New Smyrna Beach coconut and other exotics

[Maddox Gardening-youtube]

On 10/12/2025 at 7:18 PM, SeanK said:

Not sure what that is. Looking at the area on Google Street, it's 97% S.palmetto. I saw two Queens and one W.robusta.

 

[Golden10]

I have some bad news. No surprise these palms I previously posted suffered from the freeze. See updated photos from today, all of the tropicals in the nearby neighborhoods are fried 

 

[ck_in_fla]

I suspected this would be the case...

I'm in the Orlando area and we haven't seen temperatures like this in at least 40 years.

I wonder if any of the coconut palms further South on A-1-A directly on the ocean survived.  I was over there back in August and we drove down to JB's Fish Camp.  And on the drive down there I saw lots of coconut palms, many looked like they had been there for a number of years.  So, perhaps some of them directly on the ocean survived.

[Golden10]

4 hours ago, ck_in_fla said:

I suspected this would be the case...

I'm in the Orlando area and we haven't seen temperatures like this in at least 40 years.

I wonder if any of the coconut palms further South on A-1-A directly on the ocean survived.  I was over there back in August and we drove down to JB's Fish Camp.  And on the drive down there I saw lots of coconut palms, many looked like they had been there for a number of years.  So, perhaps some of them directly on the ocean survived.

I think the winds were just too strong on this one and microclimates didn’t make a difference. When I used to drive here I would have to look for the exotic palms, now I just look for brown and that’s how I spot them. An unbelievable amount of fried exotics in new Smyrna, right close to the beach. Arecas, royals, foxtails, spindles, bottles, coconuts. All fried. Only thing that seems to have made it is queens, Washingtonia, and sabals 

I know like a lot of us zone pushers I was hopeful driving through areas like this in the past but this is eye opening. After this freeze my perspective has completely changed, I will always have a few exotics but it will be a much smaller collection now. Now looking for cold hardy tropical looking palms for my main palms such as beccariophoenix alfredii and maybe some ribbon palms. Already have queens and Washingtonia Too devastating of a loss in the yard. Lost all my juvenile exotics 

[ck_in_fla]

Thanks for the update.  I guess this could be considered a "Zone Defining" event.  I have a 40' tall Royal palm that has been growing at my Orlando area home for 24 years.  It is mostly fried.  But, I believe it will survive as the growing bud is so high off the ground.  But, it will take months to regrow the crown.

Thanks again for the quick response.  It will be interesting to see if any of those coconut palms along A-1-A beachside may survive.

[Golden10]

21 minutes ago, ck_in_fla said:

Thanks for the update.  I guess this could be considered a "Zone Defining" event.  I have a 40' tall Royal palm that has been growing at my Orlando area home for 24 years.  It is mostly fried.  But, I believe it will survive as the growing bud is so high off the ground.  But, it will take months to regrow the crown.

Thanks again for the quick response.  It will be interesting to see if any of those coconut palms along A-1-A beachside may survive.

No prob! I hope your royal makes it 

i am close to Daytona area coast, lost my Areca hedge, total of 16. They weren’t mature but probably 6-7 ft tall. As boring as it sounds I will probably replace with a podocarpus hedge  and maybe incorporate some other palms. Even the clusia in the area is destroyed. It was just too much work and stress this winter, now I have 16 arecas burned to the ground to remove. Like I said I will always have some exotics but learned a valuable lesson this year.. I will replace some of the arecas or redesign an area for them but won’t be a mainstay in the landscape this time. 
 

I was even shocked at how fried my protected  6 ft triple robelini was. Still am not sure if it will make it. Bud seems to be green but everything else is brown 

[Bkue]

3 hours ago, Golden10 said:

No prob! I hope your royal makes it 

i am close to Daytona area coast, lost my Areca hedge, total of 16. They weren’t mature but probably 6-7 ft tall. As boring as it sounds I will probably replace with a podocarpus hedge  and maybe incorporate some other palms. Even the clusia in the area is destroyed. It was just too much work and stress this winter, now I have 16 arecas burned to the ground to remove. Like I said I will always have some exotics but learned a valuable lesson this year.. I will replace some of the arecas or redesign an area for them but won’t be a mainstay in the landscape this time. 
 

