Soil advice for S. Minor and S. Minor Spp.?

[Dwarf Fan]

So I have always loved S. Minor ever since they were my only two sole surviving Palms that made it through the great Palmageddon of ‘21 and have traveled with me from Central Texas where they survived being frozen solid covered in 5 degree wet snow and then they made it through the transplant shock of being dug up and taken for car ride down to North Padre Island a year later. I am happy to report they are now both starting to flourish in their new home. 

I just planted them in organic in-ground bagged soil twice the width of the root ball, water regularly and they are now once again growing well!

My question is has anyone studied the native in habitat soil of S. Minor and attempted to recreate an optimal soil mix for that species?

I have several different S. Minor variants I am looking to eventually put in ground (Brazoriensis, Louisiana, Etonia and hopefully Blountstown, Wakulla & Chipola).

Since these are all varieties of S. Minor would they all have the same soil preference?

Is making a soil mix that mimics in habitat conditions on a species by species basis a good approach? Example: one mix for Sabal, one for Chamerops, one for Washingtonia, one for Lytocaryum etc. etc. etc.

Please feel free to share any soil mixes that you have found successful when growing S. Minor. or any other Spp. is also welcome. 

Thanks,

Dwarf Fan

 

 

[Allen]

You just want to plant in native soil.  Clay is fine.  More important is sun and ample water.

[PalmatierMeg]

Sabals are not fussy about soil. Just be sure you plan to leave them where you plant them. If you try to dig them up later you will surely kill them. When I gave my SIL Sabal minors I didn't know she has a habit of transplanting her many Japanese maples. She tried digging up the Sabals and killed them all.

[Dwarf Fan]

54 minutes ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Sabals are not fussy about soil. Just be sure you plan to leave them where you plant them. If you try to dig them up later you will surely kill them. When I gave my SIL Sabal minors I didn't know she has a habit of transplanting her many Japanese maples. She tried digging up the Sabals and killed them all.

That is good advice I was fortunate enough that my oldest Palms are my two S. Minors that survived 5 degress for two straight days and survived being dug up and moved five hours drive away. I always dig down below and take the bulk of the root ball/mass it helps with survival rates on more than just Palms.

I do unfortunately have a habit of digging stuff up and moving it if I don’t like how the finished result looks… 🤔

 I will try and not change my mind on yard placement for my new Sabals, thanks for the heads up on them not taking too well to frequent moves. 👍

 

Edited July 23, 2023 by Dwarf Fan

[SeanK]

Soggy wet soil and full ☀️

[Dwarf Fan]

4 hours ago, SeanK said:

Soggy wet soil and full ☀️

Soggy huh well I think I have been keeping my S. Minor a bit too much on the dry side because now that it is the heat of July I have been really diligent about hitting them with a drink of water daily and they have been responding very well. I will keep giving them a more frequent watering than everything else.

Thanks for the tip Sean, I know they thrive in swampy areas but I have always been afraid of overwatering ANY of my Palms, however the sand of the Island is more forgiving on overwatering than my previous clay soil so I do need to keep that in mind.

 

 

[Tom in Tucson]

3 hours ago, Dwarf Fan said:

Soggy huh well I think I have been keeping my S. Minor a bit too much on the dry side because now that it is the heat of July I have been really diligent about hitting them with a drink of water daily and they have been responding very well. I will keep giving them a more frequent watering than everything else.

Thanks for the tip Sean, I know they thrive in swampy areas but I have always been afraid of overwatering ANY of my Palms, however the sand of the Island is more forgiving on overwatering than my previous clay soil so I do need to keep that in mind.

When I lived in Houston I drove through The Big Thicket National Preserve, and saw the densest population of Sabal minor I'd ever seen. They were growing in and near swampy areas.

Hi 113˚, Lo 79˚

 

 

[WSimpson]

Mine grow in pliable clay which is not that real bad  red clay found around here a lot . I have pictures of the native Minors growing in their native soil on the southeast part of NC that has to be really sandy . So I would say that Minors grow well in all types of soil .

Will

 

My favorite Minor picture of a native Minor in habitat in southeastern NC which certainly features sandy and obviously very wet soil . 

 

Edited July 25, 2023 by Will Simpson

[Las Palmas Norte]

On 7/23/2023 at 2:00 PM, Dwarf Fan said:

I do unfortunately have a habit of digging stuff up and moving it if I don’t like how the finished result looks…

I have the opposite problem. Problem? you say.  Because I'm so critical and demanding about my planting decisions, plants linger in pots far too long before being planted while I deliberate a planting site.

[Dwarf Fan]

27 minutes ago, Las Palmas Norte said:

I have the opposite problem. Problem? you say.  Because I'm so critical and demanding about my planting decisions, plants linger in pots far too long before being planted while I deliberate a planting site.

We are like brothers from different mothers! lol! That is interesting I never thought of that, strange how different people develop different plant habits. 
 

I am so anxious to get new Palms in ground I just recently started making myself wait for new arrivals to “acclimatize” (sit in the grower pot for a week or two) in the area I have designated for their planting. I don’t think I could wait long enough for a Palm to get root bound in it’s pot, I would go nuts think about getting it in the ground ASAP! 😂 

Edited July 25, 2023 by Dwarf Fan

[Las Palmas Norte]

@Dwarf FanI have a 15 gallon Majesty palm ready for planting. I finally selected a planting site and it's full of big boulders, so it's extremely hard to excavate. May have to resort to dynamite.

[Dwarf Fan]

1 hour ago, Las Palmas Norte said:

@Dwarf FanI have a 15 gallon Majesty palm ready for planting. I finally selected a planting site and it's full of big boulders, so it's extremely hard to excavate. May have to resort to dynamite.

^^^ Now this is the kind of “out of the box” thinking I can get behind! 💥💥💥

[Las Palmas Norte]

On 7/25/2023 at 5:09 PM, Dwarf Fan said:

^^^ Now this is the kind of “out of the box” thinking I can get behind! 💥💥💥

 

The largest was quite easily 80lbs as well as others that were slow to extract. I think this lot was a dump site for boulders when it was built. I did finally get the hole dug.

Here's a few of the larger boulders. Soft drink can for size reference.

 

[Dwarf Fan]

4 minutes ago, Las Palmas Norte said:

 

The largest was quite easily 80lbs as well as others that were slow to extract. I think this lot was a dump site for boulders when it was built. I did finally get the hole dug.

Here's a few of the larger boulders. Soft drink can for size reference.

 

I guess I have no business complaining about digging holes in soft sand in the Texas heat now…

 

Just remember every rock that comes out of the ground is one less rock standing between you and paradise.

[Las Palmas Norte]

12 hours ago, Dwarf Fan said:

Just remember every rock that comes out of the ground is one less rock standing between you and paradise.

Words to live by brother. Thanks for the optimism.