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Posted by Jim Wilmington DE 7a on 4/10/2023, 3:38 pm
My Trachy 'Nainital'. Not much trunk to it, but it's well over 7 feet tall, ground to highest leaf tips. Only over the last 2 or 3 years has it started to put on some height.
Sabal Minor 'Hatteras'. The photo almost doesn't do it justice. The biggest fronds are over 5 feet wide. Very tropical looking for up here!
Sabal Minor 'McCurtain'. In the early days, this Minor was more cold sensitive than the Hatteras strain. But, as it has become very established, it has surpassed its neighbor in hardiness. Not as stunning, visually, as the Hatteras, but a great palm to have.
A volunteer Minor that popped up on its own at the front of my house, right up against the foundation. The trick is, all my other Minors are in the BACK yard! So, some critter must be responsible. I don't know if it's a Hatteras, a McCurtain, or a hybrid. It's location, right on the bricks, gives this palm a lot of help against Old Man Winter.
My massive Needle Palm at the front of my house. I think it was PJ from this very board who told me I'd grow to love this palm after I had bad-mouthed it here when it was a baby. Apparently, I wasn't impressed with its tendency to pull spears its first few winters. It was planted as a 1-gallon and was tiny. PJ said words to the effect of, "When it gets tall enough that you can see it out your window on a cold January day, you'll eat your words." And of course, he was right.
The first Ponciris flower to open this year. Got a much smaller-than-usual fruit crop last year from this tree I grew from seed in 1998. Had a lotta flowers in '22, but very little fruit in the fall. Some years, it's loaded with golfball-sized oranges.
Hope you enjoyed!
Jim, Wilmington, DE, 7a Last 30 Years Avg. Winter Low: 7.50F Last 20 Years Avg. Winter Low: 8.35F Last 10 Years Avg. Winter Low: 8.40F Favorite Palms: Species: Phoenix Canariensis / Genus: Sabal
Steve, I used to build shelters for it out of trash cans with the bottoms cut out. Then it outgrew that method 2 or 3 years ago, so all it's gotten since is a good mound of mulch at the base and I cinch up the fronds (against the wind & snow) with Ace bandages. But otherwise, it's very exposed. The bandages only cover maybe 5 or 10% of the total leaf surfaces.
I removed about 10 of the older fronds that ranged from being completely toasted to half green/half brown. The newer fronds did really well. ...As you can see.Jim, Wilmington, DE, 7a Last 30 Years Avg. Winter Low: 7.50F Last 20 Years Avg. Winter Low: 8.35F Last 10 Years Avg. Winter Low: 8.40F Favorite Palms: Species: Phoenix Canariensis / Genus: Sabal