Palms and subtropicals of the top of the south, NZ

[Motlife]

I thought I'd make a thread documenting what I've seen growing around Nelson, Richmond, Motueka area in the northern part of the South Island. 

It's a pretty pleasant climate here at 41 degrees south, one of the sunniest places in nz but a pretty mild temperature range and around 1m of rain pa. The local councils weather station near me has only showed 2 nights dropping below zero in the 7 or 8 years it shows records for. We do usually have a fair number of frosts and temps close to 0 though, but having tree canopy over more sensitive species means we can grow quite a range of things for our latitude.

Google gives our average temps in July as 13/3, and February as 23/14. I think the winter ones are a fair bit lower than what we actually get nowadays though. This winter we haven't had any significant frost, my bananas, taro etc still have unburnt leaves near the end of July. 

 

I though I'd make a list here of all the palm species I've seen growing, then post some photos in another post:

 

Common species that grow in a lot of places:

Windmills - trachycarpus fortunei. Planted everywhere, self seed in a lot of places, almost a weed! 

Queens - syagrus romanzoffiana. Lots of these around, even in municipal plantings. Seem to grow fine with no care 

Phoenix canariensis. Lots of old ones around. Don't see many small ones planted 

Nīkau - rhopalostylis sapida. Native to wet valleys in the area, but grow great in gardens too

Mexican fan palm - Washingtonia robusta. I assume they're all robusta, but could be hybrids. They always seem to be sold as robusta 

Jelly palms - butia capitata/odorata. Mostly the blueish form, but I've seen green ones too 

Bangalows - archontophoenix cunninghamiana

Mediterranean fan palm - chamerops humilis

 

Palms that I've seen in a few places, but are not common:

Kermadec nīkau - R. Baueri. Almost definitely kermadec form in nz 

Fishtail - Caryota sp. I dunno which species 

Kentia -  howea forsteriana

Livistona. Not sure which species though

Bamboo palms - Chamaedorea sp. Definitely costaricana and others I'm not sure of 

Pygmy date palm - Phoenix roebellini

Palms that I've seen but only in one place:

Dypsis (or whatever) baronii

Arenga engleri 

Majesty - ravenea rivularis

And a couple that I am growing that I haven't seen elsewhere:

Triangle - Dypsis decaryi 

Sabal mauritiformis 

Phoenix dactylifera - from supermarket dates 

Edited July 21, 2023 by Motlife
Adding forgotten palms to list

[Motlife]

Some other exotics that grow around here:

Heliconia schiediana 

Jacaranda mimosifolia

Bananas - mostly ornamental but some edible ones get a crop, misi luki seems the best variety 

Avocado's - hass, I believe there's a small amount of commercial production 

White sapote - a tiny amount of commercial production 

Alocasia brisbanensis 

Black passionfruit - passiflora edulis 

Bird of paradise - orange, white, juncea or whatever the no leaf one is called

Monstera deliciosa. 

 

That's a selection of sub tropical stuff that grows here to give an idea of the climate. If anyone has any good suggestions of other things they though would do well id love to hear them! 

[Motlife]

Archontophoenix cunninghamiana 

Chamaedorea costaricana

Dypsis baronii? It's very yellow! 

Dypsis baronii

Chamaedorea something i suppose? It's a very cool palm anyway, would love to know what it is! 

Arenga engleri

Livistona chinensis/australis? Trying some seeds from this plant so would love to know what it is! 

Kentia

Cheers for any help with ids! 

 

[Motlife]

I'm really not sure about this one:

Some caryotas, unsure of species 

A majesty

Heliconia 

Monstera 

Jacaranda

Mountain papaya

 

[Robbertico18]

Wow, I would have never imagined all that could grow in NZ, I thought it got too chilly there

Awesome pics tho!

[cbmnz]

Any mature archontophoenix alexandre that you have seen? I'm finding they definetly a bit less hardy than Chunginhama.  Although sample size is small, 1 Alexandrae, 3 Chunginhama.

