What if I keep my palms in large/huge pots always so I could put them in my garage during cold days/months?

[PashkaTLT]

Hello,

I always wanted to live somewhere south, with palm trees. But I ended up in NJ, USA, in zone 6a  Anyway, I don't want my location to stop me from having a palm tree.

What if I don't plant my palm trees, but keep them in large pots so that I could put them in my 9' garage during cold days/months?

This is a list of palms that I'm considering:

Common Name	Scientific name
Dwarf Palmetto Tree	Sabal minor
Pindo Palm Tree	Butia Capitata
Windmill Palm Tree	Trachycarpus fortunei
Needle Palm Tree	Rhapidophyllum hystrix
European Fan Palm	Chamaerops humilis
Sago Palm	Cycas revoluta

What do you think about my idea, guys?

[OC2Texaspalmlvr]

Welcome to Palmtalk 

If your planning on keeping palms in containers you prolly can venture off from just cold hardy palms. I over winter in my garage Bottle palms, Christmas palms , golden cane palms. I use grow lights to keep them going, I was even able to keep a couple Coconuts alive over winter this year. It all depends on how much work you want to give yourself. Out of your list only the Pindo would eventually out grow its pot and make it a chore to get a large pot in and out of your garage. Your list of palms would definitely get to spend more time out doors then the more tropical palms 

T J 

[PashkaTLT]

So the plan is viable? I wonder how much the pots will slow the growth compared to just planting the trees in the ground?

[Allen]

8 hours ago, PashkaTLT said:

Hello,

I always wanted to live somewhere south, with palm trees. But I ended up in NJ, USA, in zone 6a  Anyway, I don't want my location to stop me from having a palm tree.

What if I don't plant my palm trees, but keep them in large pots so that I could put them in my 9' garage during cold days/months?

This is a list of palms that I'm considering:

 

 

Common Name	Scientific name
Dwarf Palmetto Tree	Sabal minor
Pindo Palm Tree	Butia Capitata
Windmill Palm Tree	Trachycarpus fortunei
Needle Palm Tree	Rhapidophyllum hystrix
European Fan Palm	Chamaerops humilis
Sago Palm	Cycas revoluta

What do you think about my idea, guys?

You should plant the Sabal minor and Needle palm.  The idea is fine.  I use a large shop light type plant light in may garage over the plants.  Make sure you have a insulated garage door.   I'd add Pygmy date palm, Washingtonia robusta, and potted bamboo to the list.   You can grow some other more tropical ones they are just a pain because you can't put them outside as early and will end up with them in the garage for 2 months longer or so in the end.

https://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-FLT44-System-Fluorescent-Light/dp/B005H1C7NA/ref=sr_1_8?crid=6CFW6NSL4Y0S&keywords=fluorescent%2B4'%2Bplant%2Blight&qid=1680526698&sprefix=flourescent%2B4'%2Bplant%2Blight%2Caps%2C110&sr=8-8&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.18630bbb-fcbb-42f8-9767-857e17e03685&th=1

Edited April 3, 2023 by Allen

[Jeff zone 8 N.C.]

PashkaTLT,  yes you can. I think a lot of us here have done that. I even had 2 Queen palms that got  very tall that I hauled in and out of a greenhouse every year. After they got just too big move I built a 25 foot tall greenhouse and left them in place with very little heat. When the fronds hit the top and began to have no room to go higher they finally died.  They will eventually out grow the pots but you can have many years of happy growing.

 

 

.

[Jeff zone 8 N.C.]

Allen, very nice palms. Do you ever get pest problems inside? I had very little problems in my cool greenhouse because the pests did not like the coolness.

[Allen]

16 minutes ago, Jeff zone 8 N.C. said:

Allen, very nice palms. Do you ever get pest problems inside? I had very little problems in my cool greenhouse because the pests did not like the coolness.

It's a unheated garage so generally not so.  But the couple problem palms (Majesty) I go ahead and water with a systemic before putting them inside. 

[PashkaTLT]

7 hours ago, Allen said:

You should plant the Sabal minor and Needle palm.  Make sure you have a insulated garage door. 

 I'd add Pygmy date palm, Washingtonia robusta, and potted bamboo to the list.   You can grow some other more tropical ones they are just a pain because you can't put them outside as early and will end up with them in the garage for 2 months longer or so in the end.

Thank you. I think Sabal minor may die if planted. It needs zone 7...?

Insulated garage door, to increase heat retention and avoid cold drafts?

I think Pygmy Date Palm & W. Robusta will have to spend the whole winter in the garage? Now it's April and we still have last freezing nights!

[PashkaTLT]

Guys, will the pots slow down the growth provided the pots are large?

Say if we compare first 5 years in large pots or 5 years in ground, would the difference be significant?

Edited April 3, 2023 by PashkaTLT

[Allen]

22 minutes ago, PashkaTLT said:

Thank you. I think Sabal minor may die if planted. It needs zone 7...?

Insulated garage door, to increase heat retention and avoid cold drafts?

I think Pygmy Date Palm & W. Robusta will have to spend the whole winter in the garage? Now it's April and we still have last freezing nights!

