JuniPerez

Hello!

I got a huge surprise this past weekend when I visited my local Walmart. I was browsing their gardening department when some bright blue containers caught my eye. Our Walmart here sells a lot of, and only, Queen Palms for some reason... BUT these guys looked like windmill palms! AND THEY WERE! The label said Windmill Palm (Trachycarpus fortunei). Then I noticed another one across the isle, a Needle Palm (Rhapidophyllum hystrix)... then a European Fan Palm (Chamaerops humilis). I was in heaven! There were also cycads like Sago and Coontie, but these palms stood out for me. All were in 3-gallon pots (a little less... like 2-point-something) priced at $18.88. Yet the trees seemed slightly bigger than the 3-gallon palms I've bought online and much healthier looking. I picked up a few, except the Euro fan - apparently someone got bored and snapped the fronds and I wasn't going to try to save it, much less pay full price! I hope they got pricked!

Back when I started collecting cold-hardy palm trees & bananas, about 5 years ago, I asked at this Walmart if they had any or could see if any other stores do. The guy in the gardening department laughed and said "Cold-hardy palm trees? Palm trees are tropical... tropical means warm... warm means not-Rochester!" I haven't seen him there lately but I so wanted to shove one of these palms up his behind and do the I-told-you-so dance in his face.

I guess cold-hardy palms have gone mainstream. Has anyone else seen these? The pots are blue (might vary... dunno) and are sold under the brand name "Cold Zone". Label claims they're grown by Costa Farms in Florida. I wonder if they also sell the cold hardy bananas and other tropicalesques.

Twitpic - Share photos on Twitter

saltydad

I don't know the grower, but both HD and Lowe's have been carrying the hardy "blue pot" palms for a few years. I have a needle that I bought from HD that does great. They are also a bargain.

__________________
Men In Nursing- "A Few Good Men"

"Gardening is the purest of human pleasures." - Francis Bacon





"If by a liberal, they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind; someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions; someone who cares about the welfare of the people, their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, their civil liberties; someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicion that grips us; that is what they meant by a liberal, I am proud to be a liberal."
John F. Kennedy, September, 1960


http://flickr.com/photos/saltydad/ and
http://community.webshots.com/user/saltydad
http://s751.photobucket.com/albums/xx151/saltydad/

Abnshrek

We have them Blue tub palms down here. I think for some palms they are pushing their luck selling them way up there. I think selling them that far north gives the normal customer a false sense of hope that those plants will survive and endure all hardships associated with the cold. I think stores here do to much of that as well. :^)

__________________


I'm a Nannerhead :^)

Dean W.

Some of those palms should do okay. For example the Trachy.

__________________

JuniPerez

Well, I have Trachys growing outside and they've done well... the Waggie that everyone shook their heads at me for leaving unprotected is doing super. The T. latisectus is mad at me - but it lacks the energy to pimp-smack me and I don't think it'll recover. The needle should do even better... the Euro fan has me wondering, but we'll soon find out.

natej740

Our walmart just had some nice sago palms ive been hoping they will get some windmills

cuja1

JuniPerez, have you grown needle palms unprotected in Rochester NY? If so did they survive?

JuniPerez

cuja1

Juni, what's the longest period of below freezing temps it has seen? I'm in Spingfield, IL zone 5b/6a and was wandering if there's ever a chance I could leave mine unprotected after it gets established. We don't see many days below 0 and it usually doesn't get much colder than -10 F (I know that's still really cold ) We do commonly see extended periods of below freezing weather though. 2 weeks of never climbing above 32 F is not uncommon.

Thaks Jeff