I was even shocked at how fried my protected  6 ft triple robelini was. Still am not sure if it will make it. Bud seems to be green but everything else is brown 

Why lost? Too early to tell. Hopefully you don’t know something I don’t. I have nearly 400 and almost half look real bad. That said, the hearts look decent and underlying growth much better. Maybe I lose the tallest? I’m holding out hope. More concerned about the giant adonidias and nice royals. The adonidias so far look better than the rest. Heavy bronzing but still see green. The areca’s, at least on one side, look like a well placed match may start a hell of a burner. 

[Golden10]

1 hour ago, Bkue said:

Why lost? Too early to tell. Hopefully you don’t know something I don’t. I have nearly 400 and almost half look real bad. That said, the hearts look decent and underlying growth much better. Maybe I lose the tallest? I’m holding out hope. More concerned about the giant adonidias and nice royals. The adonidias so far look better than the rest. Heavy bronzing but still see green. The areca’s, at least on one side, look like a well placed match may start a hell of a burner. 

My arecas are fried to the base and falling over.. No green left unfortunately. .even if they recovered it would ba a very long road, and we would be back in frost season again. I knew it was risky planting them in 9b to begin with. They were facing NW and took a direct hit from the wind. Luckily my Adondia, cunninghamiana, and coconut were in 30 gallon pots so I was able to bring them In.  Not completely giving up, just not willing to have my landscape look like crud all year so I will go back with some cold hardier stuff to surround my exotics this time

[Bkue]

16 minutes ago, Golden10 said:

My arecas are fried to the base and falling over.. No green left unfortunately. .even if they recovered it would ba a very long road, and we would be back in frost season again. I knew it was risky planting them in 9b to begin with. They were facing NW and took a direct hit from the wind. Luckily my Adondia, cunninghamiana, and coconut were in 30 gallon pots so I was able to bring them In.  Not completely giving up, just not willing to have my landscape look like crud all year so I will go back with some cold hardier stuff to surround my exotics this time

I’m a zone pusher for sure. Brought in all I could. Bottles, coconuts, bunch of juveniles in pots. The rest had to fend.  All my understory tropicals got hammered. Figs, bananas, citrus, coconuts, mangos, etc. not worried about the unders. Bamboo was fine, locals fine, livistonioa fine, Bismarck a little tattered by wind but otherwise fine .most worried about about royals and adonidia. Adonidias are about as big as ive seen  around here. 

[donalt]

are any of you spraying copper fungicide around the terminal stem at the crown of these palms? I'm getting confusing information. I've always heard to spray after a freeze but should we spray only if the spear at the crown is brown? I have palms with bright green at the center crown . ???

[Zeeth]

On 2/7/2026 at 11:54 AM, Golden10 said:

I have some bad news. No surprise these palms I previously posted suffered from the freeze. See updated photos from today, all of the tropicals in the nearby neighborhoods are fried 

 

I think it might have a chance, the petioles still have some green to them and temps are warming up again.  It might not make it but I don't think it's necessarily 100% a goner.

[kinzyjr]

On 2/8/2026 at 7:36 AM, donalt said:

are any of you spraying copper fungicide around the terminal stem at the crown of these palms? I'm getting confusing information. I've always heard to spray after a freeze but should we spray only if the spear at the crown is brown? I have palms with bright green at the center crown . ???

On tropicals like coconuts, I do it as a preventative regardless of spear color.

[HudsonBill]

On 2/8/2026 at 3:43 AM, Golden10 said:

My arecas are fried to the base and falling over.. No green left unfortunately. .even if they recovered it would ba a very long road, and we would be back in frost season again. I knew it was risky planting them in 9b to begin with. They were facing NW and took a direct hit from the wind. Luckily my Adondia, cunninghamiana, and coconut were in 30 gallon pots so I was able to bring them In.  Not completely giving up, just not willing to have my landscape look like crud all year so I will go back with some cold hardier stuff to surround my exotics this time

I planted an areca hedge in the fall. It's all under canopy and received very little damage. They are maybe 5 to 7ft tall each one has a few damaged fronds but you can't even tell looking at it. I saw 13 nights below freezingbthis winter 26 and 24 on the bad nights. Out in the open I have another areca and it is pretty much gone. I have another inde canopy talents just 2 cane's about 12 to 14ft tall almost untouched and then another clump tahts about 10ft tall by my lanai that got burnt on the fronds higher and away from lanai

I guess my point is canopy seemed to help wind or no wind to some degree. They where getting the full brunt of the wind to