The John Fairey Garden October 2023 + Nursery Finds *PICS*

[Dwarf Fan]

First visit to The John Fairey Garden and wow it was impressive!!! Arrived later in the day after an almost 4 hour drive and we were the only visitors at that time and we were treated to a guided Palm tour of the Garden AND Nursery! Kudos to the small but passionate staff who graciously provided an unforgettable and absolutely amazing experience, I highly recommend stopping by and visiting The John Fairey Garden if ever near Hempstead, TX.

I was provided the following cold weather data:

14F 2022 Low Temp John Fairey Garden

7F 2021 Low Temp John Fairey Garden

Palm Species at The John Fairey Garden:

Chamadorea Radicalis Trunking Variety Inflorescence with Red Seeds.

Brahea Moorei

Brahea ?

Serenoa Repens 

Sabal Uresana

Nannorrhops Ritchiana ‘Silver’

 

Sabal Birmingham (Plant Delights Nursery)

 

Sabal Brazoria 

Brahea Moorei 

 

Brahea Dulcis?

Serenoa Repens 

 

Chamerops Humilis var. Argentea

 

Serenoa Repens 

 

Chamadorea Oreophylla

Sabal Minor 30 year old Trunking 

Sabal Minor 30 year old Trunking Inflorescence with seeds

Sabal Minor 30+ year old Trunking Inflorescence with seeds

 

Serenoa Repens ‘Silver’ 30+ years old

[Dwarf Fan]

Sabal ‘Tamaulipas’ 

[Dwarf Fan]

Sabal ‘Tamaulipas’ with a real SNAKE 🐍 coiled around the trunk posing for a pic in this old Tamaulipas made for an even more exciting experience an added to the mystique surrounding this ancient and mysterious Sabal Species!

 

No seeds from ANY Tamaulipas in the John Fairey Garden this year! 

[Dwarf Fan]

Sabal ‘Tamaulipas’ oldest specimen in USA October 2023.

[Dwarf Fan]

I mentioned to our docent that I was a fan of Dwarf Palms and it was at that point that we were taken off path to a remote corner of the garden where he informed me that there was an almost forgotten about Sabal Minor Dwarf that had been there in ground for probably 20-30 years from seed collected from West Texas and it has only grown less than 3 feet in all that time!!! I asked for more details and it was confirmed that the seeds for this S. minor dwarf did in fact come from an undisclosed location in Texas!!! This area of the gardens was forgotten about and a bit overgrown so at first it was hard to see but upon making our way closer I screamed out, “it has set seeds I see an inflorescence”!!!

Here is an extremely RARE pic of a very old native Texas Sabal Minor “Ultra Mini Dwarf” with small black seeds: 

[Dwarf Fan]

The John Fairey Garden October 2023 Nursery Finds:

So after looking over all their species of Palms for sale I inquired about any Sabal Tamaulipas and was told that they “were not very popular” and “did not sell very well” and that there was also NO seeds produced from any of the Tamaulipas at the garden that year. Bummer… 🤨
 

 

 

But… after a little checking in the back of one of the many on site greenhouses, lo and behold the last 7 Sabal Tamaulipas Bands from the previous year that had got hidden away behind a bunch of other plants! Which were confirmed to come from the ORIGINAL big leafed Big Momma Tamaulipas that is the original Sabal Tamaulipas that goes all the way back to the 1988 Yucca do Nursery days! What an incredible day! I was beside myself, being able to take home a bit of Texas history for my personal Palm Collection! Woo-Hoo!!! What a Palm-tastic Day!!! 

10x 4” Chamadorea Radicalis (non-Trunking) *possibly* 'Douglas Delight' a rare cross Chamaedorea radicalis x Chamaedorea oreophila (both are near each other in the garden and Chamadorea is known for being “precocious”.  

