You must have them in containers? It looks like they are hardy only to zone 8.

Indeed I am. I planted some 6 seeds with inch long roots in the middle of June and I'm still waiting for action above the soil. I keep them in my porch which has no A/C and heats up like a greenhouse. Hopefully next summer I can put the pots in the ground for the summer and then bring them back in for winter. That is if they are big enough by then.

You guys oughtta take a look at the Iowa Gardening forum. I know earlier this summer there was a post going about somebody there wintering a palm(unsure of species) in ground outside. They had used mini christmas lights wrapped inside plastic around the trunk to keep it warm and it seems to have worked perfectly. Go to the Iowa forum and search 'palms' and it should be easy enough to find. I thought it was pretty fascinating!!

Earnest, That would be me. If anyone has any questions just ask. I figure I have about another two months before I have to wrap it again. I'm in the Davenport, IA area by the way. This is a picture of it from about a month ago. Thats my brother in law in there for scale. He's about 6'03"

Very impressive! What is that one next to the deck?

And how big of a pot does that Mexican(?) fan palm go into?

Leftwood,

The Mexican fan is not and does not go in a pot. That puppy stays outside in the ground all year. I wrap it for protection in the winter. As for the one near the deck, thats a Queen Palm in a 25 gallon pot.

Wow, impressive. I'm in upstate New York (Syracuse) and it's zone 5-6. We get a lot of snow here. I don't think it would make it although I have been contemplating getting a windmill palm because I heard they are the most cold hardy. Are Mexican fan palms better? I have a lot of small palm trees and a papaya, 4 pineapples, a blood banana and a passion fruit tree but they all come inside in the winter. I would love to plant a big one outdoors. Any suggestions on where to get one and what to do to keep it alive? Nice banana plants by the way! You can email me at lucysbar@twcny.rr.com

I'm so impressed you can grow your palm tree outside! Can you provide some details--when you wrap and unwrap, material, heat source, summer care--how do you wrap the fronds? We're in Des Moines, so similar winter.

slice one and kprendy
Its a Washingtonia Robusta. I have this one not becasue of the hardiness factor, but because it grows rapidly over the spring and summer. You could do this in your area as well. All the snow would insulate the ground to some extent. It got down to -10 here a couple times this winter and it is still pushing out new green fronds undeer the wrap. We brought a bunch back from Florida. My friend owns a greenhouse operation.

Around late Nov, early December I wrap it with small x-mas lights, a layer of burlap or landscape fabric, house insulation and plastic clear painters drop cloth (3 mil). Sounds like a prodiuction but it only takes about 30 minutes to put it on once you figure it out. I turn on the small x-mas lights (and they put out alot more heat than you think under the wrap) and I turn them on when temps get below 25. I usually take the wrap off in late April and the fronds start growing like crazy.

Kprendy, if your in DesMoines and want to get a large palm let me know, we have several for sale. We are in the Quad Cities.

Good Luck
if you have any questions email me at jmbump96@msn.com My name is Jay

Jay, that is absolutely amazing! How'd you come up with that idea? I wonder if it would work on a citrus tree, I'd love to have a kaffir lime tree.

I'm in the Lakeville, MN area. It's zone 4 right now but with global warming maybe it'll be a 5 next year. Anyways, is there a palm that I can grow in my yard? Anyone know what kind might work. Will smaller palms like bananas work for me too? Anyone know of any nurseries in my area that might sell palms?

IowaPalmz5 - That is truly amazing!!

OK. I think everyone here needs to visit the Palms and Cycads forum. These are called Cold Hardy palms. This is not a new subject. Bananas are not palms and Windmill Palms (trachycarpus fortunei) are pretty much hardy to-5f. Thats with the proper protection. By the way GOOD JOB! iowapalmz5.

Hi,
I dont live in Minnesota but I grow my palms in pots in zone 7 Alabama. I have a few big boys and some more on the way. Here is a picture after I pulled a few from the greenhouse this year.
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very impressive to grow a palm in Iowa, however what are you going to do when the palm grows too tall for you to cover? Washington palms can grow to be over 100 feet tall. I have four lined up along my house here in Louisiana and they are over 50 feet tall and they get frond damage every year even here in Louisiana, but they always come back out in the spring, however in Iowa your temps would kill the entire tree, so was just wondering what you will do when it gets too big for you to handle

Thanks for the kind comments folks. It is very easy to do and anyone with a ladder and the proper material can doit.
Isu, I figure I should be good for a few more years, I could only hope that it would stay alive long enough to worry about not being able to reach it with a ladder. When it gets that big, I'll just have to put a smaller one in its place.

Just so everyone knows, you can grow certain bananas and cold hardy palms with some protection, even in MN.

Good Luck

Beautiful plants orchiddude.

