On 5/29/2026 at 4:37 PM, Chester B said:

My needle palms in Oregon were always fine, but here not so much. They've all been planted for over 2 years now so I hope this is the year they remain untouched. All 3 have recovered, including the one that spear pulled so there is that. I just have to think with more time in ground and added size they should stop this nonsense. One is a variegated needle, so that one is important to me as I have not seen one before. I purchased five needle palms and the one developed the variegation after planting. Pure luck.

@Chester B that’s interesting, aren’t you in the Houston area. I would have expected they would never be fazed there. I’m 8 hours north in Big Spring and mine spear pulled the first year but were completely unfazed this last winter after we saw a low of 5 F when that northern came through in late January. That was essentially the only winter we had was those 3-4 crappy days but it made up for it in below zone minimums and freezing rain.

On 6/1/2026 at 11:40 AM, KPoff said:

@Chester B that’s interesting, aren’t you in the Houston area. I would have expected they would never be fazed there. I’m 8 hours north in Big Spring and mine spear pulled the first year but were completely unfazed this last winter after we saw a low of 5 F when that northern came through in late January. That was essentially the only winter we had was those 3-4 crappy days but it made up for it in below zone minimums and freezing rain.

Yes I'm in Houston. I really think its the bipolar (no pun intended) weather. There is no cooling off period for the palms to slow down, they are actively growing and then wham! Below freezing temps and two days later its back in the 70s again. It's too much for a small palm. Aside from Sabals I'm finding any small palm here struggles in both summer and winter. I just lost another couple Trachys in the last 2 weeks. They need to be grown to a certain size before planting. At least that's what I think.

One of my Sabal uresana in October 2025 and then again June 2026, both pictures at dusk. Last winter it saw lows of 17°F two nights in a row with 26°F as the high in between and took no damage. West of Austin.

Some exciting news I’m moving to Florida this Fall - Port Orange to be exact it’s Z10A so I have the chance to grow some cool palms much easier than Texas weather permits 😅😅😅. I’ve been busy selling some palms and digging up a few I want to bring along. Seed grown Alexandre dwarf and tall form Radicalis Purpurea

Congrats @Robert Cade Ross! What a great opportunity to grow some truly tropical palms. Florida seems to be a safer bet than even Deep South Texas. I wanted to move to Florida when I was younger but now I think I’ll stay where I’m at. I like Texas!

Sure we’re all looking forward to your updates.

Was cleaning up some stuff that was overgrowing my Chamaedorea cataractum and found a good amount of seedling underneath. I've only managed to germinate three intentionally despite trying each year, so just leaving it alone and transplanting the seedlings will be the plan going forward. There is already a new crop of seeds developing. Definitely an underused species in Houston, especially given how cheap and widely available they are.

A few of the palms this June.

Sabal uresana, Sabal palmetto "Lisa" and Butia odorata to the right. Neighbors's CIDPs behind.

Washingtonia robusta

CIDP

Butia yatay x Jubaea chilensis

Phoenix sylvestris

Bismarckia nobilis

Trachycarpus latisectus

@Chester B Thanks for the update. Your palms look like they are growing well. Since I have Butia x Jubaea now myself, I like seeing more of what mine will like as I am taking my time to decide exactly where I want to put it in the ground.

Can you remind me about what size yours was when you planted it out? I assume it went in the ground between two and two and a half years ago when you moved to Houston, correct?

On 6/3/2026 at 12:37 PM, Robert Cade Ross said:

Some exciting news I’m moving to Florida this Fall - Port Orange to be exact it’s Z10A so I have the chance to grow some cool palms much easier than Texas weather permits 😅😅😅. I’ve been busy selling some palms and digging up a few I want to bring along. Seed grown Alexandre dwarf and tall form Radicalis Purpurea

On 6/3/2026 at 12:37 PM, Robert Cade Ross said:

Some exciting news I’m moving to Florida this Fall - Port Orange to be exact it’s Z10A so I have the chance to grow some cool palms much easier than Texas weather permits 😅😅😅. I’ve been busy selling some palms and digging up a few I want to bring along. Seed grown Alexandre dwarf and tall form Radicalis Purpurea

Congratulations ! As far as growing palms it's definitely a game changer and you'll be able to grow some more palms that you weren't be able to grow in Houston. Queens are bulletproof that's for sure. Add the usual Central Florida palms to it like Pygmy etc. While it's not really a true z10 more like a warm 9b, some pockets will be a cold 10a zone, with once in a blue moon warm 9a winters. They got hit big time this year. Lots of zone pushed palms didn't make it. I'm not an east coast expert I normally get to spend time on the Westcoast of Florida but I would say the climate is similar to Orlando.

17 hours ago, Ben G. said:

@Chester B Thanks for the update. Your palms look like they are growing well. Since I have Butia x Jubaea now myself, I like seeing more of what mine will like as I am taking my time to decide exactly where I want to put it in the ground.

Can you remind me about what size yours was when you planted it out? I assume it went in the ground between two and two and a half years ago when you moved to Houston, correct?

I planted it 2 years and 2 months ago. This year it has taken off and is really thickening the trunk. It was damaged the first winter but grew out of it. I do have another BxJ F2 or F3 cross that is very different looking from this palm and leans way more Butia.

Brahea armataBrahea calcarea ‘blue’Brahea dulcisBrahea ‘Super Silver’One of many Sabal uresana

This particular queen in Galveston is sooooo green 🤩.

I’ll be attempting to zone push this majesty… South facing / semi-protected. Winter low in this spot was 27f so I think it has a good chance with a little protection.

Some new additions hit the ground this weekend.