10x 4” Brahea moorei “Dwarf Rock Palm”

1x 1 Gal Brahea moorei “Dwarf Rock Palm”

2x 1 Gal Brahea edulis

I asked if they had any “Ultra Mini Dwarf” Palms for sale and sure enough sitting in a far corner of a greenhouse (not open to the public) our guide disappeared again! Upon return, I see 3 palms one marked with a sun-faded and fragile as could possibly be “crumbly” old plastic plant tag that read: “Miniture Sabal Minor Wakulla Co. FL”

Our guide informed me that these were procured by none other than the Legendary Texas Plantsman Lynn Lowery himself, yes I took home all 3. 🙂

3x “Miniture Sabal Minor Wakulla Co. FL”  (Lynn Lowery)

The Haul:

 

[Tom in Tucson]

7 hours ago, Dwarf Fan said:

First visit to The John Fairey Garden and wow it was impressive!!! Arrived later in the day after an almost 4 hour drive and we were the only visitors at that time and we were treated to a guided Palm tour of the Garden AND Nursery! Kudos to the small but passionate staff who graciously provided an unforgettable and absolutely amazing experience, I highly recommend stopping by and visiting The John Fairey Garden if ever near Hempstead, TX.

I was provided the following cold weather data:

14F 2022 Low Temp John Fairey Garden

7F 2021 Low Temp John Fairey Garden

Palm Species at The John Fairey Garden:

Chamadorea Radicalis Trunking Variety Inflorescence with Red Seeds.

Brahea Moorei

Brahea ?

Serenoa Repens 

Sabal Uresana

Nannorrhops Ritchiana ‘Silver’

 

Sabal Birmingham (Plant Delights Nursery)

 

Sabal Brazoria 

Brahea Moorei 

 

Brahea Dulcis?

Serenoa Repens 

 

Chamerops Humilis var. Argentea

 

Serenoa Repens 

 

Chamadorea Oreophylla

Sabal Minor 30 year old Trunking 

Sabal Minor 30 year old Trunking Inflorescence with seeds

Sabal Minor 30+ year old Trunking Inflorescence with seeds

 

Serenoa Repens ‘Silver’ 30+ years old

I think the Brahea ? is a Chamaerops. What color was the snake? I think it must have been camouflaged. The Sabal 'Tamaulipas' are nice. I'm lucky enough to own one from PDN that was from YuccaDo. Those dwarf Sabal are a great find. Thanks for all the great images.

Hi 99°, Lo 65°

[Dwarf Fan]

53 minutes ago, Tom in Tucson said:

I think the Brahea ? is a Chamaerops. What color was the snake? I think it must have been camouflaged. The Sabal 'Tamaulipas' are nice. I'm lucky enough to own one from PDN that was from YuccaDo. Those dwarf Sabal are a great find. Thanks for all the great images.

Hi 99°, Lo 65°

I think you are correct that may just be a plain ol’ Chamaerops humilis, there were a few of those in the garden, but also many unidentified Brahea that had no tag and were a mystery even to our guide. Glad to share the pics it was definitely worth taking the time to upload them judging by the responses from the regulars here in Cold Hardy Palms.

The snake is black and yellow and very small, curious little guy.

Close ups:

[Meangreen94z]

Nice, I’m surprised you didn’t pick up any Sabal uresana seedlings? That’s the only source I’m aware of for the pure silver variant. 

[Dwarf Fan]

5 hours ago, Meangreen94z said:

Nice, I’m surprised you didn’t pick up any Sabal uresana seedlings? That’s the only source I’m aware of for the pure silver variant. 

That is interesting and great info thanks, but I don’t collect Silver or Blue, only Green Palms.

The Uresana were available for purchase in Band size, but they didn’t have very many available, they also had some Trithrinax campestris seedlings Rare Palm Seeds (RPS) but they were not big enough to be sold to the public yet, just two tiny strap leaves and still in one of the Nursery worker areas, they had not been moved into the public sales area yet.

[Swolte]

You're lucky you got there this month.

The best nursery in Texas, by far, if you're interested in rare plants. Craig, who gave you the tour and sold you the plants, is retiring by November, which will be a huge loss for the plant community. I am sure the replacement will take a few years to get up to speed! 

I picked up a sabal minor miniature during the trunk fest last week. Doesn't get bigger than 2 feet but was of unknown origin (probably Florida). Planted it yesterday!

[Meangreen94z]

4 hours ago, Dwarf Fan said:

That is interesting and great info thanks, but I don’t collect Silver or Blue, only Green Palms.

The Uresana were available for purchase in Band size, but they didn’t have very many available, they also had some Trithrinax campestris seedlings Rare Palm Seeds (RPS) but they were not big enough to be sold to the public yet, just two tiny strap leaves and still in one of the Nursery worker areas, they had not been moved into the public sales area yet.

Oh ok, that makes sense.  Here are some pictures from a month ago and prior trips. It’s titled under the gardens previous name.