I don't know of any palms that would grow in Iowa or Minnesota without a lot of protection. Temps are just too cold for palms. As far as windmill palms handling temps down to -5, that is incorrect, I have four planted here at my home and a couple of winters ago when the temps got down to 20 degrees I had some frond damage, so -5 would kill the entire tree. Best advice for people up north just grow them in pots and move them inside once winter arrives.

hey iowapalmz5, thats is absolutely crazy,..... I am also a adventurious gardener, and I can currently overwintering, sabal minor, Rhapidophyllum hystrix, livistona chinesis(zone9a) and many musa basjoo. I live in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, which according to the states, we are a zone4a, but according to canada we are a zone5a. Just that we do get loads of snow, this year we had record snowfall. I have pictures on www.webshots.com and type in Ottawa_hardy_tropicals

We planted 30 Chinese windmill palm trees at our new hotel! We are working diligently to figure out how to keep them alive, and welcome any suggestions.

www.iowapalmtrees.blogspot.com

Here is a link that might be useful: palm trees in iowa

I plant feather palms every spring and let them freeze in the fall...

http://www.chuckzamzow.blogspot.com/

Here is a link that might be useful: Palms in SW Minnesota

I am growing a windmill palm (trachy) in the ground here in the southeast twin cities (covered in coldest months). It is only about 5 feet tall now though. I have a couple more that are smaller and potted. They winter in the house during December, Jan, and Feb. Out by the pool in the summer.

Though they are not really "palm trees" I am just about ready to plant four 2-foot basjoo bananas in the yard. I've done a bit of homework on them, and they look to be a great way to gain the more tropical look here. The prospect of these plants growing 12-15 feet tall here over the summer sounds great! They grow super fast, and by planting older and more mature plants, I am expecting to see good results in full sun. I found a source for these plants for about $15 each, big ones, not starters/seedlings. I'm thinking the first of May, in the ground they go. I always gamble and plant my annuals and annual veggies by May 1st, I've never been burned!

Anyone else in the area growing trachys and/or basjoos? I'd love to hear of their experiences and see some pictures.

I am new to this forum, I finally decided to take the plunge and sign up, rather than just reading and not posting!

Anyone in or near the twin cities who is into trachys, I just picked up another trachy locally, and it was amazing to even see one available locally/in MN! I have several trachys now, and my largest one (among other hardy tropicals) is/are in the ground right now, the others potted. The 101 Market, between Rogers and Elk River, MN on HWY 101 between HWY169 and I94 has one left right now. They had two, I bought one... It is a nice one from Monrovia Nursery, CA. 4 feet tall overall, a foot high of THICK 6" wide trunk. Awesome tree! I almost bought both, they are $45. They also have Bird of Paradise plants, 6 feet tall, for under $50 from Monrovia. They said they are likely getting more tropicals from Monrovia, maybe more trachys, and possibly needle palms. Well worth checking out for anyone into this stuff....

My large trachy (windmill palm), needle palm, and musa basjoos (hardy bananas) will be wintered in the ground here in MN. Needle gets a rosebush cover, mulched, and with a small string of Xmas lights. Basjoos will get rosebush covers, and tons of mulch, and cut off with about a foot or two of stem remaining, as they do grow over 10-15 feet during the summer, and with 5-6 inch wide stems. These are tried and true methods of wintering these plants in ground in zone 4/5. The large trachy will get a large version of a foam rosebush cover, a foam box with lightweight wood frame. Xmas lights, and/or a CFL bulb or two inside the box during the coldest times, to keep the temp in the box above 20F when it gets below zero outside. Fronds will be tied up somewhat to allow it to fit in a 2x2x8 foot 2-piece box. Again, a tried and true method for wintering larger palms in cold zones. For those Minnesotans who think I am nuts, do a little reading in the "palms and cycads" forum here... The mature trachy and needle palm are good down to the 10s, even single digits above zero*F without significant damage. I also have a friend in MN who has similar trees in ground, and there is a lady in Rochester who does similar.

Here is a link that might be useful: Link to some pictures

This is great - I'm a native North Dakotan living in San Diego and have got the palm tree/tropical plant bug.

So far I've sent some birds of paradise (small/large), bananas, clivias and a few others back home to family and friends. "I've" had some really good luck with the birds - hoping to get some flowers in the next few months. Not much luck with the others but I'm chalking it up to the caretakers - not quite like growing potatoes and carrots.

I will definitely be checking the forum more as I'll be moving back to the area in the next year or two.

Anybody have any luck w/any King Palms??

Also, fyi, if you haven't been, both the Sculpture Garden and Como Park arboretums in Minneapolis have some EXCELLENT plants.

Looks like I made a post here in 2009. I have since switched to the pot-in-pot method. I could never keep a palm healty in the house, they would always die on me. The Cat Palms and the Majesty Palms that they sell in stores ARE aquatic in nature. When you have them outside you need to treat them as you would an elephant ear - in the shade moist is fine, but in full sun they need to be in boggy soil. You might still have some problems with leaf burn. For more information, visit ChuckZamzow.com

Here is a link that might be useful: Tropical Plants in Minnesota

I planted i think a majesty palm last year in a shady part of my garden and it grew all summer. It wasnt huge but it was very green and was a nice tropical accent. I just bought it at the grocery store lol. I want to have more flowers this year and maybe one of those...Im in a different house now with a small front garden area.