I'm finding so far no difference in hardness of  R. Baueri verses Sapida Oceania (Chattam).  This almost certainly is a Baueri so they do grow to maturity round here, so can't see why they wouldn't there.

[Motlife]

On 7/22/2023 at 1:07 AM, Robbertico18 said:

Wow, I would have never imagined all that could grow in NZ, I thought it got too chilly there

Awesome pics tho!

Cheers! Auckland and northland can grow a wide range of stuff, but not much makes it down across the strait. I think there's a lot more potential here though, if we could get the plants! 

 

14 hours ago, cbmnz said:

Any mature archontophoenix alexandre that you have seen? I'm finding they definetly a bit less hardy than Chunginhama.  Although sample size is small, 1 Alexandrae, 3 Chunginhama.

I'm finding so far no difference in hardness of  R. Baueri verses Sapida Oceania (Chattam).  This almost certainly is a Baueri so they do grow to maturity round here, so can't see why they wouldn't there.

I'm not sure about Alexandrae, but that's more because I'm not great at identifying the differences! There's one near me I suspect might be, I'll take a photo when I get a chance and see what you reckon. But it's in someone's property so I can't go and check for ramenta or anything... Do they grow just as well in the summer as cunninghamiana for you? 

 

That's good to hear about the kermadec nīkau. I have a small one in a pot which seems happy. The couple I've seen around which I think are baueri are in quite sheltered, hilly areas with very little frost, so I'm not sure how they would go on the flat, but looks promising! 

Edited July 22, 2023 by Motlife
Typo

[cbmnz]

14 hours ago, Motlife said:

Do they grow just as well in the summer as cunninghamiana for you?

Pretty much, after first winter it was recovering from 80% defoliation which slowed it down. Last winter it only got 10% damaged so grew much faster, put out a much larger frond than any previous.

[Motlife]

22 hours ago, cbmnz said:

Pretty much, after first winter it was recovering from 80% defoliation which slowed it down. Last winter it only got 10% damaged so grew much faster, put out a much larger frond than any previous.

Cool, I don't have one but good to know if I try one if I can keep it out of frost it should grow pretty well. Cunninghamiana definitely grow pretty quickly here. Has this winter been as warm up there as here? 

 

This is a not great photo of two I thought may be Alexandrae. It looks different than the others around, and has a swollen base to the trunk which I didn't get the right angle to show. What do you think? The one at the bottom is a cunninghamiana growing very close but looking rather different

[tim_brissy_13]

1 hour ago, Motlife said:

Cool, I don't have one but good to know if I try one if I can keep it out of frost it should grow pretty well. Cunninghamiana definitely grow pretty quickly here. Has this winter been as warm up there as here? 

 

This is a not great photo of two I thought may be Alexandrae. It looks different than the others around, and has a swollen base to the trunk which I didn't get the right angle to show. What do you think? The one at the bottom is a cunninghamiana growing very close but looking rather different

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They all look like A cunninghamiana 

[cbmnz]

12 hours ago, Motlife said:

Cool, I don't have one but good to know if I try one if I can keep it out of frost it should grow pretty well. Cunninghamiana definitely grow pretty quickly here. Has this winter been as warm up there as here? 

 

This is a not great photo of two I thought may be Alexandrae. It looks different than the others around, and has a swollen base to the trunk which I didn't get the right angle to show. What do you think? The one at the bottom is a cunninghamiana growing very close but looking rather different

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I'm no expert at telling them apart, but get general sense that on the Alexandre the leaflets are just a bit stiffer and closer together, giving a denser look to the crown. The one in the shot with the red car in it? Maybe.

This winter has seen a lack of frost so far, temps are apparently running >2.0 above average due to minimums being up. More than usual wind has made it seem cooler during days however.

