Hedyscepe Canterburyana as a Houseplant!

[ZPalms]

Back in September, I was looking for a palm that would work best as a houseplant, and on September 25, 2023, @Darold Petty messaged me asking if I would like to experiment with a Hedyscepe as a houseplant. And of course, I said yes because that would make such a unique and fun experiment, and I'm really grateful to have a chance to try one of these. Not too long after, it arrived, and I was able to pop it into a clear plastic cup so I could see the roots develop, which Darold already had sprouted when he sent it to me with a tiny sprout on it.

I didn't change anything for this palm, and I didn't give it any special lighting other than what it gets from the window. The A/C is running, and it's mostly always cool in my room. It's steadily growing, and I've been pretty happy with the growth. It's moderately slow but fast enough to make subtle differences every time I look at it. I'm hoping this stays successful and works out well because it's a very cool palm!

This is where I'll post new updates. Eventually, I wanna get a thermostat for my room so I can give accurate temperature readings, but from my guess, it's average room temperature.

Excited to see where it goes! 🤠

11/29/23 1:01 AM

1/7/24 12:52 PM

2/13/2023 at 9:28 AM

Edited February 14 by ZPalms

[Darold Petty]

Thanks for posting, Dylan !  

[PalmatierMeg]

Good work, @ZPalms! Best of luck in growing them. I really wanted to try the two highest Lord Howe Island species (Hedyscepe and Lepidorrhachis) but my climate is way too sweltering for them to survive. Lepidorrhachis is my "impossible dream" palm and I must appreciate it vicariously from a distance. At least you bring Hedyscepe a lot closer than CA. Keep us updated.

[ZPalms]

14 hours ago, Darold Petty said:

Thanks for posting, Dylan !  

No problem! Would of posted sooner but I wanted to have something to post and show for! 😁

 

3 hours ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Good work, @ZPalms! Best of luck in growing them. I really wanted to try the two highest Lord Howe Island species (Hedyscepe and Lepidorrhachis) but my climate is way too sweltering for them to survive. Lepidorrhachis is my "impossible dream" palm and I must appreciate it vicariously from a distance. At least you bring Hedyscepe a lot closer than CA. Keep us updated.

Thank you! It's funny how this is my first time with this palm and also the first time I've known of its existence, so I'm very grateful to get to try my hand at it! I'm hoping for the best! 😁

Edited February 14 by ZPalms

[Palmtreedude69]

I have had pretty good luke with pheonix robilini in the past it says small perfect for indoors!

[JohnAndSancho]

Darold sent me one, too. It's in a cut off 2L bottle in some dollar store potting soil about to open it's 2nd leaf. Sits under a grow light next to a window, can confirm these do well as houseplants. It's definitely rooting out, too. I can see it and feel the weight. 

[ZPalms]

1 hour ago, JohnAndSancho said:

Darold sent me one, too. It's in a cut off 2L bottle in some dollar store potting soil about to open it's 2nd leaf. Sits under a grow light next to a window, can confirm these do well as houseplants. It's definitely rooting out, too. I can see it and feel the weight. 

Mine is just starting its 2nd left, that's a good idea for a pot, I was trying to think of other clear things so I can still moniter root growth!

[JohnAndSancho]

1 hour ago, ZPalms said:

Mine is just starting its 2nd left, that's a good idea for a pot, I was trying to think of other clear things so I can still moniter root growth!

I've been saving 1L bottles and McDonald's cups for a while now. I've been lazy and haven't done anything with them, but I've been saving them 😂😭

[ZPalms]

1 hour ago, JohnAndSancho said:

I've been saving 1L bottles and McDonald's cups for a while now. I've been lazy and haven't done anything with them, but I've been saving them 😂😭

Omg you just reminded me I have mcdonalds cups that I washed and put away that I was gonna use for palms and forgot about them 😂

[JohnAndSancho]

Maybe the experts will see this - the new spear opening looks kind of light to me. Am I paranoid? Does it need something? Is it tired of the open window? Did I go a little too long between watering? I gave it some Osmocote but, like, the seed is still attached so I dunno that matters. 

 

Or am I just being a helicopter parent? Either way it's impressive growth for a 6 month old houseplant. 

[ZPalms]

Thought it was about time for another photo! Not sure why the ends of the frond are all crispy on the new leaf, but other than that, it looks fine. It probably wanted a bit more water, so it could have been my fault, but it still sits in this area with only light from the window. I don't really supplement it with anything, just sitting by a window, treating it like it's just any other houseplant casually.

I do have grow lights next to it but I forget to set them so it's just getting what it gets from the window and it seems happy! 

6/23/24 at 7:58 AM

[happypalms]

Nice growing when it gets a bit bigger place it over a tray of water to help with humidity.

[ZPalms]

Took these earlier, new spear finally coming up 🤠

[Tassie_Troy1971]

Well done zPalms it looks super healthy and to think I thought Hedyscepe canterburyana would be a  no go zone indoors.

I grew all mine from seed and I  actually climbed Mt Gower with Darold petty 8 years ago and saw them in person.

This is one of mine in the garden 

Troy 

 

[hbernstein]

On 6/23/2024 at 8:08 AM, ZPalms said:

Not sure why the ends of the frond are all crispy on the new leaf, but other than that, it looks fine. It probably wanted a bit more water, so it could have been my fault, but it still sits in this area with only light from the window. I don't really supplement it with anything, just sitting by a window, treating it like it's just any other houseplant casually.

Aside from humidity fluctuation, it might be sensitive to fluoride in tap water, if that's what you use. You might try adding a tablespoon of regular white vinegar per gallon of water, just to mimic the slight acidity of rainwater.

[ZPalms]

On 10/6/2024 at 5:27 AM, Tassie_Troy1971 said:

Well done zPalms it looks super healthy and to think I thought Hedyscepe canterburyana would be a  no go zone indoors.

I grew all mine from seed and I  actually climbed Mt Gower with Darold petty 8 years ago and saw them in person.

This is one of mine in the garden 

Troy 

 

Thank you! I Appreciate it! I’m glad it’s doing great indoors with minimal effort, I hope it will continue to do great as it gets bigger.

I wish I could plant one in the ground, your palm is beautiful and congratulations raising this one up! Growing directly from seed is so rewarding getting to see all the life stages! 😍

On 10/7/2024 at 11:48 AM, hbernstein said:

Aside from humidity fluctuation, it might be sensitive to fluoride in tap water, if that's what you use. You might try adding a tablespoon of regular white vinegar per gallon of water, just to mimic the slight acidity of rainwater.

Luckily, I have well water, but we do have a whole-house water filter that’s salt-filtered, which I’m not sure makes a difference. I think I need to increase my watering frequency because I tend to let it dry out between waterings, which might be a little extreme, as I’m sure a regular watering schedule would be fine considering the soil I have it in. I’ll adjust the frequency as needed but stay consistent.

The use of vinegar sounds interesting though, I’ve never heard of that, Is that a common practice?

[hbernstein]

Salt filtering adds a small amount of sodium to your water. Not good for plants nor folks with hypertension! That could be the cause of the tip browning. I wouldn't water any plants with that sort of water.

[ZPalms]

New image my mom sent me of its new spear since I’m still not home from nyc, I’ve had her taking care of it and my orchid