I recognize those palms. They look great, These paast couple of weeks must have really got them going again. Is the tall one going to fit back in the house come fall?

Wow!! Looking Good!

EXCELLENT PICS!!!! It is always wonderful to keep chicago as its own little tropical place! You said you have had your coconut for 10 years..........wow how much do you have to trim every year to get it back in the house.

Wow...nice foxtail! How tall was this when you bought it and were you able to find this locally?

Congrats on a great looking yard!!

More importantly, WHERE do you store it for the winter and HOW do you store it for the winter?

It's so tall that unless you've cut a hole in your livingroom ceiling into the upper bedroom, I can't see how it fits? :)

In pots anything is possible. In the ground is another matter, but Sabal Minor and Needle Palms can make it in Chicago and Trachycarpus if protected in the ground.

Judging by the age of the townhome in the picture it looks like a newer development. A lot of the newer townhomes, in Chicagoland at least, have 18ft+ ceilings so perhaps that's how he stores it. Wish rwallen himself were here to clear some questions up though...you out there buddy?

I forgot to clarify--the 18ft+ ceilings are in the family room only usually, NOT the entire house.

To answer some of the questions posed.

1) When I first bought this tree, it was in a 10" pot and was about 5 feet tall. I brought it home in my Mitsubishi Eclipse if that helps understand the size.

2) My townhouse has 20 foot ceilings in the living area with full 2 story windows in one corner and on one other wall. I have a SE exposure so during the winter, there is lots of light. I don't use any special lighting at all. When the new leaves are formed, yet not open, that "spear" is now within 1 foot of the ceiling so I'm afraid I'm running out of time.

3) Getting this baby back in the house is no easy matter. I scoop it up with a 2-wheel hand cart, tip it down to a nearly horizontal position and take it right in the front door. Trust me, it's not something you can do without help. I tape some garbage bags over the top of the soil to keep things intact and off the carpets and it all works out fine.

Any other questions, let me know. Thanks for your interest.

Wow...that's quite some growth from 5 feet! How long have you had it? Where from?

Some more tropical locations around beautiful Chicago...

Hi
You are a very hard working gardener lol. Thanks for sharing the pix!! I'm curious as to what you will do when the foxtail matures?? They get at least 3 times that size
as a yard plant and they grow rapidly.
Good luck with whatever you do!!
gary

Gary:

Not sure what I'm going to do once it outgrows my place. I'm thinking about donating it to the Lincoln Park Conservatory or any other public botanical center that can handle it.

I think I've got a couple more years to go before I have to worry about it too much.

Ron,

That foxtail is very impressive. But whats even more impressive is that you've kept it growing part of the year indoors. I'm not very good with plants indoors. I live over in the area of Crow Creek and Devils Glen across from the post office. If you're in town just stop by sometime. If you need better directions contact me on the site here. I'll check and see if my e-mail is posted.

Ron-
First I want to compliment you on the palms. I still can't get over that foxtail. We exchanged some e-mails last spring when I first started groing an indoor/outdoor coconut. Unfortunenatly I do not have the high ceilings you do. Mine are only 8 feet. I need your advise. I have two options for my coconut (link for picture attached) this winter. It is about 6 feet tall now and growing fast in all this heat and humididty we have had. We have a sun roof here in my ofice that is about 15 feet high. The plant could get plenty of sun all winter but I would sacrifice heat (we turn it down to mid 60s at night and over holiday stretches such as Christmas). My other option is to put the pot it is in in an empty larger pot with rocks or sand and turn it at an angle toward the window, lowering the height and giving the plant more coverage of sun. In this case I would not sacrifice heat as I keep my house at 70 all winter. I have a spare bedroom that can get into the mid 70s when the sun is out. I would really apprecite your advice as you have had the most success of anyone I've come across. (ps that fence is being replaced in the fall)

thanx,
Andy

Here is a link that might be useful:

Andy, you're fortunate your office lets you bring personal plants to work. They restrict that where I work because of a potential insect infestation in the building.

One of the owners of my companys wife sells for Intitial Tropical Plants. There are palms and tropicals all over the office. It would be no big deal. I do have some less cold sensitive ones I know I will be gringing in.

rwallen....nice work.

Question, what size pot is the foxtail in right now? You might have said and I missed it.

Looks good.

Rob

Great collection.

Is that a Plumeria I see too? I have not seen a potted-one that tall. The leafs on mine are huge this year. They also do great in the ground out here.

Very nice.

To answer some of the questions, the palm is is a 22" by 22" pot and it barely fits. I'm having a hard time finding one here in the area.

As for the other plant, yet, it is a plumeria also in a 22" x 22" pot. I sink it 10" into the ground to keep it from blowing over during summer storms. Right now, it is over 10 feet tall with 20 some tips, many with either full flowers or flower stalks that are starting to form. It's really a beautiful plant. Thanks for the compliments.

Ron-
I don't know if you saw my question a few threads back but in a nutshell I was wondering for the winter which is more important for a coconut: More sun and less heat or more heat and less sun. I'd appreciate your insight.

thanx,
Andy

Andy:
I'm not an expert on things, but my coconut has faired quite well with limited light in the winter. I keep in upstairs on the loft, but it isn't directly in a window and therefore, it gets only whatever light makes it into that room. The exposure there is SE so on sunny days, it get's "light", but not sun.
It is warmer on the loft and on a sunny day, I would guess it averages in the low 70's throughout the daytime and then at night, I put the heat down to 63.
My personal thoughts are that the heat is probably equally as important as the light, but again, I'm not an expert, I guess I'm just lucky!
Ron

Ron-
Thank you for the information. I believe I'm going to keep it in the house one more winter and tilt it toward the window. This will give it more sun and lower it so it isn't touching the ceiling. Then next winter move it to the office.

thank you again,
Andy

WOW! Nice coconut. How did you keep it warm inside in the winter?
Thanks