Got one very brief freeze in June, was enough to make my bananas 80% brown, but other areas nearby did not get that one that morning. Driving around see lots of fully exposed bananas still fully green, is late to still be seeing that. Won't speak too soon though as last year that coldest morning of the year was a freak late frost on about 8th October, coldest temp in about 90 years for that month.

[Tyrone]

Great to see what’s growing in NZ. It has perfect relevance for my area, even though I’m further north. There are definite similarities in many things. Thanks for posting these pictures and the write up. 

[Motlife]

9 hours ago, cbmnz said:

I'm no expert at telling them apart, but get general sense that on the Alexandre the leaflets are just a bit stiffer and closer together, giving a denser look to the crown. The one in the shot with the red car in it? Maybe.

This winter has seen a lack of frost so far, temps are apparently running >2.0 above average due to minimums being up. More than usual wind has made it seem cooler during days however.

Got one very brief freeze in June, was enough to make my bananas 80% brown, but other areas nearby did not get that one that morning. Driving around see lots of fully exposed bananas still fully green, is late to still be seeing that. Won't speak too soon though as last year that coldest morning of the year was a freak late frost on about 8th October, coldest temp in about 90 years for that month.

Interesting, to me I thought that was definitely cunninghamiana and the other might be alexandrae, but I really have no idea! Probably most likely all cunninghamiana, especially as I've never seen any alexandrae for sale around here. Seem fairly common in Auckland though. 

 

Winter here seems similar, my bananas are all pretty much green still, crazy. We had the same October frost last year, was such a bummer to loose all the new growth on the frost tender stuff. My triangle palm seemed to take it without major issue though which is promising, that seems the most borderline thing to grow here, and it's big enough I can't fit it under the eaves of the house. 

[Motlife]

8 hours ago, Tyrone said:

Great to see what’s growing in NZ. It has perfect relevance for my area, even though I’m further north. There are definite similarities in many things. Thanks for posting these pictures and the write up. 

Cheers mate, I've loved seeing your garden coming along too. I'm hoping to buy some land in a year or two and hopefully I can grow a lot of what you manage to. You've definitely got higher averages, but the climates are probably similar enough that most things that will grow in your area would stand a chance here. 

 

Since you love Nīkau I'll post this picture I took the other week in Golden Bay, just shows the variability of the species. One just about could pass for a kentia! 

[cbmnz]

Hakarimata Range the other day

[Than]

Great stuff. Relevant to my climate although NZ winters sound a bit milder. 

Anyone can identify this stunner?

 

[PalmCode]

44 minutes ago, Than said:

Great stuff. Relevant to my climate although NZ winters sound a bit milder. 

Anyone can identify this stunner?

 

Judging from the trunks and fronds I'm guessing they are a pair of tapering archontophoenix cunninghamiana?

[Motlife]

On 1/19/2024 at 8:36 PM, PalmCode said:

Judging from the trunks and fronds I'm guessing they are a pair of tapering archontophoenix cunninghamiana?

I've been back there a few times, and a bangalow is my best guess too. It has some ramengs under its leaves, but it could be a hybrid too? It doesnt look like it's flowered yet, I'm keeping an eye on if it does, it's got a quite unique colour I haven't seen in other bangalows around here 

[happypalms]

Good old kiwi land across the ditch growing some good stuff as usual 

[Motlife]

I have a few more species to add to the list of species grown here, mainly from a visit to one guys garden to buy some palms. Most of these were a good size and in the ground, I don't think he protected any except through canopy. 

 

Archontophoenix purpurea

Chambeyronia macrocarpa

Syagrus weddeliana

Parajubaea torallyi (I think, may also have been sunkha) 

Brahea armata. Also edulis down in Christchurch 

Chamaedorea woodsoniana, microsoadix, seifrizii, metallica 

Ceroxylon quindinensis

 

Apparently there used to be a huge jubaea growing in a park in town that either was removed or died. I haven't seen any others weirdly, they should grow well here. 

