Filifera damage report 16F

[Ryland]

I did a post about the Moapa filifera grove about a dozen years ago - went to find it but someone has a better more recent update: 

As noted by @Jubaea_James760, no robustas anywhere to be found.

Back to cold damage, in my experience the filifera (or filifera-dominant hybrids) I'd agree with others that leaf damage occurs below 15ºF generally.  We planted one in my mum's garden in Oregon in 2008, which is now about thirty feet tall.  It tends to get a little damage each year, and every now and then a lot of damage, but has come through 1ºF.  My robusta on the other hand, here in Manchester, has just defoliated after low 20s F.

[Axel Amsterdam]

Ryland, the filifera in Oregon sounds really interesting. I assume it’s growing in a winter wet climate not that different from the UK and Holland. Do you have a picture?

[jwitt]

Spines and no spines. Both pure.

Edited January 4, 2023 by jwitt

[Meangreen94z]

4 hours ago, Ryland said:

I did a post about the Moapa filifera grove about a dozen years ago - went to find it but someone has a better more recent update: 

As noted by @Jubaea_James760, no robustas anywhere to be found.

Back to cold damage, in my experience the filifera (or filifera-dominant hybrids) I'd agree with others that leaf damage occurs below 15ºF generally.  We planted one in my mum's garden in Oregon in 2008, which is now about thirty feet tall.  It tends to get a little damage each year, and every now and then a lot of damage, but has come through 1ºF.  My robusta on the other hand, here in Manchester, has just defoliated after low 20s F.

Depending on the size it was planted in 2008, I doubt it pure filifera if it’s already reached 30 feet of trunk.

[NBTX11]

14 hours ago, Jtee said:

Arnt the palms at the hospital at Creekside filiferas? I seen these two pictures online. How do they look now? 

 

I haven’t actually seen these palms. I will try to go check them out when able. My Filifera crown did not collapse like this in Feb 21. It stayed intact. 

[NBTX11]

1 hour ago, Meangreen94z said:

Depending on the size it was planted in 2008, I doubt it pure filifera if it’s already reached 30 feet of trunk.

30 feet tall to the highest frond is possible. The trunk could be a lot lower than 30 feet. 

[Axel Amsterdam]

41 minutes ago, NBTX11 said:

I haven’t actually seen these palms. I will try to go check them out when able. My Filifera crown did not collapse like this in Feb 21. It stayed intact. 

Are these filifera? I live in a completely different climate but they look very filibusta to me.

[Ryland]

On 1/4/2023 at 9:56 AM, Axel Amsterdam said:

Ryland, the filifera in Oregon sounds really interesting. I assume it’s growing in a winter wet climate not that different from the UK and Holland. Do you have a picture?

@Axel Amsterdam it does have a cool, wet winter climate, however not as consistently wet and humid as the UK and Holland.  Bad freezes tend to come with lower humidity and no precipitation.

This was a photo from the last year.  I can only estimate the height, the roof of the house is something like 25 feet and it's well above that now to the highest frond, though the trunk is probably less than twenty feet.  The fronds are absolutely massive and the petioles too, we joke that it is some kind of mutant since the fronds span about 2 metres.  It was labelled as Washingtonia robusta, which we assumed it was for many years, but it always seemed too big for that and now believe it to be a hybrid with filifera.  If anything, it takes more after filifera.  No doubt its survival has been assisted by it being against the building, and it has a full south aspect as well.

[Ryland]

I just went digging through some old photos.  Here it was shortly after being rescued from a Brookings, Oregon plant nursery in June 2008:

Then in June 2009, already showing off its growth rate:

[Chester B]

I think its important to note that Ashland and Medford get very little rain throughout the year - try around 20" on average.  Last year Medford got 15"  It is a pretty dry climate and falls under Hot summer Mediterranean climate (csa).