Big box store finds 2025

[Toddmin]

On 4/2/2025 at 7:44 PM, SeanK said:

$99. 15-gal triple Pigmy dates. 6" to 12" trunks at Lowes. 

Across at HD, $79 for some smaller ones. These ($99) are the better buy.

I've seen them at Lowes and HD here in Atlanta.  I've thought about buying one but how hard would it be to over-winter it? 

[Keys6505]

Kings at the League City TX Lowe's.  I know HGC had them last year, but I've never seen them at a big box in TX.

[Fusca]

11 hours ago, Keys6505 said:

Kings at the League City TX Lowe's.  I know HGC had them last year, but I've never seen them at a big box in TX.

First time for me seeing them in Texas also.  At least these are identified - I saw some in McAllen yesterday that were 7-gal and only labeled as "king palm".  These are Archontophoenix alexandrae but the ones at HGC are Archontophoenix cunninghamiana.

[CiprianS]

On 2/11/2025 at 8:10 PM, Swolte said:

I am worried I am going to have to replace my P Canariensis again after this winter. Please let me know if you can find one (15G or lower) at one of the stores near Houston!

I have just seen some big ones in 24-inch wood pots at the Garden Center at $399, and also some small ones, I think in 10 or 15 gallon pots, for which I did not see the prices.

If someone in the Houston area sees some Bismarckias, please let me know.

[Keys6505]

On 2/11/2025 at 8:10 PM, Swolte said:

I am worried I am going to have to replace my P Canariensis again after this winter. Please let me know if you can find one (15G or lower) at one of the stores near Houston!

I know this post is 2 months old, but I saw small CIDP at HGC today if you're still looking (League City store).

[Swolte]

1 hour ago, Keys6505 said:

I know this post is 2 months old, but I saw small CIDP at HGC today if you're still looking (League City store).

Thanks, mine is not showing a sign of life yet, however, its still green and I do want to give it another month (or two).

Good to know there's some supply hitting Texas. I'll have to combine it with a family trip to Galveston, or something...
😛

> I have just seen some big ones in 24-inch wood pots at the Garden Center at $399, and also some small ones, I think in 10 or 15 gallon pots, for which I did not see the prices.

Where was this? Sounds a bit closer than League City...

[CiprianS]

@Swolte, that was at the HGC in Richmond, TX, located at 20415 SW Freeway. However, it's also likely that the one in Sugar Land, at 9811 Penton Dr, has them, as they usually carry the same stuff. If I get there today, I will check and let you know.

Anyway, I see the same people are still here.   

[Chester B]

13 hours ago, CiprianS said:

I have just seen some big ones in 24-inch wood pots at the Garden Center at $399, and also some small ones, I think in 10 or 15 gallon pots, for which I did not see the prices.

If someone in the Houston area sees some Bismarckias, please let me know.

I’ve seen Bismarckia at a few different Lowes in the last few weeks. Most locations carried them last year. 

[CiprianS]

1 hour ago, Chester B said:

I’ve seen Bismarckia at a few different Lowes in the last few weeks. Most locations carried them last year. 

Tell me where you have seen them, please. Last year I saw them at one on Westheimer, but two weeks ago, when I looked again at that store, they did not have them. If you could tell me where that would be great.  

[Fusca]

3 minutes ago, CiprianS said:

Tell me where you have seen them, please. Last year I saw them at one on Westheimer, but two weeks ago, when I looked again at that store, they did not have them. If you could tell me where that would be great.  

Hey Ciprian, welcome back! 

[CiprianS]

40 minutes ago, Fusca said:

Hey Ciprian, welcome back! 

Thank you! It's time to get another house and start planting again.  

[Chester B]

1 hour ago, CiprianS said:

Tell me where you have seen them, please. Last year I saw them at one on Westheimer, but two weeks ago, when I looked again at that store, they did not have them. If you could tell me where that would be great.  

I’ve been to a number of Lowe’s so I can’t remember where I’ve seen them this year.  They definitely don’t seem to be as common this year. I have seen them in Kingwood and Atascocita in the past.  I was at Atascocita today but didn’t see any left.  It doesn’t mean that they won’t get more.  
 

 

[Chester B]

14 hours ago, Swolte said:

Thanks, mine is not showing a sign of life yet, however, its still green and I do want to give it another month (or two).

