Royal - how many new fronds to expect this spring?

[Breaktheory]

Hello kings

This first winter on my Royals took a toll - how long would you expect it to take come spring to have this tree full and green again (it used to be all green a month ago!)

Thanks

jon

[PalmatierMeg]

Hard to say in LA. With lots of sun, heat and regular irrigation, it should look a lot better by mid-summer - in FL at least. It could in LA, too, given the same conditions. Will that happen? Lack of heat will slow down growth for sure. But you will need to ensure it gets plenty of water, as royals evolved in areas with hot, rainy summers, not hot deserts. So be sure your dry season isn’t too dry for yours.

[James B]

Royals don’t really grow in spring in Cali.

There may be some growth depending on how hot you get but you won’t begin to see real growth until it gets above 85 degrees consistently. By end of May where I am here I usually see spear growth of 1” a day and by mid to late June I will see 2” a day as it is usually over 90 every day at that point for me with triple digit temps every 7 days or so.

Royal want high heat the hotter the better. This is a palm that grows at its fastest when it is over 100 degrees with one catch: it needs copious amounts of water the hotter the temps get. Due to that specific temp need this palm grows faster here in Rancho Cucamonga than it does closer to the coast due to how many days we get over 90 degrees.

In summer this species is the fastest growing palm in my yard. Only Archontophoenix Maxima comes close.

Once your weather heats up you see it wake up.

[Breaktheory]

21 minutes ago, James B said:

Royals don’t really grow in spring in Cali.

There may be some growth depending on how hot you get but you won’t begin to see real growth until it gets above 85 degrees consistently. By end of May where I am here I usually see spear growth of 1” a day and by mid to late June I will see 2” a day as it is usually over 90 every day at that point for me with triple digit temps every 7 days or so.

Royal want high heat the hotter the better. This is a palm that grows at its fastest when it is over 100 degrees with one catch: it needs copious amounts of water the hotter the temps get. Due to that specific temp need this palm grows faster here in Rancho Cucamonga than it does closer to the coast due to how many days we get over 90 degrees.

In summer this species is the fastest growing palm in my yard. Only Archontophoenix Maxima comes close.

Once your weather heats up you see it wake up.

Yah I was seeing about a foot of spear a week last summer when we were in the high 90s - I planted them at the end of spring so hopefully they’re established by now - the big one is still hanging on although if it doesn’t look any better by the end of this summer I’m pulling it.

 

 

[96720]

I’m in Phoenix so lots of heat and I give it almost continuous water with the hose dripping on it in summer it drops a frond a month!!

[awkonradi]

Hi Breaktheory, how are the other palms near this one doing?

[sonoranfans]

that one looks a bit dehydrated, water well when soil temps warm up.  Ask "doomsdave" about growing them in your area he has grown some massive beauties in LA area.

[Breaktheory]

On 2/4/2023 at 5:17 AM, sonoranfans said:

that one looks a bit dehydrated, water well when soil temps warm up.  Ask "doomsdave" about growing them in your area he has grown some massive beauties in LA area.

Anything is possible but we’ve had an insane amount of rain lately - during the summer I absolutely drowned them 4-5 times a week.

Doomsdave has an amazing garden - I saw those giant beauties in person not long ago - his climate is a bit more forgiving than mine as he’s down in OC and doesn’t go from 35 in winter to 105 in summer.

[Breaktheory]

On 2/3/2023 at 9:41 AM, awkonradi said:

Hi Breaktheory, how are the other palms near this one doing?

So all 3 royals are looking just like this - crusty and ugly  

My foxtail and pygmy dates are all doing great - they haven’t grown much during winter but they’re still healthy and green looking.

[96720]

Mine are great and I have cold winters and HOT summers so that should not be a problem!!!

[Palmfarmer]

On 2/4/2023 at 7:17 AM, sonoranfans said:

that one looks a bit dehydrated, water well when soil temps warm up.  Ask "doomsdave" about growing them in your area he has grown some massive beauties in LA area.

When you lived in Arizona how was the growth of Royals through the Season. 

I am surprised mine is actually opening up a spear currently. Keeping in mind its 2-7 celcius at night and 25 roughly in the day. 

A lot of my palms do get sunburn this time of year due to very low humidity and high UV. 

Edited February 5, 2023 by Palmfarmer

[awkonradi]

2 hours ago, Breaktheory said:

So all 3 royals are looking just like this - crusty and ugly  

My foxtail and pygmy dates are all doing great - they haven’t grown much during winter but they’re still healthy and green looking.

I think this is the worst your royals ever will look.  I think better days lie ahead.

[sonoranfans]

17 hours ago, Palmfarmer said:

When you lived in Arizona how was the growth of Royals through the Season. 

I am surprised mine is actually opening up a spear currently. Keeping in mind its 2-7 celcius at night and 25 roughly in the day. 

A lot of my palms do get sunburn this time of year due to very low humidity and high UV. 

The best royals I saw in az were in part shade, limited afternoon sun.  I had a young  R. borinquena that seemed to do  very well with some mid day sun with lots of nearby larger palms/trees.  Late day sun and 110-115F 6% RH can be a killer of most palms that aren't physical adapted to the desert.   Bismarckia, phoenix sp, brahea armata were pretty tough no burn in full sun if watered well.  But clustering of palms helps each one with heat and water issues.  Generally more arizona sun, less leaves in the crown for non desert adapted palms.  In florida that is not the case, Royals hold max leaves(15+) in full sun if watered well.  My only concern with royals in LA is do they get enough water in the dry/hot season and that is just because of the likelihood of water restrictions/shortages.   Clay soil helps a lot in low rain environments and planting in bunches worked well in AZ.   Daves yard is pretty densely planted, LOL!

[sonoranfans]

19 hours ago, Breaktheory said:

Anything is possible but we’ve had an insane amount of rain lately - during the summer I absolutely drowned them 4-5 times a week.

Doomsdave has an amazing garden - I saw those giant beauties in person not long ago - his climate is a bit more forgiving than mine as he’s down in OC and doesn’t go from 35 in winter to 105 in summer.

Rain/frequent irrigation in the cool season really doesnt help that much.  Things dry out much faster in the hot/dry.  And in the hot season royals seem to go into a high gear on growth rate.

[Blueman]

Since we already have the warmth, in FL lots of water & sun equals fast royal growth.  

[Dave-Vero]

In Florida, the watery native range is a bit misleading and range limit may be due to several horrific freezes--the species was described from trees growing on the St. John River in central Florida, ca. 1774, and it may have been spotted (and called a manaca palm) in the 1500s, near Oviedo (Dan Austin's Florida Ethnobotany).   In Cuba, they are extremely widespread and not confined to wetlands, but aren't in dry areas.  Cuba's dry season is longer and drier than south Florida's.