Curious about coconuts

[Brad52]

I see lots of people wanting to zone push coconut palms and I'm curious if the allure is that they are thought to be particularly attractive or is it the challenge of pushing them?  I see a fair amount of variety in appearance in them here, one of mine has a nice appearance but I don't think I could protect it from cold very easily.

 

[Breadfruit Bill]

Mostly the challenge of zone pushing I'd assume...  Glad I don't have to worry about it 

I recall seeing some post years ago about a guy in Missouri who wanted coconuts and other tropicals so bad he would construct a temporary greenhouse over most of his collection each winter and use heater to get through winter.  Spring rolls around he'd take it all down and have a jungle in Southern Missouri (which oddly enough was a tropical jungle tens of thousands of years ago judging by fossil remnants)

[PalmatierMeg]

People love them, esp. people in non-tropical areas, because they are the ultimate essence of all things tropical and bring to mind relaxing in hammocks on a tropical isle beside a turquoise blue sea. You live in HI and I in SWFL and shrug because we see coconuts all around and can visit the sea at a moment's notice so don't get the point of the obsession. Some people want to pull off what pundits say is impossible: keeping this ultimate tropical palm alive where they live. Other people believe them to be the most beautiful and fascinating palm in the world bar none.

Myself, I would love to grow Lepidorrhachis mooreana (if I could find one and if my sweltering climate didn't kill it the first day). I once daydreamed that if I had a billion $ or two, I would build a huge air-conditioned conservatory where I could grow my impossible dream palm along with its neighbor Hedyscepe and Ceroxylon, Juania, Dictyocaryum....

[Brad52]

I sure understand zone pushing, I trialed >150 varieties of bamboo in zone 5b/6a Indiana.  In CA I grew the mountain coconut as I thought that would be a hoot to try and and have some edibles nuts albeit tiny ones.

 

I just see folks here with palms that I find much more attractive and less cold intolerant than coconuts but I was curious if they were thought of as superior in appearance.  Where I live I see lots of triangle palms and to me they are all unattractive so I don't covet one, might be too wet here.  Similar on the sealing wax, although I did get one, most of them I see have sooty mold and look unkempt and I wonder if they are often planted and not well tended.

Most of the palm photos people post here are quite stunning and more attractive than they average coconut to my eyes.

Edited July 12, 2021 by Brad52

[Brad52]

1 hour ago, www.dadluvsu.com said:

Mostly the challenge of zone pushing I'd assume...  Glad I don't have to worry about it 

I recall seeing some post years ago about a guy in Missouri who wanted coconuts and other tropicals so bad he would construct a temporary greenhouse over most of his collection each winter and use heater to get through winter.  Spring rolls around he'd take it all down and have a jungle in Southern Missouri (which oddly enough was a tropical jungle tens of thousands of years ago judging by fossil remnants)

I knew of a person in Montana who did something similar to grow bamboo there, as I recall he installed a radiant heat system in gravel to heat his.

[GottmitAlex]

A coconut looks very nice. Between a "Kentia" and an "Alfie"