Palm Trees and other plants in PHX,AZ
John Hewitt
I am curious, are the palms trees here (Mexican Fan Palm) in Phoenix
Az,
the same palm trees that is in Flordia were it rains often? Most plants
here are drought resistant. The Date Palm seems to need more water
than the mexican fan palm but does pretty good here. I know a little
about the desert plants
that actually grow here. I am curious about the plants people plant here
and which ones are drought resistant. I am look for a book or a
references so I can learn the landscaping. I went to a few
plant shops here in phoenix but did not find a good enough book about
how plants are grown in sonoran desert but are from somewhere eles.
I see brushes on the freeway I know that are not from the
sonoran desert but seem to not require extra water and grow on thier
own. Any information will be helpful, I just moved to Phoenix
6 months ago and I am trying to understand how some of the
landscaping is done. I notice it can get down to about 38 degree
here on some winter nights, I wonder what the lowest temperture a palm
tree can handle and for how long?
James Yorton
In rec.gardens jwhe...@worldnet.att.net writes:
: I am curious, are the palms trees here (Mexican Fan Palm) in Phoenix
Every palm is different in its temperature and moisture requirements.
Depends where you are in Florida. Palms in central Florida can tolerate
some cold during the winter. Palms in South Florida, such as the
Coconut and Royal Palms detest extended cool weather and need consistently
warm weather *throughout* the year to grow. Freezing temperates can cause
damage. Which is why Miami Beach is lined with Coco Palms, but
Venice and Santa Monica beaches in CA are NOT.
But palms in the desert are able to tolerate the intense summer heat and
cool nights in winter, along with drought. I know of someone who
has a Coco Palm in their yard in Palm Springs. The poor thing looks
very unhappy, even with misting spray right above it.
Check with Southern Gardengate for Florida gardening. Also check
my Tropical Plant Web page (below) for links to Palms and books
on tropical gardening, along with a link to Southern GG.
______________________________________________________
Jim Yorton j...@xnet.com
Zone 5, Palatine, IL USA http://www.xnet.com/~jjy
Tropical Plant Page: http://www.xnet.com/~jjy/plants
______________________________________________________
Rick Cook
John Hewitt wrote:
>I am curious, are the palms trees here (Mexican Fan Palm) in Phoenix
>Az, the same palm trees that is in Flordia were it rains often?
There are some Mexican Fan Palms grown in Florida, but most of what I've
seen down there are other kinds. In Phoenix coconut palms are house plants,
for example, because they can't take the extreme dryness.
> Most plants here are drought resistant. The Date Palm seems to need >more
water than the mexican fan palm but does pretty good here.
I don't think date palms need more water than Mexican Fans. They're both
extremely drought tolerant.
> I know a little about the desert plants
>that actually grow here. I am curious about the plants people plant here
>and which ones are drought resistant. I am look for a book or a
>references so I can learn the landscaping. I went to a few
>plant shops here in phoenix but did not find a good enough book about
>how plants are grown in sonoran desert but are from somewhere else.
The place you want to do is the Desert Botanical Garden in Papago Park in
east Phoenix. It is a tremendous repository of knowledge about desert
plants and especially the plants of the Sonoran desert. They have a
selection of books in their gift shop that should answer most of your
questions and if not, the staff will be more than happy to recommend some
reading for you
>I see brushes on the freeway I know that are not from the
>sonoran desert but seem to not require extra water and grow on thier
>own.
Actually a lot of the landscaping along the freeways is native to the
Sonoran desert, although some of them are exotics. They have finally gotten
smart about that and stopped planting things like oleanders.
> Any information will be helpful, I just moved to Phoenix
>6 months ago and I am trying to understand how some of the
>landscaping is done.
I think the magic word you're looking for is 'xeriscaping'. That's the art
of landscaping with plants that don't need much water. Among the sources
you can check for information is the Maricopa County Extension Service
(470-8086), which has lots of gardening information, and the city water
department. In Phoenix at least they've got a big push to get people to
convert to xeriscaping to save water.
> I notice it can get down to about 38 degree here on some winter nights,
Actually it routinely gets down to freezing for at least a few nights every
winter and it can get down into the 'teens in a cold snap.
> I wonder what the lowest temperture a palm tree can handle and for >how long?
Depends on the palm tree species. The Mexican fans can take freezing
temperatures overnight without apparent damage.
bja...@aol.com
That brings up a thought. Everytime i see a bumpersticker or an art
postcard of california theres coconut palms drawn on it. I dont know of
any place in cali that can grow them out doors. Now we do have palms but
these are canary island date palms ( you can tell by the thicker trunk and
fuller crown than the species grown for fruit) and Mexican Fan palms. The
Date palm needs more water because essentially it is an oasis plant.