2 hours ago, Swolte said:

You're lucky you got there this month.

The best nursery in Texas, by far, if you're interested in rare plants. Craig, who gave you the tour and sold you the plants, is retiring by November, which will be a huge loss for the plant community. I am sure the replacement will take a few years to get up to speed! 

I picked up a sabal minor miniature during the trunk fest last week. Doesn't get bigger than 2 feet but was of unknown origin (probably Florida). Planted it yesterday!

 

Yeah, I was out there a month ago and bought a number of things. I plan on going back before he leaves. It’s unfortunate that garden hasn’t really grown in attendance, and extremely unfortunate to lose him.

[Dwarf Fan]

14 hours ago, Swolte said:

You're lucky you got there this month.

The best nursery in Texas, by far, if you're interested in rare plants. Craig, who gave you the tour and sold you the plants, is retiring by November, which will be a huge loss for the plant community. I am sure the replacement will take a few years to get up to speed! 

I picked up a sabal minor miniature during the trunk fest last week. Doesn't get bigger than 2 feet but was of unknown origin (probably Florida). Planted it yesterday!

Yes it was Craig, we spoke about his upcoming retirement and his time at the garden. Craig if you are reading this thank you, we had an incredible visit, the John Fairey Garden experience will not be the same without you, it was an honor and a privilege to spend time with such an amazing Texas Plantsman.

Thank you for taking me to see the forgotten Sabal Minor Dwarf that I spotted the seeds on, that really was my favorite part of the visit, it was my first time seeing a mature Sabal Minor Dwarf!

I wish you all the best in retirement you are a true gentleman sir.

[Dwarf Fan]

11 hours ago, Meangreen94z said:

Oh ok, that makes sense.  Here are some pictures from a month ago and prior trips. It’s titled under the gardens previous name.

Yeah, I was out there a month ago and bought a number of things. I plan on going back before he leaves. It’s unfortunate that garden hasn’t really grown in attendance, and extremely unfortunate to lose him.

Thanks for the link Meangreen, I agree I thought that from all the hype on Palm Talk the John Fairey Garden was going to be more of a popular Garden but it sounded like the rarity of the plants only appeals to a small number of avid collectors and they are a bit too obscure for the general public who like common plants that they are more familiar with. 🤦‍♂️

[Swolte]

39 minutes ago, Dwarf Fan said:

Thanks for the link Meangreen, I agree I thought that from all the hype on Palm Talk the John Fairey Garden was going to be more of a popular Garden but it sounded like the rarity of the plants only appeals to a small number of avid collectors and they are a bit too obscure for the general public who like common plants that they are more familiar with

There's been some improvements, including several artworks, a bridge (finally) connecting the north garden, and a nicer welcoming area! The last 3 years (winters, summers) really did do a number on the garden, though. There's a lot of damage. I do miss the more specialist tours they had several years ago that did appeal to the collectors and hardcore plant enthusiasts. I think they need to attract, engage, and grow a new generation of 'plantsmen' to keep the place interesting from a horticultural perspective (losing Craig, who is not only a kind and great teacher but incredibly knowledgeable, obviously won't help). Running a mail order operation with a website upgrade (like PDN) would be ideal but that's easier said than done! 

[Dwarf Fan]

5 minutes ago, Swolte said:

There's been some improvements, including several artworks, a bridge (finally) connecting the north garden, and a nicer welcoming area! The last 3 years (winters, summers) really did do a number on the garden, though. There's a lot of damage. I do miss the more specialist tours they had several years ago that did appeal to the collectors and hardcore plant enthusiasts. I think they need to attract, engage, and grow a new generation of 'plantsmen' to keep the place interesting from a horticultural perspective (losing Craig, who is not only a kind and great teacher but incredibly knowledgeable, obviously won't help). Running a mail order operation with a website upgrade (like PDN) would be ideal but that's easier said than done! 

I was telling Craig the exact same thing, that they should do mail order that it would open them up to more exposure, but it sounded like the powers that run the garden were not interested in going in that direction.

[Meangreen94z]

They believe having the great plants there will draw people to the garden. But the garden is in an obscure location where most people have to dedicate a whole day to it. Letting him keep a portion of the plants for online sales would have drawn attention to the garden, the plants, and kept him busy. I’m not sure what direction the garden will take in the long term. I try to draw as much attention to it as I can online. 

[teddytn]

Trunking Sabal minors are always cool to see thank you!!!