Good to know there's some supply hitting Texas. I'll have to combine it with a family trip to Galveston, or something...
😛

> I have just seen some big ones in 24-inch wood pots at the Garden Center at $399, and also some small ones, I think in 10 or 15 gallon pots, for which I did not see the prices.

Where was this? Sounds a bit closer than League City...

I saw them today at HGC in Atascocita. $400 for the ones in boxes and $120 for the 15 gallon ones. The small ones had all suffered cold damage and were regrowing their spears. The bigger ones looked good. 

[CiprianS]

@Swolte, I think the CDPs are all over the place in the Houston area. As I said, I was at the other HGC mentioned above, and they had both of the sizes for the CDPs. No freeze damage for the small ones, though.

Unfortunately for me, no Bismarckia at the Lowe's which had them last year.

[Mazat]

On 3/20/2025 at 3:58 PM, Swolte said:

Thanks for asking. I think its too early to say. I have considered trunk cutting but I am holding off for a few (hopeful) reasons:
- There's still a few fronds left with green.
- After I uncovered the plant, there was rapid die off of fronds when weather heated up, however, that seems to have stabilized now.
- Weather has been dry and sunny, not very conducive to fungal growth. I am home and able to treat it with copper fungicide every week. Our area has a fire ban now.
- Fronds didn't pull from all too deep. Visibility into the crown is low but I just tried to see how deep I can push a thin metal stake in the hole and I am getting some resistance already at 2-3 inches. 

Its not looking great from the outside but I'll wait a few more weeks and keep monitoring!

~ S 

it's me again. thought i'd ask how your CIDP is doing now that it's warmer.
hope it's doing better and pushing out new leaves, or is in the process of doing so.

we, including Sabine, hope she has recovered well 😀

[Harry’s Palms]

Not a big box store but a fairly large nursery in Ventura had a bunch of large , one gallon Archontophoenix Cunninghamiana for $11.99 . They are very healthy so I picked one up a couple weeks ago and stuck it the side of my house where it gets about 2 hours full morning sun . It didn’t burn , even a new frond that had just opened still look green and growing strong . A new spear started to emerge immediately! I haven’t had a small king in a while . These are already hardened off , which is why I prefer this nursery . Harry

A really healthy one . I couldn’t resist for the price . The largest frond was still barely open when I got it , now a new spear is pushing out! I love King palms even though quite common here , they grow rapidly at this stage! 

I was confused by the name “ Seaforthia” but @Jim in Los Altos assured me that it is indeed a Cunninghamiana . Also the mottling around the leaf bases is a dead giveaway away. Such a healthy palm . The last ones I bought at Lowe’s took over a year to show signs of growth and burned immediately . 
 

This nursery has some of the more rare stuff as well. Chamaedorea Plumosa (huge) , Chamberonia Macrocarpa , C. Costariciana, Howea F. . Rhopalostylus , etc. Harry

[SeanK]

12 minutes ago, Harry’s Palms said:

Not a big box store but a fairly large nursery in Ventura had a bunch of large , one gallon Archontophoenix Cunninghamiana for $11.99 . They are very healthy so I picked one up a couple weeks ago and stuck it the side of my house where it gets about 2 hours full morning sun . It didn’t burn , even a new frond that had just opened still look green and growing strong . A new spear started to emerge immediately! I haven’t had a small king in a while . These are already hardened off , which is why I prefer this nursery . Harry

A really healthy one . I couldn’t resist for the price . The largest frond was still barely open when I got it , now a new spear is pushing out! I love King palms even though quite common here , they grow rapidly at this stage! 

I was confused by the name “ Seaforthia” but @Jim in Los Altos assured me that it is indeed a Cunninghamiana . Also the mottling around the leaf bases is a dead giveaway away. Such a healthy palm . The last ones I bought at Lowe’s took over a year to show signs of growth and burned immediately . 
 

This nursery has some of the more rare stuff as well. Chamaedorea Plumosa (huge) , Chamberonia Macrocarpa , C. Costariciana, Howea F. . Rhopalostylus , etc. Harry

Isn't Seaforthia an old name for Ptychosperma?

[Harry’s Palms]

It is , but Jim said it was also used years ago for Archie’s . That is what confused me. I thought “ wow Ptychosperma Elegans for $12? “ Then I took a closer look …not . A good deal anyway and they grow so fast in our area, why not. Harry

[Swolte]

7 hours ago, Mazat said:

it's me again. thought i'd ask how your CIDP is doing now that it's warmer.
hope it's doing better and pushing out new leaves, or is in the process of doing so.

we, including Sabine, hope she has recovered well 😀

Thank you!

And thanks for all the tips. I found a another specimen that had a larger trunk size than the one I had so I guess its worth replacing, even if the old one would have made it. I drove to a HGC in Tomball (combine w visit to Arbor Gate!), however, ALL the 15G ones there had spear pull. I then drove to another HGC 20 minutes south and they seemed better! Still some dwarf growth but I hope that toughened them up. See pic. Planted yesterday!

I did keep the old one. I ordered it through mail (since I could not find ANY Canariensis in stores) and it was naturally of a smaller size. When I dug it up, it also had a lot of circling roots (almost 6 inches worth, vertically) so maybe it was for the best.  I have it in a pot now and we'll see whether it lives.

I'll keep you all posted. 

[JLM]

Really proud of my Lowe’s this year. At the same time also disappointed.
 

They had 7 gallon kings back in March. Disappointing.
 

Now for an actual list of palms I’ve seen at my Lowe’s this year:
Pygmy date (2.25, 6, 13 gal), Washingtonia (2.25, 6, 13 gal), Queen (2.25, 6 gal), Bamboo (C seifrizii [6 gal]), Sago cycad (2.25, 6 gal), Pindo (6 gal), King (7 gal), P sylvestris (6, 13 gal), Saw palmetto (6 gal), C humilis (6 gal), Majesty (2.25, 6 gal), Cat (2.25, 6 gal), Trachy (2.25, 6 gal), Ponytail (2.25 gal), Areca (6 gal), *Sabal minor (6 gal), and last but certainly not least:

Giant Sabal Palmettos ($525ea)
 

[Mazat]

3 hours ago, JLM said:

Really proud of my Lowe’s this year. At the same time also disappointed.
 

They had 7 gallon kings back in March. Disappointing.
 

Now for an actual list of palms I’ve seen at my Lowe’s this year:
Pygmy date (2.25, 6, 13 gal), Washingtonia (2.25, 6, 13 gal), Queen (2.25, 6 gal), Bamboo (C seifrizii [6 gal]), Sago cycad (2.25, 6 gal), Pindo (6 gal), King (7 gal), P sylvestris (6, 13 gal), Saw palmetto (6 gal), C humilis (6 gal), Majesty (2.25, 6 gal), Cat (2.25, 6 gal), Trachy (2.25, 6 gal), Ponytail (2.25 gal), Areca (6 gal), *Sabal minor (6 gal), and last but certainly not least:

Giant Sabal Palmettos ($525ea)
 

great specimens 🤗😄

[Mazat]

15 hours ago, Swolte said:

Thank you!

And thanks for all the tips. I found a another specimen that had a larger trunk size than the one I had so I guess its worth replacing, even if the old one would have made it. I drove to a HGC in Tomball (combine w visit to Arbor Gate!), however, ALL the 15G ones there had spear pull. I then drove to another HGC 20 minutes south and they seemed better! Still some dwarf growth but I hope that toughened them up. See pic. Planted yesterday!

I did keep the old one. I ordered it through mail (since I could not find ANY Canariensis in stores) and it was naturally of a smaller size. When I dug it up, it also had a lot of circling roots (almost 6 inches worth, vertically) so maybe it was for the best.  I have it in a pot now and we'll see whether it lives.

I'll keep you all posted. 

that is also a nice CIDP, we are very pleased.

Yes, that really makes sense, so the other one can recover well and the new one can take root and grow well with enough vegetation days until the end of the year.

well done by you.

we recently planted out two.

almost at the same time. we can now all follow them with excitement 

[SeanK]

More found today. $248, largest has about 40" of trunk.

[Las Palmas Norte]

18 hours ago, SeanK said:

More found today. $248, largest has about 40" of trunk.

Nice. I found single trunk P. roebelenii about 40" tall a couple of years ago, $99 cad ($70 usd) and didn't buy. 😂

[SeanK]

16 minutes ago, Las Palmas Norte said:

Nice. I found single trunk P. roebelenii about 40" tall a couple of years ago, $99 cad ($70 usd) and didn't buy. 😂

Yup. I really need to build that small conservatory.

[Chester B]

Lowes in Atasocita has a bunch of palms 1/2 off.  Serenoa, Chamaerops and Butia as well as the ubiquitous P roebellinii.  Small triple roebellinii are $10, the rest $35-$45.

[SeanK]

On 5/19/2025 at 12:31 PM, Chester B said:

Lowes in Atasocita has a bunch of palms 1/2 off.  Serenoa, Chamaerops and Butia as well as the ubiquitous P roebellinii.  Small triple roebellinii are $10, the rest $35-$45.

Bargains, and cold hardy enough for the area

[Sabal_Louisiana]

I bought a couple of Queens 5-6 ft tall for 19.98 each at the blue store. They had a 12 footer for about 100. I was tempted. At these prices, I will take my chances and maybe even get a few years out of em. Just buy a couple more if and when one of the big freezes. These are not the cold hardy stock.

Also at this store:

Bismarck 79 small, 149 medium (abt. 4’ tall).

Foxtails 7 ft for just under 100

pygmy dates and small Serenoa for prices quoted in other posts. I can get the latter for 65 locally at twice the size. Some bottle palms too.

 None of the above is really adapted for this region long term.

I may have seen some Med fans tho.

Small and expensive Pindos, 3 gal for $84.

No sabals, windmills and a curious absence of Washingtonia of late.

No Canaries either but they have declined around here in the last few years. I still see quite a few but disease has been getting to some of them.

[PAPalmtrees]

I got this Aucuba japonica At Lowe's for 14 bucks!!! If anyone's in the Chambersburg PA area I got this at the Chambersburg PA Lowe's

[SeanK]

1 hour ago, PAPalmtrees said:

I got this Aucuba japonica At Lowe's for 14 bucks!!! If anyone's in the Chambersburg PA area I got this at the Chambersburg PA Lowe's

Thanks for the heads up. I need more of it for a hedge. I'll go tomorrow and check.

- but not in PA.

[PAPalmtrees]

2 hours ago, SeanK said:

Thanks for the heads up. I need more of it for a hedge. I'll go tomorrow and check.

- but not in PA.

You are welcome hopefully you can find some!😊

[NMPalmjunky]

Not a palm, but a great find at my local WM.

[NMPalmjunky]

Just now, NMPalmjunky said:

Not a palm, but a great find at my local WM.

Argentine Saguaro

[amh]

It's not a palm, but I picked up a $3, 5 gallon nectarine tree over the weekend.

[SeanK]

Costco today; $30 

[SeanK]

My blue and red stores are turning into barren wastelands. Arborvitae and Annuals.

I never found any Aucuba nor the R. excelsis that others had in their 'hoods.

[jwitt]

On 3/19/2025 at 10:34 PM, jwitt said:

No palms, but I saw a pallet of aspen(Populus tremuloides) in Rio Rancho, NM Lowes. 

They do well with proper watering too, like a lawn.

Today's pic

Sarcasm

[ChrisA]

Those poor Aspen are doomed.  I've only seen them look decent near and above Tramway.

[jwitt]

2 hours ago, ChrisA said:

Those poor Aspen are doomed.  I've only seen them look decent near and above Tramway.

Not too far, Sandia Casino, but you are right.

I was just upset because there were absolutely no palmage at our westside big boxes. Plenty aspen tho.  Nothing really at all interesting save for some cacti. But most of them were way out of zone. 

On a side note, I did score another nice plant that is pretty much undoable here.   A gardenia. Trying the huge pot method on the patio! 

Back to palms, sorry!

[ChrisA]

Beautiful Gardenia!  BTW I’ve had good luck with a Trichocereus such as was posted above for many years with zero protection.  I think the tag says hardy to 35F but they are hardier than that. Happy to post a pic of the one I had in Albuquerque if anyone wants to see. It had electric pink flowers in early summer that were gorgeous! It may still be alive, I haven’t checked in a while few years though.

Anywho, here is a photo from a BigBox yesterday in San Antonio. Some nice big Bottle Palms, Queens, and small Mexican Fan Palms.