I remember when this palm was quite the rage a few years back and a lot of PT folks were growing them. So, how have they fared over time?

I was out looking at the ones in the garden this morning and thought I’d start this thread. There is an orange handled shovel on the far right palm for scale.

Tim

Here is the one with the shovel and a couple more.

Tim

Welp….after looking at your massive examples, mine are laughable. This has been in the ground for approx 10 months from a 1G sourced from FB in your neck of the woods. 
 

It has actually grown a ton since planting. It looked weird for awhile and didn’t hold many leaves at all. Looks good now. I’m excited for this one to put on some size, knowing it will never get anywhere near Hawaii big. 
 

-dale 

 

Edited September 8, 20223 yr by Billeb
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@realarchi concur with @Billeb that it’s not the right climate here alas

Pulled, potted, and almost dead on mine...

15 hours ago, Billeb said:

Welp….after looking at your massive examples, mine are laughable. This has been in the ground for approx 10 months from a 1G sourced from FB in your neck of the woods. 
 

It has actually grown a ton since planting. It looked weird for awhile and didn’t hold many leaves at all. Looks good now. I’m excited for this one to put on some size, knowing it will never get anywhere near Hawaii big. 
 

-dale 

Ha, yours is a stud compared to mine.   I got 4x 4inchers from Floribunda in the spring.  They live, but I’d say they aren’t happy.   Super slow.   It must be the heat.  90s during the day and 80s at night the past few months.   They look fantastic in Hawaii, but I don’t think they will be very robust, if they can even make it here.   
 

 

Love this palm. These do really well for me here in Southern California; been in the ground for a couple of years from probably like 4" pot size. Really starting fatten up. (hard to get a clear photo of them) Grows steadily even through the cool of winter with no issues. 

I was actually thinking about mine this week. Here's a group photo of my three..

The older one (in the front) was greenhouse-grown, and hasn't acclimated well to the part-sun location I have it in. The trunk is nice & thick, but the leaves look terrible (though the latest one on the left is looking better). Here's a closeup on the trunk of the older (greenhouse grown) one...

On the other hand, the two smaller ones in the back (bought a little over a year ago from Floribunda) have done INCREDIBLY well! They've grown a ton (were 1 gallons a little over a year ago). And remarkably, none of the leaves show ANY sun damage. In the group photo you can see that the two Floribunda ones look near-perfect. Here's a closeup of the trunk of one of the Floribunda ones...

 

I couldn't be happier with how the Floribunda ones are doing (bought in July 2021 as a 1 gallon), and would advise anyone purchasing these in Southern CA to strongly consider starting small and/or buying a condapanna that was grown outdoors (not in a greenhouse). Hopefully my larger greenhouse-grown one will acclimate, but it's been struggling in this part-sun location so far.

what is condapanna ?  

 

 

2 hours ago, edbrown_III said:

what is condapanna ? 

https://www.palmpedia.net/wiki/Bentinckia_condapanna

On 9/7/2022 at 10:08 AM, realarch said:

I remember when this palm was quite the rage a few years back and a lot of PT folks were growing them. So, how have they fared over time?

I was out looking at the ones in the garden this morning and thought I’d start this thread. There is an orange handled shovel on the far right palm for scale.

Tim

 

 

Tim - yours are incredible and I remember first seeing them just over 5 years ago when we visited your garden.  The wow factors of those palms (and all the rest you have) is part of what made me want to live in Hilo.  So I have you to thank! 

The 3 in my driveway are looking good, I'll try to get an updated picture soon.  

A non-palm friend of mine just saw these palm and asked me to get him quite a few from Floribunda and he's going to line his 100' driveway with them.  I'm excited to get that going with him. 

On 9/7/2022 at 3:46 PM, Billeb said:

Welp….after looking at your massive examples, mine are laughable. This has been in the ground for approx 10 months from a 1G sourced from FB in your neck of the woods. 
 

It has actually grown a ton since planting. It looked weird for awhile and didn’t hold many leaves at all. Looks good now. I’m excited for this one to put on some size, knowing it will never get anywhere near Hawaii big. 
 

-dale 

 

Dale - yours is looking great for only being in the ground for 10 months from a Floribunda 1 gallon.  You are doing something right, nice job.  Looks better than any of the ones I tried to grow in my Fallbrook garden.  

21 minutes ago, Hilo Jason said:

Dale - yours is looking great for only being in the ground for 10 months from a Floribunda 1 gallon.  You are doing something right, nice job.  Looks better than any of the ones I tried to grow in my Fallbrook garden.  

Thanks. Recipe below:

-Facing East with a Bismarckia and Plumeria at its back to the West protecting it from full afternoon sun. But it gets full morning and mid day sun. 

-Average watering by drip every 3 days but I believe it gets more water due to its close proximity to grass

-no fertilizer. Twice I’ve noticed it pushes out strange shaped fronds after a helping of PalmGain so I stopped giving it and it seems to approve (very strange I know!)

 

-dale

 

Mine have been slow. I got it into my head that they like a lot of water and put rocks and coir in my soil so it's high-drain but I think I still got them too wet...I learned from the ends getting necrotic and they recovered...I'm now waiting for them to get "mostly dry" at some pains to time the watering by heft and feel. So in my head I've classified them as mildly wet or moderately dry species somewhere in-between.

Also there's some stowaway that popped up. Not sure if it's the same or something else yet but always a nice surprise.

Dale, Stacey, Brian, and others, I think they look pretty darn good considering the heat, dry, and cool weather of your climate. 

Stacey, with the color of the complimentary plantings, it looks especially nice. 

Jason, thanks bud, we need to get together……I miss seeing you. 

When I lived in San Diego almost twenty years ago, I couldn’t have even imagined growing half the variety you all have in your gardens. 

Good on you!

Tim

Following directions from PalmTalk for the tropics,  I put my three in full sun (from either four inch or one gallon size) in 2018 then left them alone.

Now they do get some shade as others plants have grown too.

I can see the top of one of them looking down from my balcony but I expect one day they might be at eye level.

Fast and colorful and carefree here.

I agree, Kim. Carefree. Lots of sun, lots of water. 

Cindy, in a few years you’ll be lookin up at them. I was surprised as to how tall they can get.

Matt, great job! Looks like the right spot.

Tim