Marbree,

I'm in my third year growing a Chinese Fan Palm (with much success) at my home in Troy, MI. It is now about 3-4 ft. tall and has really leafed out this year. I put cottonwood and oak leaves around before Christmas, then wrap burlap to hold leaves in place, unwrap in early March and cut off any burnt leaves and watch it bloom out again. Usually looks like something again around Memorial Day.

I also cut down my banana tree (musa bajoo) to the stalk, cover with similar leaves and cover with oak/cottonwood leaves until mid-March. It comes up with new shoots around late april. Fully leafed out by Memorial Day.

I also have two MonkeyPuzzle trees, tree trunk yuccas, and native (to Michigan) prickly pear cactii.

Most visitors and relative can't believe what they see when they visit.

Marbee,

Search "Hardy Palm and Subtropical Board" and go to that board. Lots of knowledgeable people about palms and other tropical plants. I live in the Quad Cities if u know where that is. I have several palms that I keep i the ground with protection over the winter. I also grow lots of bananas and I have four southern magnolias.

Marbee,

I grow banana's trunking yucca's and 6 different palms here in Ottawa, Ontario. they are; trachycarpus takil, and Trachycarpus wagnerianus. livistona chinesis, sabal minor, Rhapidophyllum hystrix, washingtonia,... i don't know which one it is whether if its the robusta or the flifria. please check out........http://www.webshots.com/search?query=ottawa_hardy_tropicals+&new=1&source=chromeheader

you can email me at bananaboy_excon@hotmail.com

Adam

I am interested in growing Palm trees in my yard I have a needle palm, a European fan palms 1 green 1 blue, & Windmill palm. I live in greenville Michigan Zone 5... I have not planted them outside yet have had them for many years and they are bigger each year its alot of work to haul them in and out every year. I want to plant them outside, what do i need to do to have them live through the winter???

In zone 5, you can forget about the European Fan Palm. That one will die before spring. You MIGHT have success with the Windmill Palm. And if you're in zone5b, you are the most likely to have success with the Needle Palm. The European Fan Palm reaches heights of 5 to 10 feet, and if it outgrows your house, I'd personally recommend either moving to someplace warmer, or sell your European fan palm for maybe $30 to $40 and you can buy maybe 3-4 more of them. But the needle palm may be your best chance at a tropical garden if you can give it sufficient winter protection. Try the Trachycarpus Fortunei. Leave it in the pot, and outside until you start to notice cold damage(Remember, young plants are a lot less hardy then the mature specimens). If you see the leaves start to burn, BRING IT INSIDE IMMEDIATELY, and nurture it until the cold damage goes away. Try again in maybe 2 or 3 years(Repeat until it can live through december with minimal damage). These palms are hardy to 5*F when mature. When it seems okay for the environment you're in, plant it. To protect it in the winter, wrap the trunk in a blanket, or burlap. Stick some christmas lights(the ones that produce heat) along the entire trunk. Spray with freezepruf. It dehydrates your palm a little bit, decreasing the water content in the palm, thus making it more tough against freezes. Now, as for the needle palm, please visit this link: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/palms/msg081602271828.html?3360
Cheerio!

I tried to grow a windmill palm in our backyard, but it died before the end of summer... I think it got a fungal disease... Dunno... It's leaves just shrivelled up and turned a greyish brown. But having said that, I'm a firm believer that they CAN survive in zone 5! I would like to try a needle palm, and a dwarf palmettoe... (The Louisiana one?) I think you can if you cover it up go the winter... I'm hoping to try it again this year (2013) and hope it works!! It'll be an experiment worth trying!
Hardy palm include:
Needle palm,
Windmill palm,
Dwarf palmettoe,
And some hardy bananas which are musa basjoo, and another one I can't think of!! :-P also, I would encourage giant elephant ear... I've heard wonderful stories... None of these can be left without a mulch or covering and protection of some sort. I've heard of people leaving the dwarf palmettoe in the ground in zone 5 and letting its leaves die down and then come back up... Don't know how quick it would grow... Also, snow is a very good insulator! I would still mulch, but let snow cover it! With the trees it's better to just bundle em up and use Christmas lights... Bug it seems to vary with te micro climate too!
Hope it succeeds!!

Im in Zone 5. Chicago IL. Have two 3 year old wind mill palms in pots. They are going into the ground October 25th. Building a little fort for them and using some xmas lights and an outdoor thermostat to monitor the temp. I will post some picts on this project.