Washy trunk protection

[Will Simpson]

I knew that the fronds would be toast so I cut them off . Then I wrapped the trunk with incandescent Christmas lights , and wrapped them with a layer of blankets . I meant to put a bag or two of mulch at the bottom of the trunk to hold down the blankets and keep wind from blowing air under the blankets but the blankets seemed firmly down on the ground so I didn't do that , but it would be recommended because it would keep air from getting under the blankets plus it would insulate the lowest part of the trunk and roots near the trunk  . 

My Low temperature was 6F , I think , but it might have been 7F ? 

Below is the protection ; the first picture is  before the protection . I had one really cold night of 23F up to that really cold snap on Saturday morning   :

 

 

 

Nice and toasty :

Edited December 26, 2022 by Will Simpson

[Jtee]

Damn that things gonna be hard to protect in another year or two, gonna have to get a crane. 

[MarcusH]

I don't think you've done a smart move. You cut off leaves that weren't completely dried out . Every green you see are nutrients for the palm. By cutting so many fronds you just stressed the palm . 

[Will Simpson]

I

18 minutes ago, MarcusH said:

I don't think you've done a smart move. You cut off leaves that weren't completely dried out . Every green you see are nutrients for the palm. By cutting so many fronds you just stressed the palm . 

I hope I stressed it so it won't grow so fast . It unfortunately it will probably grow another 2 feet at least next year and at some point I'm not sure what to do about protecting it . It puts out about 20-30 fronds a year no matter what I do to it . That 6-7F would've fried the fronds anyway .

Edited December 26, 2022 by Will Simpson

[Will Simpson]

14 minutes ago, Jtee said:

Damn that things gonna be hard to protect in another year or two, gonna have to get a crane. 

It's going to take a taller ladder for sure . After that ????????

[Jtee]

45 minutes ago, MarcusH said:

I don't think you've done a smart move. You cut off leaves that weren't completely dried out . Every green you see are nutrients for the palm. By cutting so many fronds you just stressed the palm . 

I did the same thing to my robusta, the fronds don’t tie up very easily and with a low of 13 and two days below freezing I might have lost it anyways, the fronds wouldn’t have been green for long with those temps. 

[UK_Palms]

1 hour ago, Jtee said:

Damn that things gonna be hard to protect in another year or two, gonna have to get a crane. 

Sod climbing that high to protect it. He must be 15 foot up at least there. More than two storey's high it seems. I'm not great with heights in general, but that is just too risky. One gust of wind, or a misplaced step, and you might be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of your days. Or worse even. ☠️

I remember saying a similar thing last year when he went through this ordeal. Fair play to him though. He's clearly got balls, and a lot of determination. I don't even want to think of the risk involved in another year or two's time when it gets even taller. He'll be taking a parachute up there with him, just in case.

[PalmatierMeg]

1 hour ago, Will Simpson said:

I knew that the fronds would be toast so I cut them off . Then I wrapped the trunk with incandescent Christmas lights , and wrapped them with a layer of blankets . I meant to put a bag or two of mulch at the bottom of the trunk to hold down the blankets and keep wind from blowing air under the blankets but the blankets seemed firmly down on the ground so I didn't do that , but it would be recommended because it would keep air from getting under the blankets plus it would insulate the lowest part of the trunk and roots near the trunk  . 

My Low temperature was 6F , I think , but it might have been 7F ? 

Below is the protection ; the first picture is  before the protection . I had one really cold night of 23F up to that really cold snap on Saturday morning   :

 

 

 

Nice and toasty :

Kudos to you for a Herculean effort to protect your Washy. I'd be too terrified to try that climb even in my younger days. I hope your palm makes it.

[Will Simpson]

46 minutes ago, UK_Palms said:

Sod climbing that high to protect it. He must be 15 foot up at least there. More than two storey's high it seems. I'm not great with heights in general, but that is just too risky. One gust of wind, or a misplaced step, and you might be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of your days. Or worse even. ☠️

I remember saying a similar thing last year when he went through this ordeal. Fair play to him though. He's clearly got balls, and a lot of determination. I don't even want to think of the risk involved in another year or two's time when it gets even taller. He'll be taking a parachute up there with him, just in case.

He had a taller ladder  with him if he wanted to use it .I thought that the  ladder that he was  using was too short but he decided he could get the job done with it  That ladder worked perfectly for many years . I did tell him that if he got into trouble just to grab the trunk and slide down . 