Considering I'm at 41 degrees latitude there's quite a list of stuff that can grow. I think there's plenty of species that would do well here that I haven't seen too, always worth giving new things a try! 

 

 

[happypalms]

46 minutes ago, Motlife said:

I have a few more species to add to the list of species grown here, mainly from a visit to one guys garden to buy some palms. Most of these were a good size and in the ground, I don't think he protected any except through canopy. 

 

Archontophoenix purpurea

Chambeyronia macrocarpa

Syagrus weddeliana

Parajubaea torallyi (I think, may also have been sunkha) 

Brahea armata. Also edulis down in Christchurch 

Chamaedorea woodsoniana, microsoadix, seifrizii, metallica 

Ceroxylon quindinensis

 

Apparently there used to be a huge jubaea growing in a park in town that either was removed or died. I haven't seen any others weirdly, they should grow well here. 

Considering I'm at 41 degrees latitude there's quite a list of stuff that can grow. I think there's plenty of species that would do well here that I haven't seen too, always worth giving new things a try! 

 

 

Some winners there in that list try lanonia dasyantha chameadorea radicalis for dasyantha seed try Garry at coldplant .com he does phytosanitary certificates and if you’re after radicalis I will have seeds available soon cheers 

[PalmCode]

2 hours ago, Motlife said:

I've been back there a few times, and a bangalow is my best guess too. It has some ramengs under its leaves, but it could be a hybrid too? It doesnt look like it's flowered yet, I'm keeping an eye on if it does, it's got a quite unique colour I haven't seen in other bangalows around here 

It is possible that is a hybrid, but still very most likey it's a pure A cunninhamia. Bangalow palms can show reddish brown to purple cownshafts.

[SeanK]

Does the Majesty need food & water?

[Motlife]

23 hours ago, happypalms said:

Some winners there in that list try lanonia dasyantha chameadorea radicalis for dasyantha seed try Garry at coldplant .com he does phytosanitary certificates and if you’re after radicalis I will have seeds available soon cheers 

Cheers! I've never tried importing seeds and have no idea how difficult it is. Can't imagine its easy with the biosecurity here though, although it must be possible! Those species look great. I think c. radicalis is fairly available here, but I'd never heard of the lanonia. Looks like a brilliant wee plant and would be well worth a try! 

[Motlife]

19 hours ago, SeanK said:

Does the Majesty need food & water?

I'm not sure. There's only one big one I know of around here, that I actually saw first in a post on this forum. It doesn't look super amazing but it's healthy enough, I don't know if that is because the climate is marginal or if they don't give it much/any water and fert. This summer everything is quite dry so I imagine they must water it at least a bit. The photo is from about 18 months ago, it did look slightly better last time I drove past a few months ago. Last summer had pretty consistent rain so that would have helped it 

[happypalms]

2 hours ago, Motlife said:

Cheers! I've never tried importing seeds and have no idea how difficult it is. Can't imagine its easy with the biosecurity here though, although it must be possible! Those species look great. I think c. radicalis is fairly available here, but I'd never heard of the lanonia. Looks like a brilliant wee plant and would be well worth a try! 

It is relatively easy to import into Australia iam sure it’s a similar process in NZ basically when you order you get a tracking number that allows you to see when it has arrived in the country then you ring or email customs or wait for a letter to inform you that they have them you need most likely a phytosanitary certificate they usually want to inspect them and send you a bill for the inspection or that seeds did not meet bio security standards then you will still get a bill just try importanting it’s fun and you get many new plants also try rare palm seeds Germany 

[Tyrone]

3 hours ago, Motlife said:

I'm not sure. There's only one big one I know of around here, that I actually saw first in a post on this forum. It doesn't look super amazing but it's healthy enough, I don't know if that is because the climate is marginal or if they don't give it much/any water and fert. This summer everything is quite dry so I imagine they must water it at least a bit. The photo is from about 18 months ago, it did look slightly better last time I drove past a few months ago. Last summer had pretty consistent rain so that would have helped it 

I think it’s been cold damaged during winter. There’s no canopy for it on a cold night. The beauty of these is even though they can get damaged they grow back quick when the weather is better. 

