The listing says these are 4 years old. Are Butia Odorata REALLY that slow? 

https://ebay.us/m/Au4Nx9

1 minute ago, JohnAndSancho said:

The listing says these are 4 years old. Are Butia Odorata REALLY that slow? 

https://ebay.us/m/Au4Nx9

If what appears to be a trunk, my question is what happened to all the fronds? I can't imagine a 4 year old butia that small. It should at least have a number of fronds/leaves.

At four years it should have a pinnate leaf or two. Maybe rabbits gave this one a hurricane cut.

I think everybody knows how bad I'm jonesing for one of these, but even for $5.... This? And they say they're gonna fold these tiny little leaves to save on shipping? And it's "believed" to be a Butia? Pass. 

I have a year or so old volunteer that already has windows in the strap leaves 

Maybe they've been growing these in a dark closet. 

13 hours ago, JohnAndSancho said:

The listing says these are 4 years old. Are Butia Odorata REALLY that slow? 

https://ebay.us/m/Au4Nx9

It's hard to believe that this palm is 4 years old. I know Butias are slow to moderate growers but this palm should have some pinnate leaves at least.  Are you interested in buying a Butia odorata ?

20 minutes ago, MarcusH said:

It's hard to believe that this palm is 4 years old. I know Butias are slow to moderate growers but this palm should have some pinnate leaves at least.  Are you interested in buying a Butia odorata ?

Yes indeedily doodily, but my budget is almost zero so it looks like seeds for me. I'm literally taking on palms and plants that people were going to compost and overstock goodies from growers, just to give you an idea of where I'm at. The CIDP seedling is probably the first plant I've actually bought for myself since I got sick. 

3 hours ago, JohnAndSancho said:

Yes indeedily doodily, but my budget is almost zero so it looks like seeds for me. I'm literally taking on palms and plants that people were going to compost and overstock goodies from growers, just to give you an idea of where I'm at. The CIDP seedling is probably the first plant I've actually bought for myself since I got sick. 

I understand John. I'm trying to think of solutions for someone who's on a budget but still can enjoy the looks of a palm that actually looks like a palm and not some weeds for many years ...do I make sense ? Most very cold hardy palms , at least the common ones you hear about all the time in this forum , are slow growers.  To get a sabal seedling to grow to a acceptable size it takes many many years and that includes Phoenix Canarienses as well.  If you're able to take $30 in your hand you might find a "good sized" Butia Odorata at HD or Lowe's at the right time.  I don’t know what the BB stores offer over there.  It's just an idea. 

21 minutes ago, MarcusH said:

I understand John. I'm trying to think of solutions for someone who's on a budget but still can enjoy the looks of a palm that actually looks like a palm and not some weeds for many years ...do I make sense ? Most very cold hardy palms , at least the common ones you hear about all the time in this forum , are slow growers.  To get a sabal seedling to grow to a acceptable size it takes many many years and that includes Phoenix Canarienses as well.  If you're able to take $30 in your hand you might find a "good sized" Butia Odorata at HD or Lowe's at the right time.  I don’t know what the BB stores offer over there.  It's just an idea. 

Understood. We don't get very much in the way of palms at Lowes or the Wally World, and the nearest HD is 90 miles away. Lately I've spent tons of time digging in the apps and I've spent so much time on eBay this week they send me an email every hour lol. 

My Sabal Bermudana from seed are I guess about a year and a half old and the biggest ones are on their 4th and 5th strap leaves. I've been gifted some nice looking Trachies but I want them to put on some size before I put them in the ground. And I'm going to bring my Butia hybrid in for one more winter before he goes in the ground. 

4 hours ago, JohnAndSancho said:

Understood. We don't get very much in the way of palms at Lowes or the Wally World, and the nearest HD is 90 miles away. Lately I've spent tons of time digging in the apps and I've spent so much time on eBay this week they send me an email every hour lol. 

My Sabal Bermudana from seed are I guess about a year and a half old and the biggest ones are on their 4th and 5th strap leaves. I've been gifted some nice looking Trachies but I want them to put on some size before I put them in the ground. And I'm going to bring my Butia hybrid in for one more winter before he goes in the ground. 

Are you interested in a Washingtonia Filifera, like a seedling ? Would they do ok in your area ? Is that even something you're interested in ?

23 hours ago, JohnAndSancho said:

The listing says these are 4 years old. Are Butia Odorata REALLY that slow? 

https://ebay.us/m/Au4Nx9

Probably grown indoors with insufficient lighting if I had to guess.

