For years I have wondered why palms are not present in all homes where house plants are enjoyed. I have about come to the conclusion that price and a general misunderstanding about these wonderful plants are the main culprits. The price for a developed palm plant can be quite staggering. Even the smallest palm in a five gallon container can cost around twenty-five to fifty bucks. A mature tree palm delivered to your home can cost from several hundred to several thousand dollars.
A misconception about palms is that they will only grow in the tropics and deserts. While it is true that many of the over three thousand species of palms do thrive in these hot humid areas, it is also true that some are quite cold hardy and with some degree of protection can be raised in areas where it freezes. And it is very true that almost every palm makes a good houseplant although some of the tree types will eventually out grow their limited surroundings.
Another unknown about palms it that they can be easily raised from seed at a cost of less than a dollar each. They require little maintenance and add beauty and value to your home.
Here is a selection of my favorite palms. I hope you will try a few.
It is commonly known as Windamere palm, for the locality where its first botanical description was made, the garden of the famous Windamere Hotel in Darjeeling, India. It was formally photographed and collected for the first time only in 1992 during the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh Sikkim Expedition. It is considered a temperate palm, and has been reported to withstand a wide range of climates, from tropical, subtropical to cold and wet conditions. It is native to Sikkim in the Himalayas, where it has been reported from a range of elevation between 3500 to 7000 feet. It remains in the wild in just one tiny, heavily altered location which is immediately threatened by deforestation. Cold hardy to about 28 degrees.
Unlike the royal palm, the cabbage palm has no crownshaft. Leaves emerge directly from the trunk which is often covered with old leaf stem bases that are arranged in an interesting criss-cross pattern. Depending on the individual these may persist to the ground even in very old palms. Other trees in the same vicinity may shed their leaf attachments or "boots" as they are sometimes called very early in life revealing a rough fibrous brown trunk. Eventually the trunk will age to gray and the surface will become smooth.
The cabbage palm's creamy white flowers are arranged on a long branched inflorescence that appears in summer. In mid-summer the cabbage palm bears creamy white flowers on a long branched inflorescence that is held completely within the crown. Flowers are followed in late fall or early winter by black spherical fruit that is about one third of an inch in diameter. Inside is a shiney brown seed that is about one quarter of an inch in diameter. Squirrels, raccoon and many other species of mammal and bird enjoy visiting the cabbage palm for dinner feasts of fruit and seed.
This southeastern U.S. native palm occurs near the coast, from the North Carolina barrier islands to South Carolina, to Georgia, down to the Florida Keys and then up the Gulf Coast to the northwestern Florida panhandle. Sabal palmetto is also native to Cuba and the Bahamas. It is often planted all along the Gulf Coast. Cabbage palm occurs along beaches, sandy bay and estuary shores. It inhabits the margins of tidal flats and marshlands where it often crowds into extensive groves. It's also encountered inland in hardwood hammocks and pine flatwoods.
Sabal palmetto is very salt and drought tolerant and can be used in beachside plantings. It is able to adapt to most types of soil. Cabbage palms are easy to transplant if they have at least six feet of trunk.
Requires Full sunlight to some shade. Trunk development is suppressed in heavily shaded specimens. Average moisture will do. Tolerates drought, standing water and brackish water. Hardy to USDA Zones 8-10. This is a hardy frost tolerant palm that can survive many degrees below freezing.
Two cabbage palmettos shade a bayside picnic area while framing Tampa Bay's Sunshine Skyway Bridge. The cabbage palm is used as an ornamental and street tree, well adapted for group, specimen or avenue plantings. This palm is very salt tolerant and can be grown on the beach or directly at the water's edge of bays and inlets. The state of Florida has been planting cabbage palmettos by the hundreds along the state's freeways. The palm groves refresh the eye and absorb the road noise providing a calming influence for both motorists and the environment. Cabbage palm is very low maintenance and drought resistant making if a perfect choice for urban plantings.
Young potted cabbage palms will take up to ten years before they begin to form a trunk. They grow slowly these first years as root system and the crown forms. Once the trunk does begin to develop the growth rate increases somewhat. The growth rate of cabbage palm can be significantly increased with regular watering and feeding.
Cabbage palm is the state tree of Florida and is displayed on the state flag of South Carolina whose nickname is the "Palmetto State". The durable trunks are sometimes used for wharf pilings, docks and poles. Brushes and brooms can be made from young leaves, and the large fan shaped leaves have been used by the Seminole Indians in Florida as thatch for traditional pavilions, called chickees.
Saw palmetto occurs naturally on the coastal plain from
South Carolina to southeastern Louisiana. It grows in a wide
range of habitats from seaside sand dunes and dry scrub to
moist forests, pine flatwoods and even wetlands. Saw palmetto
can be the dominant ground cover in certain southeastern pine
forests, sometimes covering hundreds of acres. Culture: Once
established, saw palmetto is virtually maintenance-free.
Light: Prefers full sun, but can tolerate partial sun.
Moisture: Tolerates drought but can also tolerate moderately
moist soils.
Hardiness: Fully hardy to zone 7, this palm has been seen
growing in zone 6, but does suffer foliage damage at 10 degrees
F. and complete foliage loss at 3-5 degrees F.
Saw palmetto is a beautiful little palm and richly deserves a place in the ornamental landscape. Plant saw palmettos in front of clumps of larger palms, or even underneath large palms. They look good massed in clumps in mixed borders, or as framing hedges. Use as accents to trees or in foundation plantings.
Features: The berries of saw palmetto are used as a treatment for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia or enlarged prostate gland. They are also used as a diuretic to tone the bladder, improve urinary flow, and decrease urinary frequency. They may help prevent prostate cancer.
Note: We only ship this product to addresses inside the USA. The following ingredients are used in making Jim's Plant Growth Stimulator:
Each 8 ounce bottle of JPG01 Plant Growth Stimulator makes 16 gallons spray-on solution, you can also use a drench and pour it around the base of the plant if you prefer. The bottle comes with a 1/2 ounce measuring spoon, simply mix a half ounce of plant growth stimulator with a gallon of water and spray onto the plants, or drench the soil around the plant. :