Possible Adonidia hybrid

[quaman58]

Hey all, 

I got a couple seedlings from my nephew, about 4 years back. He works at a local nursery here and these were allegedly some type of Adonidia cross, probably with Veitchia. Anyway, both plants are growing well, but look rather different from each other, especially on the stems and petioles. I tortured this one in a pot for a bit over a year, but after putting in the ground a year or so ago, it’s beginning to recover nicely. The cool winters here don’t seem to phase them really at all. So my question is, does anyone recognize this particular plant as a possible species of Veitchia? I’m currently growing arecina, joannis and spiralis, but this appears different, especially the stem. Or has it just got quirky features of a hybrid? Thanks for looking!

[JD in the OC]

So the seed definitely came off an Adonidia merrillii? 

JD

[quaman58]

The seed was allegedly from pure Adonidia. Jungle music was actually the nursery. But as plants started coming up, they thought it was clear that there was some sort of hybridization going on, not only in appearance, but in cold hardiness. At least that’s my understanding of the history of them. Obviously, since there’s no Adonidia (at least seeding) in Southern California, there’s a whole lot of speculation going on here. But I still don’t recognize the traits of any particular pure species.

[JD in the OC]

It definitely looks like an Adonidia x Veitchia.  Aka 'California Christmas palm'. If Phil got the seeds from FL, they probably came from me.  You have a very nice specimen there.. Not all of them turned out that nice...esp in CA. 

JD

[kinzyjr]

This is a hybrid that definitely piques my interest.  If/When my Adonidias and Veitchias begin flowering, this will be one on the list to try.

[JD in the OC]

2 minutes ago, kinzyjr said:

This is a hybrid that definitely piques my interest.  If/When my Adonidias and Veitchias begin flowering, this will be one on the list to try.

Most of the ones grown here in FL and also on CA don't look good/do well.  The one in this post happens to be one of the exceptions to the rule.  Perhaps other collectors can weigh in too..

JD

[quaman58]

Thanks for the information JD! So, here’s a picture of the other one. Completely different looking in my opinion, but also very hardy and very beautiful. This one definitely has a bit more affinity with V. joannis. The stem and the petioles are this awesome chocolate brown, sort of fading into yellow, where the leaflets attach. Just a beautiful plant.

[Rob123]

11 minutes ago, quaman58 said:

Thanks for the information JD! So, here’s a picture of the other one. Completely different looking in my opinion, but also very hardy and very beautiful. This one definitely has a bit more affinity with V. joannis. The stem and the petioles are this awesome chocolate brown, sort of fading into yellow, where the leaflets attach. Just a beautiful plant.

Bret! Those are both beauties! I have two from Jungle Music and Ricardo was under the impression that they had two different batches of seed come in and I have two from them that look a tad bit different from one another. My smallest one had more color on the stems and a bit more black speckling just like this palm. Phil wasn’t as sure about getting in two batches of seed but interestingly the tag on my smaller, less robust grower was Veitchia hybrid. The palm in the photos below was purchased as Adonidia merrillii hybrid. It’s a bit more on the yellowish side because it was getting like 12 hours of direct sun until recently. 

[Billeb]

23 hours ago, quaman58 said:

 

Brett, those plants don’t look anything alike to me. The larger looks much more interesting and more of a Hybrid possibility than the other even considering the tag. I’d bet Phil got the seeds from FL like @JD in the OC stated. I’d go with his ID. 
 

-dale

[quaman58]

Nice Rob! Yours looks to be a near carbon copy of the first palm in thread. It also looks to be a really fast grower. How far from the coast in Oceanside are you?

[quaman58]

1 minute ago, Billeb said:

Brett, those plants don’t look anything alike to me. The larger looks much more interesting and more of a Hybrid possibility than the other even considering the tag. I’d bet Phil got the seeds from FL like @JD in the OC stated. I’d go with his ID. 
 

-dale

Hey Dale, totally agree. I was just thinking there might be some variation on these hybrids if that’s indeed what they are. So the second palm shown, if it’s not a hybrid, is a total mystery to me. Even though I’m not in the ideal part of the world to grow Veitchia, i’ve looked at enough different species within the genus, so I’m definitely thinking hybrid. Your suspicion that Phil got those seeds from JD is probably accurate.