurseries per its 1.25 million residents. ( excluding big box stores) So that is roughly 1 per 100,000 people. Compare that to our county, 0–1 per 250,000. 
So I do not doubt that a Private nursery is possible here. In fact it would have to be a very large nursery to covet what eBay tone would want to keep it going, because everyone had a wide list of plants they are interested in. Compare that to Austin, that has a few specialty nurseries for different people. whew! 

[amh]

23 minutes ago, Fusca said:

Same here - one of my favorite non-palms and it hasn't come back (yet).  Also lost a tangelo, sunquat and kumquat but seed-grown calamondin and Meyer's lemon are coming back from the roots.  Loquat survived as did a brown turkey fig.  Interestingly I had a few surprise unprotected survivors:  giant bird of paradise, tropical hibiscus, and a purple bougainvillea.  Texas olive and other perennials survived also.

Current surviving palms in the yard are Jubaea chilensis, Sabal minor, Sabal guatemalensis, Sabal uresana, Sabal 'Riverside', Chamaerops humilis (green and blue), Chamaedorea radicalis, Chamaedorea microspadix, Butia odorata, Butia x Jubaea F2, Parajubaea sunkha (with protection), Livistona chinensis, Livistona saribus (green petiole form with protection), Copernicia alba (with protection), Syagrus romanzoffiana (with protection), Butia x Syagrus, Bismarckia nobilis (with protection), Brahea armata, Brahea clara (with protection), and Hyphaene coriacea (with protection).  Previously growing without issue but now dead were Brahea calcarea, Arenga engleri, Phoenix sylvestris hybrid, Phoenix theophrasti, Phoenix canariensis, Livistona nitida, Livistona decora, Washingtonia filibusta, Rhapis excelsa and Copernicia prunifera.

So, is the Phoenix theophrasti dead,dead or likely dead?

Edited April 20, 2021 by amh

[Collectorpalms]

51 minutes ago, Collectorpalms said:

it is interesting listening to everyone’s thoughts. The scope of plants is daunting... 

For reference Austin is a nursery Mecca. I was up to 12 various nurseries per its 1.25 million residents. ( excluding big box stores) So that is roughly 1 per 100,000 people. Compare that to our county, 0–1 per 250,000. 
So I do not doubt that a Private nursery is possible here. In fact it would have to be a very large nursery to covet what eBay tone would want to keep it going, because everyone had a wide list of plants they are interested in. Compare that to Austin, that has a few specialty nurseries for different people. whew! 

Sorry, I didn’t finish my thoughts or fix the autocorrect! Can’t figure why it publishes when I hit the back button. 

[Collectorpalms]

1 hour ago, amh said:

So, is the Phoenix theophrasti dead,dead or likely dead?

My Mature Phoenix Theophrasti was not moving when I last checked with a ladder. I defoliated it, waited a week no movement, then I trunk cut it, then no movement for another week then haven’t checked in over a week after feeling it was dead after seeing about a foot of growth on my CIDP a few feet away.

I was hoping it needed some extended extra hot weather, hasn’t happened here yet.

i did get it at jungle music, it never clustered at base. So was it really a Theo? 
 

I had a true date palm nearby at one time, it clustered terrible and I hated it. It actually died on me, eventually but not the cold. Only date I ever had die (Date Palm!) I think it got over crowded and shaded, then added humidity it got crown rot.

I Did have a heavy clustering Senegal Date Prior to Feb 2021. I am hoping that once I clear away the dead. It will resprout from the roots.

Edited April 20, 2021 by Collectorpalms

[amh]

6 hours ago, Collectorpalms said:

My Mature Phoenix Theophrasti was not moving when I last checked with a ladder. I defoliated it, waited a week no movement, then I trunk cut it, then no movement for another week then haven’t checked in over a week after feeling it was dead after seeing about a foot of growth on my CIDP a few feet away.

I was hoping it needed some extended extra hot weather, hasn’t happened here yet.

i did get it at jungle music, it never clustered at base. So was it really a Theo? 
 

I had a true date palm nearby at one time, it clustered terrible and I hated it. It actually died on me, eventually but not the cold. Only date I ever had die (Date Palm!) I think it got over crowded and shaded, then added humidity it got crown rot.

I Did have a heavy clustering Senegal Date Prior to Feb 2021. I am hoping that once I clear away the dead. It will resprout from the roots.

