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2024 NEW CALEDONIA BIENNIAL REGISTRATION/INFORMATION - Exceptional Adventure ×

Sabal Virginiana?


PalmettoSeeker

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I was relayed a story told by Abdullah Palms in the Calidiora Peninsula, Hampton, Virginia, zone 8a 

"A hybrid between Sabal Bermudana and Sabal Minor was genetically modified to have the hardiness of Sabal Minor, the growth rate of Sabal Palmetto, and the tolerance of less heat that Sabal Bermudana has. 6 of them were successfully seed-grown in Hampton and they have only strap leaves. I wish to name it, Sabal Virginiana, the Virginia Palmetto. It can naturalize in Norfolk and on the Calidiora Peninsula and even maybe in nearby Williamsburg too!"

is any of this true or even possible?

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Never heard of that. Certainly worth checking out but I wouldn’t pin my hopes on word-of-mouth. Documentation, photos and testimony needed to back up the claims. DNA evidence would seal a deal but I know of no one who has presented DNA on any touted palm crosses. And until those seedlings live to grow, survive the worst of VA winters, then reproduce the claim is just that.

I remember about 15 years ago someone claimed he crossed Cocos nucifera with coldhardy species to create a hardy coconut hybrid. Some people went nuts but nothing came of it. To my knowledge no one has ever crossed a coconut with any other palm and proved it beyond a doubt. There’s a reason Cocos is a monotypical genus.

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Meg

Palms of Victory I shall wear

Cape Coral (It's Just Paradise)
Florida
Zone 10A on the Isabelle Canal
Elevation: 15 feet

I'd like to be under the sea in an octopus' garden in the shade.

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That's what I was thinking. In 2020 people were saying there was a "Washington coconut palm" that was cold hardy and everyone knew that it was not true.

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22 hours ago, PalmettoSeeker said:

...In 2020 people were saying there was a "Washington coconut palm"...

Really? As in Washington the state or DC? I wonder why anyone would say that and expect to have supporters.

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16 hours ago, Las Palmas Norte said:

Really? As in Washington the state or DC? I wonder why anyone would say that and expect to have supporters.

Its ridiculous to believe coconut palms could survive in either Washington without protection. DC has a nice microclimate by the Potomac and you can find Needle Palms, Sabal Minor, Trachycarpus, and yucca rostrata in Washington DC. Palm Planet on YouTube got Sabal Minor to naturalize in DC. I am a big fan of his.

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1 minute ago, PalmettoSeeker said:

Its ridiculous to believe coconut palms could survive in either Washington without protection. DC has a nice microclimate by the Potomac and you can find Needle Palms, Sabal Minor, Trachycarpus, and yucca rostrata in Washington DC. Palm Planet on YouTube got Sabal Minor to naturalize in DC. I am a big fan of his.

I love watching Palm Planet. He often takes trips to Pungo Palms nursery in Virginia Beach. That is, perhaps, one of the best palm nurseries in that area. I plan on going this summer on my trip to the USA. I want to get many Southeastern palms so every summer I will go to the southeast and collect seed. In 2024 I'm heading to Florida and I hope to get some wild needle palms. I am greatly inspired by palm planet and it's because of him that I'm making these Palmy Plans. 

 

As for Washington coconuts, yes, I agree. Such a palm_ sadly, never has existed. 

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