The S. Minor and needle will need to be planted in a great spot and probably protected selectively for a couple years and past that may need protection in severe -F temps occasionally.

Insulated garage door helps a ton on moderating temps

Pygmy date and robusta yes will need to be in garage significantly longer than say a Trachy but palms in pots will still need to come inside at much higher temps than the palms located in ground can endure.

21 minutes ago, PashkaTLT said:

Guys, will the pots slow down the growth provided the pots are large?

Say if we compare first 5 years in large pots or 5 years in ground, would the difference be significant?

In a pot rule of thumb is half as slow but will vary depending on age of palm and conditions.

[OC2Texaspalmlvr]

4 hours ago, PashkaTLT said:

Say if we compare first 5 years in large pots or 5 years in ground, would the difference be significant?

I definitely would stick to appropriate sized pots to size of palms. Extra space in a pot leads to root rot, cause the roots won't be there to take up the moisture. Palms grow much slower stuck in a pot, that's for sure. 

T J 

[Fusca]

Like TJ said too big of a pot can make it harder to control the amount of moisture.  If you check out some posts by @Pal Meir you will see how fairly large palms can perform quite well in a small pot with good drainage.  In my experience Phoenix roebelenii do quite well in containers as do Butia odorata but for me Sabal palms want to be in the ground.  I kept a Phoenix roebelenii in a container with about 1' of trunk for 15 years while living in Tennessee and North Carolina before moving to Houston where I finally planted it.  It stayed in the same pot for more than 10 years before I potted it up and it barely doubled in size over that time!

[Funkthulhu]

Just wanted to pop in and say a Container Ranch is totally viable.  Takes a bit more thinking, and you end up trying a lot of things, but it can be quite rewarding.  I'm in 5B, Lincoln Nebraska, and I've been growing palms in my various apartments and now my house for nearly 20 years.  I have a couple now that I must use a hand-truck to move, as I can't pick them up myself anymore.  Most of them go outside every summer and get lush.  

Welcome to Palm Talk and go spend some time in the Palms in Pots sub-forum! 

[Las Palmas Norte]

What if I keep my palms in large/huge pots always so I could put them in my garage during cold days/months?

They would eventually outgrow the space available to them.

[PashkaTLT]

7 hours ago, Las Palmas Norte said:

What if I keep my palms in large/huge pots always so I could put them in my garage during cold days/months?

They would eventually outgrow the space available to them.

And what would happen then? They will continue living, but stop growing?

[Funkthulhu]

On 4/4/2023 at 6:49 PM, PashkaTLT said:

And what would happen then? They will continue living, but stop growing?

Considering the way that palms grow, you'll end up with spears crushing themselves into your ceiling.  Depending on the palm this will result in broken or malformed fronds, or actual damage to your ceiling.  (maybe both)   The palm will continue to grow as long as it has adequate food and light, and if it was growing before it hit the ceiling it will continue to grow afterwards.  

I did have a R. rivularis (majestic palm) that outgrew my home at the time.  It didn't quite get to the ceiling because that room was weirdly tall, but the width of spread on those fronds was untenable.   At the end it was in my largest pot and had an as yet unopened 8 foot spear coming out if its top.  I had to donate it to a local arboretum/gardens so it could live out its days in a greenhouse.  (until it got too big for that, too; those things get huge)  

There are people who do a form of palm (usually coconut) bonsai, but I've never had success with it.  I also believe those tortured plants to be relatively short-lived.  Palms want to grow like they're at home in the tropics.  If you're worried about your ceiling or space, try to pick understory palms and smaller niche species that don't get very large in the wild. 

Edited April 6, 2023 by Funkthulhu

[Allen]

On 4/4/2023 at 6:49 PM, PashkaTLT said:

And what would happen then? They will continue living, but stop growing?

Most palms on your list you can keep in pots for 5-10 years.  At a certain time some will become so pot bound they won't grow well.  Another option on some is to root prune them every few years when they get pot bound which will set them back some but keep them smaller longer.

[OC2Texaspalmlvr]

Chamaedorea genus are great palms to start any container ranch. Radicalis should be a must have for any palm enthusiasts. Our very own @DoomsDave can hook you up with seeds to get you started. Metallica , Tenella , Ernesti-Augustii are my favorites. 

T J 

[PashkaTLT]

9 hours ago, OC2Texaspalmlvr said:

Chamaedorea genus are great palms to start any container ranch. Radicalis should be a must have for any palm enthusiasts. Our very own @DoomsDave can hook you up with seeds to get you started. Metallica , Tenella , Ernesti-Augustii are my favorites. 

T J 

Thank you for the info. I just got a cat palm yesterday from Home Depot at about 6.5 feet tall (with pot)  for only $30 !

Also got an 8.5 feet majesty palm for $70. 

The creation of the palm garden has officially started! YEeeehaaawwww!!!!

[PashkaTLT]

[Allen]

10 minutes ago, PashkaTLT said:

Those were big for the price.  

[PashkaTLT]

2 minutes ago, Allen said:

Those were big for the price.  

I know, right!? And I wouldn't be able to fit them in my car, but a Home Depot worker who was finishing his shift offered to take them to my house on his personal pick up!

Wow! Super lucky day!!!