Rhapis excelsa 'Super Dwarf' and Rhapis excelsa 'Koban'. The tropicals are Bouvardia ternifolia (left) and Hamelia patens var. patens 'Lowrey Fuzzy Leaf' (right) which both survived our winter freeze just fine with mulch.

Chuniophoenix nana. The roots were pretty stunted on these and it looked like they had been in the seedling tubes for a long time. This was the best looking one.

Group of seven C. nana.

Rhapis laosensis, planted a few weeks ago. I was surprised how fragile and brittle the roots were on this plant and was worried the offset that was just starting to develop would abort, but it has pushed up through the soil fine. I believe this clone is female and would love to track down a confirmed male if anyone has one.

Licuala spinosa. Definitely a zone push in Houston and I was trying to balance how much sun they get versus how much canopy.

Group of L. spinosa planted among an unknown Hamelia patens cultivar (maybe Lowrey). Mystery Rhapis seedlings at the back and Lobelia laxiflora at the end. Arenga spp. in next raised bed.

Mystery Rhapis. Supposedly R. multifida.

Not a new plant, but one of my Arenga spp. produced its first offset. Note, the two larger ones were seedlings I didn't bother to separate. This was the first year I didn't cover these (only mulch) and they lost pretty much all of their leaves and one didn't make it.

5 hours ago, RedRabbit said:

I’ll be attempting to zone push this majesty… South facing / semi-protected. Winter low in this spot was 27f so I think it has a good chance with a little protection.

Most of the exposed and neglected majesties I've seen around are bouncing back. Even the ones near Katy (low 20s). The things are like cockroaches

SE Houston the past few days (Pasadena/Deer Park)

These pygmies have survived the last few cold years, planted 2021/2022. The buds are quite hardy relative to the foliage. There's a reason they managed to stick around for 20+ years prior to the 2021 freeze.

New royals to usher in the warm epoch

On 6/14/2026 at 7:03 PM, RedRabbit said:

I’ll be attempting to zone push this majesty… South facing / semi-protected. Winter low in this spot was 27f so I think it has a good chance with a little protection.

I passed by two unprotected ones in Pearland this afternoon they defoliated 100% but look great now .

I grow 2 majesty palms in pots and I can say their hardiness is underrated. Very bud hardy from what I read and the foliage grows back quickly. Beautiful palm.

I would take this opportunity to pull it farther away from the house, especially that window. At LEAST 6 feet away. You don't want the fronds to touch the house nor the rain gutter when it gets taller.

1 hour ago, Amy in Florida said:

I would take this opportunity to pull it farther away from the house, especially that window. At LEAST 6 feet away. You don't want the fronds to touch the house nor the rain gutter when it gets taller.

I agree with you that the palm is planted too close to the house. Seems to be a common mistake among palm growers. One thing I don't agree with is fronds touching the house. Some palm fronds are very long and I doubt everyone owns a big property, also nothing gets harmed or damaged to the house or the palm tree.

Forgot to post these RGV palm pics back in April:) photos

range from McAllen over to south padre too lazy to add individual captions don’t hate me 😤😂- thoroughly impressed with the valley’s resilience 5 years post freeze :)

Edited yesterday at 12:16 AM1 day by Robert Cade Ross
Typo

Great pix. A few I recognize quite well.

Where is the ficus on the 2nd and 3rd last pix?

11 hours ago, MarcusH said:

I agree with you that the palm is planted too close to the house. Seems to be a common mistake among palm growers. One thing I don't agree with is fronds touching the house. Some palm fronds are very long and I doubt everyone owns a big property, also nothing gets harmed or damaged to the house or the palm tree.

12 hours ago, Amy in Florida said:

I would take this opportunity to pull it farther away from the house, especially that window. At LEAST 6 feet away. You don't want the fronds to touch the house nor the rain gutter when it gets taller.

I appreciate the concern about it being planted too close, but a majesty would be toast if it were planted open yard here. When I recorded 27f by the house it was 20f open yard… The temp drops quick as you move away from a house.

1 hour ago, Austinpalm said:

Great pix. A few I recognize quite well.

Where is the ficus on the 2nd and 3rd last pix?

Casa De Palmas, McAllen. It’s a banyan protected next to a parking garage it’s huge .

10 hours ago, RedRabbit said:

I appreciate the concern about it being planted too close, but a majesty would be toast if it were planted open yard here. When I recorded 27f by the house it was 20f open yard… The temp drops quick as you move away from a house.

You can aspire to this. No such thing as too close 😝. You can see its already trunking in 2008 and made it into 2021. Yes that is Chrysiladocarpus lutescens next to it in 2008 during Houston's great warm period.

They can be quite hardy even out in the open...this one planted circa mid 2000s in colder west Houston (Westheimer) made it to 2018. A good number of Ravenea rivularis in warmer areas in the 610 Loop and southeastern Houston made it to 2021 even out in the open. There are still some in New Orleans.

12 hours ago, Xenon said:

You can aspire to this. No such thing as too close 😝. You can see its already trunking in 2008 and made it into 2021. Yes that is Chrysiladocarpus lutescens next to it in 2008 during Houston's great warm period.

They can be quite hardy even out in the open...this one planted circa mid 2000s in colder west Houston (Westheimer) made it to 2018. A good number of Ravenea rivularis in warmer areas in the 610 Loop and southeastern Houston made it to 2021 even out in the open. There are still some in New Orleans.

Some majesty palms in McAllen shoved up against the front .

The zonepushing corner today...I think things grow faster when you're not there! Everything has just grown itself in the past few months apart from the handful of days of winter protection. Hope the rain keeps getting delivered...no watering needed at all in 2026 so far.

Liccuala fordiana is really looking like a Licuala

Direct seeded alex getting big

Lytocaryum hoehnei leaves are nearly doubling in size!