Those trachies seem to have gained some impressive size recently. Are they protected at all?

I was just down there today, and I could not for the life of me find the bed in the pics you posted here. I did find all the other stuff in your photobucket albums though.

I visited the Botanical Gardens, and the "new" National Garden. Very good job with all of it. The exterior courtyards between the smaller edge conservatories where they house the different environment type plans ( Desert, pre historic, Orchids....etc) are complete. I noticed that in the "childrens" garden there is an 8 foot tall T. Wagnerianus, and a few Needle palms in both outdoor courtyard gardens.

It seems to me that the Arts & Industries building (next to the smithsonian castle) has grown their collection, and even uses some of them as in ground plantings during the summer now. They didnt have as much or use them as in ground plantings a few years ago. I want to go back and try and find that T. Fortunei in your pics. I hope they start using these more and more in permanent plantings here in D.C. The climate here, espeically in the urban heat island, and the microclimates contained with in it, are more than adequate for most "cold hardy" palms to survive with no problem.

Im also going to go around my neighborhood and take a few photos of all the bananas around here. There are a good number of them, and some of them are very large.

Thanks for sharing your pics! Good job!

They are planted in a bed on the Independence Ave. side of the Air & Space museum. They're aren't really visible from the street or sidewalk so you need to walk up near the building to see them.

These were planted around 2000 or 2001 and as far as I know, they have received no winter protection. BUT they're downtown, and on the south side of a large concrete (?) building that probably reflects, stores & radiates a large amount of heat in the winter.

I remember while living near D.C.(Fairfax county)years ago, wanting to try a trachycarpus in the ground as an "experiment". It looks like now, it wouldn't even be that much of a challenge, and certainly not in D.C. itself. The most recent USDA zone map I saw showed a small area of zone 8 over the metro area of D.C., like novaplantguy said, this would be plenty warm to grow the cold hardy species. The only battle will be the long term extremes, though they will also be modified by the urban heat island effect.

Make no mistake, windmill palms are still marginal here. A small part of DC's urban core may be a true zone 8a but for the rest of us, proper care and siting in a sheltered or otherwise favorable location (e.g., on the south side of a house) are critical to success. We've been lucky to have relatively mild winters for the last several years; in 7 years the lowest temperature I've measured in my own garden (on a north-facing slope and not downtown, although still in the District) was 6 degrees. But we do get cold winters occasionally; the last time it went below 0 degrees in DC was 1994, and we're overdue for another cold one!

Here is a reposting by me from a thread called "Florida's Warming Climate" that was originally posted on June 19th, 2008:

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NovaPlantGuy_Z7b_8a:

Global Warming cannot be discounted. However, I will say also that, cyclical climatic changes are normal, and it appears we are on a warming climatic change swing. There is historic evidence that even what would not be the mid atlantic areas of the US, at one time had a sub tropical / tropical climate, as has been evidenced by fossils of palm fronds, and sago cones found in the Virginias and Carolinas. However this shift that is currently occuring seems to have been brought on much much faster, in part, by mans influence on the planet. There is no doubt that man is having a profound effect on the global cycles. It can be seen even in polar arctic ice cap movements / depletions in just the last 40 years. From large scales to small, its noticable if one pays attention.

From my personal experience I can tell you that we just dont have winters here like we used to when I was growing up in the 70s and 80s. Were single digits were not all THAT uncommon for highs, and lows were at times below zero, and there were many "blizzards" or heavy snow falls of over one foot each. The last great winter storm we had here in the Washington / Baltimore / Richmond area, was the blizzard of 96. 12 years ago. We have had a couple of "larger" snow falls since then, and a few brief cold snaps with highs in the upper teens to low 20s, but nothing like the cold from winters 20-30 years ago. Our Potomac River, and Chesapeake bay never freeze over anymore. I have now had plants that used to be annuals here, that are now becoming perennials, and survive the winters with no permanent damage. Things such as catnip, catmint, thyme...etc mostly survive the winters here just fine and do not have to be started anew from seed each year anymore. Fall starts later and later, and spring comes earlier and earlier each year now. Ostensibly, true "winter" climates and temps are now down to two months per year, and htat is January, and February, and even in those months it is no longer unheard of nor uncommon for it to get into the 60's / 70's here. Musa Basoo, and Red Abyssinian are commonplace here in my area now, and are left outside all year, die back, the corms mulched over, and they come back every year just as big. Seeing those in our area were unheard of just 20 years ago. The area I live in used to be a cold zone 7a, but I now often see it on zone maps listed as a zone 8a, where our urban heat island is, and I find that to be very believable.

Anyway, great article. Its great to see when society, or at least certain segments of it, start to actually see the results of warming climate shift. Its real, and its happening.

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I will add to that with the imagess below. The images below is zone color legend, and a portion of a USDA Zone Map, that is a closeup on the Mid Atlantic region.

You'll note that all of the DOWNTOWN portion of D.C., including most of Arlington County, VA, and the entire "east end" of the city of Alexandria, is in fact shown as a zone 8. Not surprising as these areas are well within the urban heat island, as well as being modified by the tidal Potomac river, which, as stated almost never freezes over anymore. Also of note, downtown Baltimore is listed as zone 8, as well as all the way up the coast into southern New Jersey. The images are rather large, and my take a bit longer to load for those on slower internet connections.

Nice palms. Yeah, urban centers tend to be warmer than surrounding areas. Here in Fresno, the bananas in outlying areas tend to get a bit frost burned in the winter, and when they fruit, they usually do it in the summer and ripen in the fall. I've seen banana trees in downtown Fresno blooming in April, without a single damaged leaf from frost and with an accumulation of years of healthy, green leaves (probably 30-40 leaves on each stalk).

These are not in Washington D.C., but just across the River a couple miles away. in my neighborhood, the Del Ray section of Alexandria / Old Town.

Ill do it in a few posts since there are quite a few photos.

Yucca Rostrata at the Del Ray YMCA

A couple of groups of Musa Basjoo on my street.

A very tropical-esque yard a few blocks away from me. There are more palms, mostly Phoenix Robelini from what I have seen, and some tree ferns, and more bananas in the back.

More of the tropical-esque yard: