Oregon Palm Update

[Cody Salem]

I stopped by my previous home in Roseburg Oregon to check in on the palms I planted.  So glad to see the new owners kept all of them, even though they did remove a 50ft sequoia.  You can't see them from the road, but I got some pics from our old neighbors house.  They were all planted around 2011 and were probably 5 gal at the time.

 

Butia sp.?  Glad to see this looking so good,  I covered it a couple times when it was young, but the new owners haven't protected it at all.    

 

Even after a couple hard winters, all the fronds are still green.   I would guess that's around 5 years of fronds, which would be about the time we sold the house.   

 

Chamaerops humilis

 

Row of 6 Trachys, tallest is close to 20' and shortest is below the fence.

 

Other angle.

 

[SeanK]

Wow. All look great. The Chamaerops is beautiful. Tough to leave behind 

[Toddmin]

They look great!  I can imagine how I would feel to leave mine behind, but I know you were thrilled to see them looking so well! 

[Cody Salem]

14 hours ago, SeanK said:

Wow. All look great. The Chamaerops is beautiful. Tough to leave behind 

I actually did try to take that one.  I dug on it for awhile, but I just didn't have the equipment or time to do it properly. 

[Chester B]

You can definitely tell those palms love the Roseburg climate.  

[Cody Salem]

On 6/5/2025 at 8:34 AM, Chester B said:

You can definitely tell those palms love the Roseburg climate.  

Unlike Portland, I  think you could say Roseburg is a true zone 9, at least for the last 20 yrs.

[Zach K]

Aside from probably @Banana Belt's Judaea's, Roseburg is home to some of the largest Judaea's I've personally seen in Oregon. I'm pretty sure I saw a few Washy's growing off of I-5 too. 

[Banana Belt]

Roseburg Oregon on the Umpqua River is a nice climate for Palms, not as hot and dry during summer as the Rogue River Valley to the south and it is a bit warmer during winter.  The Umpqua River Valley climate is moderated by the Marine Air which moves inland from the coast over 100 miles.  Other inland areas in Western Oregon, such as Grants Pass, Medford and the Willamette Valley don't have Marine Air influences because of Coastal Mountain barriers.  Douglas County and the Umpqua River Valley is the only place in Western Oregon where Marine air penetrates eastward.  The Columbia River does allow marine air to move east moderating climate, but it also allows freezing air during winter to drain down to the coast.

[Zach K]

That is a perfect summary. Man, how I wish the Portland metro area had a similar climate effect as the Umpqua river valley and not those ridiculous freezing winds we get from the gorge. Oh well.

[Cody Salem]

On 6/9/2025 at 10:42 AM, Zach K said:

Aside from probably @Banana Belt's Judaea's, Roseburg is home to some of the largest Judaea's I've personally seen in Oregon. I'm pretty sure I saw a few Washy's growing off of I-5 too. 

There were some nice washys that made it about 10 yrs, but lost them all in 2009.

[Cody Salem]

15 hours ago, Banana Belt said:

Roseburg Oregon on the Umpqua River is a nice climate for Palms, not as hot and dry during summer as the Rogue River Valley to the south and it is a bit warmer during winter.  The Umpqua River Valley climate is moderated by the Marine Air which moves inland from the coast over 100 miles.  Other inland areas in Western Oregon, such as Grants Pass, Medford and the Willamette Valley don't have Marine Air influences because of Coastal Mountain barriers.  Douglas County and the Umpqua River Valley is the only place in Western Oregon where Marine air penetrates eastward.  The Columbia River does allow marine air to move east moderating climate, but it also allows freezing air during winter to drain down to the coast.

Roseburg has also been spared the worst of the Arctic blasts the last few years.  In jan 2024 we had 4 straight days with a low of 15 and highs in the 22-25 range in Salem, Roseburg had a low of 31.  Since 2000 Roseburg only had 2 events below 15° where the Willamette Valley had 6-7.