[Motlife]

On 2/3/2024 at 1:45 AM, Tyrone said:

I think it’s been cold damaged during winter. There’s no canopy for it on a cold night. The beauty of these is even though they can get damaged they grow back quick when the weather is better. 

Very possible. What temperature have you found majesties hardy to damage to? I imagine the elevation plus the height of the palm would mean its fairly frost free, but it might get some light ones, plus plenty of cool nights in the winter. I was in the area so took another photo a couple of days ago. It's still ticking along and looks a bit better than in the last pic. Might benefit from more fert and water though! 

[Motlife]

On 2/3/2024 at 12:37 AM, happypalms said:

It is relatively easy to import into Australia iam sure it’s a similar process in NZ basically when you order you get a tracking number that allows you to see when it has arrived in the country then you ring or email customs or wait for a letter to inform you that they have them you need most likely a phytosanitary certificate they usually want to inspect them and send you a bill for the inspection or that seeds did not meet bio security standards then you will still get a bill just try importanting it’s fun and you get many new plants also try rare palm seeds Germany 

Cheers for that. Doesn't sound too hard, although I think here you have to get pre approved or something. Might be worth doing for the future though, people obviously manage to get seeds here, but the availability of a lot of things is very sporadic. 

[Tyrone]

14 hours ago, Motlife said:

Very possible. What temperature have you found majesties hardy to damage to? I imagine the elevation plus the height of the palm would mean its fairly frost free, but it might get some light ones, plus plenty of cool nights in the winter. I was in the area so took another photo a couple of days ago. It's still ticking along and looks a bit better than in the last pic. Might benefit from more fert and water though! 

I’ve found that Ravenea rivularis will yellow up below about minus 2C. Also long cold spells with wind can make them look a bit yellow and ratty. 

[flplantguy]

I once did a Google street view tour of that area while I was bored at work, and I was surprised at seeing some plants like southern magnolias and cooler growing palms mixed together.  It was also very green which is nice to see. The soils or climate in most places I have lived do not lend themselves to green like that.  Rainy season here is a bit but it's not the same.

[JohnStraz]

take a look on the Gleason's Map of the layout of New Zealand. Remember this is the map for the logo of the UN

[Motlife]

9 hours ago, Tyrone said:

I’ve found that Ravenea rivularis will yellow up below about minus 2C. Also long cold spells with wind can make them look a bit yellow and ratty. 

I doubt this would've seen minus 2,but cold and wind most definitely! That's good to know, I have a small one in a pot so I'll make sure I give it a sheltered spot for planting out and hopefully it will look good 

[Motlife]

8 hours ago, flplantguy said:

I once did a Google street view tour of that area while I was bored at work, and I was surprised at seeing some plants like southern magnolias and cooler growing palms mixed together.  It was also very green which is nice to see. The soils or climate in most places I have lived do not lend themselves to green like that.  Rainy season here is a bit but it's not the same.

I reckon we must be able to grow one of the widest range of plants in the world here. Pretty much anything unless it needs a ton of winter cold, plus anything apart from properly tropical stuff will grow. It always baffles me when people plant cold growing conifers etc when you could have bananas and palms, but each to their own! If you want to see properly lush on street view have a look around punakaiki, or anywhere on the west coast really 

[Harry’s Palms]

I don’t know much about New Zealand but it looks like you could have a nice selection of palms. The Caryota could be a Urens(?) , they seem to be fairly hardy. I have grown a few around here and have seen photos of them in cooler climate . My sister visited NZ years ago and she is a gardener . She was amazed at the plant life for how cool the climate seemed.