Hi Squidy. Too bad you don't know the type of palm. There are desert and tropical palms. Many have swollen trunks. Is the pot in or surrounded with plastic and is seed/seedling container on a heating pad? Since you've been successful germinating, it'd probably be best watering like you've been...the soil shouldn't be soggy or completely dry out. Keep moderately moist. Well-draining, but not to the point soil dries right after watering. It's not a good idea allowing water to settle in the saucer for prolonged periods either. Discard, 15 minutes or so if excess water drips in the saucer. If your seeds are on a heating pad, soil will dry faster. A pro using heat is speedier germination. If inside/under plastic, slit for ventilation. When seedlings have 3-5 leaves, remove the plastic. Do you remember anything about the mother palm other than height? For example, were leaves firm or soft/flexible? Long or short? Distinguishable shapes? Well, congrats, squidy...Toni

Sounds like your dry, sandy soil will be the primary limiting factor. A magnolia would probably not be a very good choice in dry soil. American smoketree will tolerate dry soil, but keep in mind that in time it will have a tendency to send up suckers from the root system (may not be a problem if it is surrounded by lawn); it may also be hard to find. Redbud will probably be OK, although it prefers less sandy soil and higher pH. A crabapple would be fine, and there are many varieties to choose from  look for one grown "own root" to avoid suckering from the rootstock. Blue beech is probably OK, but may need extra watering during establishment. Shantung maple is a nice tree, but you probably wonÂt be able to find ÂFire Dragon locally, and even finding the straight species is difficult. If you ask your local nurseries for it, they will probably suggest ÂNorwegian Sunset or ÂPacific Sunset which are both Norway x shantung hybrids  these may be too large at maturity for your location. I agree with basic that Korean maple is a beautiful tree, but it wonÂt be very happy in dry soil. You may want to consider one of the tree lilacs  ÂIvory SilkÂ, ÂChina SnowÂ, or ÂBeijing Gold  I think ÂChina Snow has the best bark color of the 3  they will also need extra watering during establishment. Serviceberry does reasonably well in sandy soil, and a few varieties are available in "tree form" (single stem).

Some sort of dogwood - Cornus drummondii, or Cornus racemosa, maybe. Cotinus obovatus is a native smoketree, but would get too big for your spot. Redbuds generally stay compact, and Cercis canadensis is definitely a local native. Bush honeysuckle (Diervilla lonicera) is probably not big enough for what you have in mine. I am guessing that there has to be some sort of Holly or Viburnum that would do well in that type of situation as well.

If you would like nitrogen-fixeing shrub native to New York: buffaloberry (Shepherdia spp.); go with Shepherdia argentea, as the berries are better tasting. Btw, most of the plants krazyaroider recommends are: non-native (to NY); invasive; and one is not even a nitrogen-fixer: redbud (that's a tricky one, since it is in the bean/legume family). If you'd like a tree that is nitrogen-fixing, choose a variety of native alder (Alnus spp.) Btw, keep in mind: buffaloberry is native to the midwest - AND TO NEW YORK - look up the distribution range maps (google: [the plant] + usda).. (...or pollen library)