I love the look of the giant fishtail palm but have lost my only one. Is it possible to grow a giant fishtail palm in 8b or am I wasting my time?
Is it possible to grow a giant fishtail palm in 8b?
Is that the same as the foxtail palm? I got one in Key West when we were there for vacation several years ago, and I haul it in the green house every winter. Now it is about seven feet tall, and will probably have to go in the motor home barn this year. I am afraid to plant it too. I am trying some palms, though, and so far, all have made it . Like the Queen palm, the washingtonia, and of course the cabbage palms love it here. I thought maybe I would string some blinking Christmas lights on really cold nights, but cannot do that forever when they get tall.
Its not the same as a foxtail palm. Foxtails seem to grow very well here in lower 8b (San Antonio). I have a foxtail. DO a search on giant fishtail palms. Wonderful plants.
Wow!! I always thought they put the Christmas lights on the palms in the tropics for deco.!!! I have 3 queens that I planted this year, and they will definitely be lit for the winter!! I also got a foxtail this year, but from the info I found, I thought it was a zone9-10 palm, I had planned on keeping it in a pot for now.
I have seen pictures of the fishtail, but have not found one to buy.
Janet
Hi Jester,
If the palm in question is the Giant Fishtail Palm, Caryota rumphiana, it wouldn't survive 8b...it is rated for 10b-11. It is indeed a very beautiful palm.
**(info obtained from my book called Betrock's Guide to Landscape Palms,which is a very good book)
Thanks, I was afraid of that. Well, I will have to find an excuse to move to a 10b area that my wife will believe.
would you like a list of palms that would suit your area better?
Absolutely justmeLisa. I love palms. Looks likeI will have to trade away my Giant Fishtail Palm seeds now :- (
Hi Jester, I forgot to "watch this thread".
Zone 8 palms:
Butia capitata..................."jelly palm"
Chamaerops humilis............"european fan palm"
Nannorrhops ritchiana........."mazari palm"
Rhapidophyllum hystrix........"needle palm"
Sabal minor......................"Dwarf palmetto"
Sabal palmetto.................""cabbage palm"
Serenoa repens................"saw palmetto"
Trachycarpus fortunei........"windmill palm"
Washingtonia filifera..........."Petticoat palm"
Washingtonia robusta.........."Mexican fan palm"
About the most cold hardy fishtail palm is Caryota ochlandra, which can handle 24F without dying. Some of the larger species, such as C urens and C gigas are pretty cold hardy, too, but will be pretty badly damaged if not killed by temps as low as 26F... I assume you get colder than that? If so, best to try maybe C mitis or C urens indoors.
we don't really get that cold here in San Antonio. Only drops below 32 once or twice a year.