Meaning it grows around river banks and oasis' in the middle east.Same
with Washingtonias. These do grow in the mojave desert and they are desert
plants but they only grow around reliable water sources, such as springs
and areas where the water table is high.
BJ
"Lift your head to the sky
And keep tryin'
Believe in You
And it will take you higher"
-- Groove Theory
Oliver Patterson
John Hewitt wrote:
>
> I am curious, are the palms trees here (Mexican Fan Palm) in Phoenix
> Az,
There are lots of Mexican Fan Palms in peninsular Florida, as well as Canary
Island Date Palms. It would seem that these palms wouldn't like our weather,
but they do rather well.
> here are drought resistant. The Date Palm seems to need more water
> than the mexican fan palm but does pretty good here. I know a little
> about the desert plants
> that actually grow here. I am curious about the plants people plant here
> and which ones are drought resistant. I am look for a book or a
> references so I can learn the landscaping. I went to a few
> plant shops here in phoenix but did not find a good enough book about
> how plants are grown in sonoran desert but are from somewhere eles.
> I see brushes on the freeway I know that are not from the
> sonoran desert but seem to not require extra water and grow on thier
> own. Any information will be helpful, I just moved to Phoenix
> 6 months ago and I am trying to understand how some of the
> landscaping is done. I notice it can get down to about 38 degree
Phoenix can get much colder than that during winter nights. It gets about 30
freezes per year, though they are very mild ones.
> here on some winter nights, I wonder what the lowest temperture a palm
> tree can handle and for how long?
It depends on the kind of palm. Mexican Fan Palms can probably take 15
degrees, as can Date Palms, Cabbage (Sabal) Palms, and Jelly Palms. Coconut
Palms and Royal Palms, on the other hand, will not tolerate sub-30 degree
temperatures for very long.
--
Oliver Patterson
in Mount Dora, Florida (zone 9)
---------------------------------------------
Ah yet, ere I descend to the grave,
May I a small house and a large garden have;
And a few friends, and many books, both true,
Both wise, and both delightful, too!
Roger de Bussey-Rabutin
---------------------------------------------
Oliver Patterson
bja...@aol.com wrote:
>
> That brings up a thought. Everytime i see a bumpersticker or an art
> postcard of california theres coconut palms drawn on it. I dont know of
> any place in cali that can grow them out doors. Now we do have palms but
> these are canary island date palms ( you can tell by the thicker trunk and
> fuller crown than the species grown for fruit) and Mexican Fan palms. The
It's amazing how tall the Mexican Fan Palms that line the streets of L.A. are.
They must be either very old or very well adapted to L.A.'s climate. There are
also some very tall palms on the beach (if it can be called that) in San Diego,
but I'm not sure if they're Mexican Fan Palms.
> Date palm needs more water because essentially it is an oasis plant.
They also need hot, dry summers for good fruit production. The fruit they
produce here in Florida is worthless. It must be nice for those who live in
California to be able to pick fresh, delicious dates from their trees.
> Meaning it grows around river banks and oasis' in the middle east.Same
> with Washingtonias. These do grow in the mojave desert and they are desert
> plants but they only grow around reliable water sources, such as springs
> and areas where the water table is high.
With so many Date Palms grown in California, it is odd that they haven't escaped
from cultivation to grow in the oases.
Rick Cook
Oliver Patterson wrote:
>They also need hot, dry summers for good fruit production. The fruit they
>produce here in Florida is worthless. It must be nice for those who live
>in
>California to be able to pick fresh, delicious dates from their trees.
>
For another there's the problem of scorpions and other fauna living in in
the tops of the trees.
And then there's the odor when the trees are blooming. Some people call it
a stink. I just think it's heavy.
--RC
Oliver Patterson
Rick Cook wrote:
>
> Oliver Patterson wrote:
> >They also need hot, dry summers for good fruit production. The fruit they
> >produce here in Florida is worthless. It must be nice for those who live
> >in
> >California to be able to pick fresh, delicious dates from their trees.
> >
> Not as nice as you might think. For one thing you need a very tall ladder.
> For another there's the problem of scorpions and other fauna living in in
> the tops of the trees.
I never would have guessed that scorpions live in palm trees!
> And then there's the odor when the trees are blooming. Some people call it
> a stink. I just think it's heavy.
>
> --RC
--