Cycas guizhouensis in Myrtle Beach?

[Pee Dee Palms]

I know I've been making a lot of threads about how well certain plants would do in Myrtle Beach... This one is a little bit different. I want to try something that isn't a palm but looks like one here in Myrtle Beach. Yes, I know about the Cycas revoluta, they are just everywhere here. I realize that Cycas guizhouensis is cold hardy to 8b which "technically" means I could do it, but I know that isn't always the case. Since there isn't that much information about this Cycad, it is hard for me to get any information about its true climate, not just USDA hardiness zones. So does anyone know if it could live in this type of climate? If it can't, is there any other Cycads that could live here besides C. revoluta?

[Paradise Found]

Cycas taitungensis x guizhouensis look up this one, it is hardy to at least 8a, some say 7b. Mine went through 12F with very little damage, just around the edges of the leaves.  It's been so long I can't even remember who I got it from.  But I think I got it from P.D. They sell it from time to time. 

Edited September 25, 2021 by Paradise Found

[Chester B]

Cycas panzhihuaensis is hardier than revoluta if you can find one. Mine does fine here in 8b. 

[Turtlesteve]

Cycas panzihuaensis and taitungensis are 8A, but the former is much more leaf hardy.  guizhouensis and diannanensis are supposed to be cold hardy too, but I'm not sure exactly how they rank versus revoluta and the others.  From what I have heard, it's probable that guizhouensis would survive there.  

[mnorell]

Many Cycas are quite hardy to cold. One more unusual species that I had planted in Natchez and that came back year after year when temps dipped into the teens was C. petraea. But also C. panzhihuanensis, and I think guizhouensis and several others. It doesn't hurt to try them. Remember that, because cycads have stems that are extremely dense with starch (as opposed to water-filled cells), they are quite resistant to freezing damage. Of all the cycads I grew in Natchez (I think just a little warmer than Myrtle Beach), Ceratozamia latifolia (and its entire species complex) proved to be extraordinarily hardy; and, to me, rank with the most beautiful and tropical-looking cycads outside of the big chunky-leaved Zamias.

[Pee Dee Palms]

12 hours ago, mnorell said:

Many Cycas are quite hardy to cold. One more unusual species that I had planted in Natchez and that came back year after year when temps dipped into the teens was C. petraea. But also C. panzhihuanensis, and I think guizhouensis and several others. It doesn't hurt to try them. Remember that, because cycads have stems that are extremely dense with starch (as opposed to water-filled cells), they are quite resistant to freezing damage. Of all the cycads I grew in Natchez (I think just a little warmer than Myrtle Beach), Ceratozamia latifolia (and its entire species complex) proved to be extraordinarily hardy; and, to me, rank with the most beautiful and tropical-looking cycads outside of the big chunky-leaved Zamias.

Thanks for the suggestions! Do you know where to find Cycas petraea and guizhouensis for sale?

[mnorell]

I got mine from George at Cycads-n-Palms but he has passed away and I don't know if the business is still running. You can always just scout eBay and put a custom eBay search so you get notified when someone lists one. Or contact Joseph Barrett at North Texas Cold Hardy Palms (he is on this forum at @TexasColdHardyPalms); or Tom Broome at Cycad Jungle in Florida, if he doesn't have it I assume he will know who has; and there are a number of other online cycad dealers, you may just need to google your way around until you find it. I think Cycas petraea is a very nice plant, though mine was always slow-growing and stayed on the small side because I just ignored it, never watered it or fertilized it, and it was off-and-on outcompeted for light by surrounding vegetation. But it kept an even and happy countenance despite the neglect. It's worth noting, however, that I purposely planted it in such a situation, on a slope in well-drained soil, due to its natural habitat on vertical, rocky cliffs, and that dry/well-drained situation may have contributed to its perseverance through sopping wet rains and long, wet freezes.

[Pee Dee Palms]

1 hour ago, mnorell said:

I got mine from George at Cycads-n-Palms but he has passed away and I don't know if the business is still running. You can always just scout eBay and put a custom eBay search so you get notified when someone lists one. Or contact Joseph Barrett at North Texas Cold Hardy Palms (he is on this forum at @TexasColdHardyPalms); or Tom Broome at Cycad Jungle in Florida, if he doesn't have it I assume he will know who has; and there are a number of other online cycad dealers, you may just need to google your way around until you find it. I think Cycas petraea is a very nice plant, though mine was always slow-growing and stayed on the small side because I just ignored it, never watered it or fertilized it, and it was off-and-on outcompeted for light by surrounding vegetation. But it kept an even and happy countenance despite the neglect. It's worth noting, however, that I purposely planted it in such a situation, on a slope in well-drained soil, due to its natural habitat on vertical, rocky cliffs, and that dry/well-drained situation may have contributed to its perseverance through sopping wet rains and long, wet freezes.

Thanks!