Will

[Will Simpson]

46 minutes ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Kudos to you for a Herculean effort to protect your Washy. I'd be too terrified to try that climb even in my younger days. I hope your palm makes it.

Thanks 

I'm pretty sure it will be fine . I just hope that my laziness in forgetting to mulch at the bottom of the trunk didn't hurt the palm . That is the weakest link in my protection . When 2 of my palmettos died in 2018  the lower trunk of 1 of them was oozing putrid  fluid from the lower part of the trunk . I put a lot of lights at the base of the trunk on that Washy so I'm pretty sure it will be fine . 

[Will Simpson]

53 minutes ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Kudos to you for a Herculean effort to protect your Washy. I'd be too terrified to try that climb even in my younger days. I hope your palm makes it.

I told him that if he got into trouble to just grab the trunk and slide down . He does have huevos for sure . He had a taller ladder with him but he decided to stay with that one in the pictures .

Will

[MarcusH]

3 hours ago, Will Simpson said:

I

I hope I stressed it so it won't grow so fast . It unfortunately it will probably grow another 2 feet at least next year and at some point I'm not sure what to do about protecting it . It puts out about 20-30 fronds a year no matter what I do to it . That 6-7F would've fried the fronds anyway .

Washingtonia robusta are known to have a fast growth rate and they can reach up to 100ft in height if you take care of it. Impossible to protect.  Can you grow Filifera in your area ? Those are tough as nails and  growths a bit slower . I have one young Robusta already regret it. 

[UK_Palms]

2 hours ago, Will Simpson said:

He had a taller ladder  with him if he wanted to use it .I thought that the  ladder that he was  using was too short but he decided he could get the job done with it  That ladder worked perfectly for many years . I did tell him that if he got into trouble just to grab the trunk and slide down . 

Will

 

I didn't realise that was someone else up there doing it for you, or a professional even. I just assumed it was you up the ladder busting your ass & risking your life to protect it. 

[Will Simpson]

On 12/26/2022 at 5:42 PM, UK_Palms said:

 

I didn't realise that was someone else up there doing it for you, or a professional even. I just assumed it was you up the ladder busting your ass & risking your life to protect it. 

I don't like to get up that high . He didn't seem to mind and didn't even get his taller ladder ?

Will

[Will Simpson]

On 12/26/2022 at 5:17 PM, MarcusH said:

Washingtonia robusta are known to have a fast growth rate and they can reach up to 100ft in height if you take care of it. Impossible to protect.  Can you grow Filifera in your area ? Those are tough as nails and  growths a bit slower . I have one young Robusta already regret it. 

It's supposed to be a Filibusta but I wish it had more Filifera in it . I have 3 small Filibustas from Knikfar where the seed was collected from a very hardy palm in Fayetteville , NC . I think it will be fine most winters here without protection .

Will

Just now, Will Simpson said:

I don't like to get up that high . He didn't seem to mind and didn't even get his taller ladder ?

Will

 

[ZPalms]

Your protection method is always so awesome!

[Will Simpson]

10 hours ago, ZPalms said:

Your protection method is always so awesome!

Thanks Z .

It has stood the test of a few bad winters . It worked through 4F , 5F , and this winter with a 6F or 7F . I guess it has worked this winter . I'll know in February or  early March when I see some growth starting . 

I used to have a sensor that I put under the protection  with a monitor in the house so I could see in real time   how many degrees it was helping  , but I recently found the sensor and it said that you shouldn't leave it out in the rain , and it's been out in the rain for a few years , so when I put new batteries in the sensor it wasn't working  . I think I'll go to Lowe's and buy a new one . I'm curious to know how many degrees it helps . I'll add it to my post here or another new post .

Will

[Allen]

8 minutes ago, Will Simpson said:

Thanks Z .

It has stood the test of a few bad winters . It worked through 4F , 5F , and this winter with a 6F or 7F . I guess it has worked this winter . I'll know in February or  early March when I see some growth starting . 

I used to have a sensor that I put under the protection  with a monitor in the house so I could see in real time   how many degrees it was helping  , but I recently found the sensor and it said that you shouldn't leave it out in the rain , and it's been out in the rain for a few years , so when I put new batteries in the sensor it wasn't working  . I think I'll go to Lowe's and buy a new one . I'm curious to know how many degrees it helps . I'll add it to my post here or another new post .

Will

My mini lights wrapped in a blanket on my mule at 0F still topped out at 45F on the thermocube

[Las Palmas Norte]

I would not have done that on an adventurous day when I was in my 20's. I'd be more inclined to start a new palm and cut that down.