29 minutes ago, MarcusH said:

Are you interested in a Washingtonia Filifera, like a seedling ? Would they do ok in your area ? Is that even something you're interested in ?

Yep yep yep. As long as we don't have another freak winter like we had last year, or the year before, or the year before, lol. Anyway yeah I actually have one in the ground that doesn't look great, I think the cats chewed on it, but it's pushing new growth. This is kind of a low spot here, so it might not be it's happiest. I'm glad you said something, I had all of these stakes just trying to hold it together so I moved one of them.

 

And I've got another volunteer that's probably Filibusta, who knows, that's got a little droop to it but it's recovering.

 

And I've got another volunteer Filibusta? that something chewed up on, and it's responded by growing some big fat glossy fans. This one also got sunburned REALLY bad when I put it in the dirt. Size 11 shoe reference pic, it's probably a 13 inch frond on like an 8 inch palm 😂

 

I've jokingly and lovingly referred to this as "the bed of the unwanted bastards," and 2 people have actually sent me notes when they shipped stuff and said "here's some more bastards for you." But I love Washies. I had one on the patio of my old apartment named Dirty Sanchez, and out of all the plants and furniture and everything I left behind, the only thing I miss more than my truck is that palm. 

Anybody want to talk me out of this? Anybody have an unwanted volunteer that they'll let me cover shipping for? 

https://ebay.us/m/ynm21c

 

By my guesstimate this will save me a year from seed. 

9 hours ago, JohnAndSancho said:

Anybody want to talk me out of this? Anybody have an unwanted volunteer that they'll let me cover shipping for? 

https://ebay.us/m/ynm21c

 

By my guesstimate this will save me a year from seed. 

John, I'm getting mixed messages here. You're looking at a strap-leaf seedling but you mention saving time. Prices are painful even for those blades of grass but if you're talking time then the cost of saving years might be worth holding off.

6 hours ago, 5am said:

John, I'm getting mixed messages here. You're looking at a strap-leaf seedling but you mention saving time. Prices are painful even for those blades of grass but if you're talking time then the cost of saving years might be worth holding off.

I guess I was referring to the time of germinating seeds. That in and of itself is a process for a lot of seeds and there's no guarantee of viability. I mean, I've had stuff on my heat mats for eternity, and I've had Washies sprout so fast they steamed in the bag like asparagus. Sabals have done reasonably well for me, and so far I've got 4/10 or so L. Chineseis fresh and 0% out of year old seed. My process is the same for everything, I soak and add a squirt of h2o2, change the water daily, clean, and h2o2 again for a few hours before I put them in a baggie of damp coco coir, checking them often, mist the coir if it's too dry. Some stuff I started putting in old Tupperware on the mats since my cheap mats don't have thermostats, it's either unplugged or hot. 

I just saw this thread . To answer your question , yes Butia are very slow out the gate . As far as cost , I bought mine over  30 years ago as a seeding , about the age of the one in the ad , for $7 . It was healthy and in better shape . In the early nineties there was a nursery that sold seedlings of various palms that couldn’t be found anywhere . The average cost was $5-$7 which was a deal. Five dollars today barely buys a cup of decent coffee. Some seeds can take the better part of a year to sprout . The subsequent growth can be equally as slow. Harry

This Howea took a full year to sprout . This was taken over a year ago , I dug it up and potted it a month or so ago , as a larger palm but still young. I wouldn’t sell it for $5. I have a few that were from the same seeds , planted at the same time . This was the first to sprout . Others were a couple months later. 

On 8/18/2025 at 11:58 PM, JohnAndSancho said:

Anybody want to talk me out of this? Anybody have an unwanted volunteer that they'll let me cover shipping for? 

https://ebay.us/m/ynm21c

 

By my guesstimate this will save me a year from seed. 

I have several hundred that are far better looking than that.  If I can get my nephew to help me pack it I can ship one or two to you for shipping cost.  

Message me your address.

 

Mine seam reasonably fast. All are on their 6th or seventh frond of the season. Probably good for another 2 or three before the season it out. (Guessing it supposed to cool down next week) the constant summer temps in the 70’s really get them moving. 
 

Mine all responded well to irrigation. 

On 8/21/2025 at 8:18 PM, RJ said:

Mine seam reasonably fast. All are on their 6th or seventh frond of the season. Probably good for another 2 or three before the season it out. (Guessing it supposed to cool down next week) the constant summer temps in the 70’s really get them moving. 
 

Mine all responded well to irrigation. 

I should clarify that I should of added... "the constant summer temps in the 70’s" should of read "the constant NIGHTIME summer temps in the 70’s" 

 

Sorry about that.