Looks like I need to remove P. theophrasti from my to grow list. What would you guess the survival rate of CIDP was for your area?

[Fusca]

18 hours ago, amh said:

So, is the Phoenix theophrasti dead,dead or likely dead?

Mine is dead, dead.  To cut past the soft mush took me down too far. 

[Swolte]

1 hour ago, Fusca said:

Mine is dead, dead.  To cut past the soft mush took me down too far. 

[amh]

On 4/20/2021 at 11:47 AM, Dewberry said:

Def]]]]]

I agree - Mediterranean and Australian plants. Also, some South African plants are really cool and some of them would probably do well. 

And I don't think a Texas Tough Plants nursery would be complete without mesquite trees.  

California Poppies seem to hit it out of the park - perennial poppy-mimic that blooms spring through fall and is drought tolerant. There are red, yellow, and cream cultivars so you aren't stuck with the orange kind.

Calliandra "Sierra Star" supposedly blooms all year, and it somehow manages to look like a stereotypical Texas native plant, Mediterranean plant, desert plant, and tropical plant all at once. That or a similar Calliandra would be great. Any with some cold-hardiness. 

Again an edible: grapevines resistant to Pierce's disease (so cultivars from US native grape species, such as Concord or Niagara). And frankly, seedless table grapes like the two I mentioned would probably sell better than wine grapes. Everyone eats grapes. Only a few people MAKE wine. Texas native grape species and their hybrids are usually wine grapes, I think, but the US has more grape species, and there may be some Texas hybrids that work as table grapes.

In my humble and non-expert opinion, you should sell only grapevines that are Pierce's disease resistant, generally Texas tough grape varieties for fresh eating. If you state upfront that all your grapes are tough, self-fertile (almost all grapes are), and make good off-the-vine snacking,  your customers would just have to pick their favorites.  Whereas if you make buying a grape a research project for your customer (disease tolerance, wine vs. jelly vs. table, etc.) they'll be less likely to buy.

Okay. That was WAY too much about grapes.

You might want to try champanel grapes, which are a hybrid of concord grape and a naturally occurring hybrid(Vitis × champinii) of Vitis mustangensis and Vitis rupestris. The champanel is a table grape that is hardy to Texas.

[Mr. Coconut Palm]

On 4/18/2021 at 11:19 PM, amh said:

The greenhouse really expands your options, you could grow a lot more species of palms or exotic tropicals. Basically the plants California and Florida take for granted, but that Texans are  SOL for local acquisition.

Like me selling Coconut Palms in Corpus Christi.  As of now, I think I am the only one in Texas regurlarly carrying them, yet there is increasing demand for them here, and lots of demand for them in the Rio Grande Valley!!!  I have said for years, that Rio Grande Valley nurseries are REALLY DROPPING THE BALL by not carrying them on a regular basis, since so many people down there want them!!!

John

[kinzyjr]

On 4/20/2021 at 5:16 PM, Collectorpalms said:

My Mature Phoenix Theophrasti was not moving when I last checked with a ladder. I defoliated it, waited a week no movement, then I trunk cut it, then no movement for another week then haven’t checked in over a week after feeling it was dead after seeing about a foot of growth on my CIDP a few feet away.

I was hoping it needed some extended extra hot weather, hasn’t happened here yet.

i did get it at jungle music, it never clustered at base. So was it really a Theo?

 

On 4/21/2021 at 10:50 AM, Fusca said:

Mine is dead, dead.  To cut past the soft mush took me down too far. 

If either of you would like a Phoenix theophrasti seedling, I have a few 2-leafers I could spare.

[amh]

6 hours ago, Mr. Coconut Palm said:

Like me selling Coconut Palms in Corpus Christi.  As of now, I think I am the only one in Texas regurlarly carrying them, yet there is increasing demand for them here, and lots of demand for them in the Rio Grande Valley!!!  I have said for years, that Rio Grande Valley nurseries are REALLY DROPPING THE BALL by not carrying them on a regular basis, since so many people down there want them!!!

John

I'm still itching to start a small cold hardy nursery in the San Antonio metro for this reason.

[Yvonne]

I have 2 very young, and I mean young seedling Mazuri Palms. If you are interested in these, please let me know. I have been able to find one source available in the USA, and they want $189 for about a foot to a foot and a half. Contact me, if you’re interested in raising these babies! Bonnie Crim     Bonniecrim1940@yahoo.com