lol :)

Hey Brian,

I'm on a mission when I get there to rip out every tree that is not a palm and replace it with one that is. I've had 26 years of staring at Oaks, Maples, and the likes, and refuse to any longer. =P

Hey paul

Isn't funny when you live in a colder climate
you want something tropical ?
Now you have to worry about protecting that purchase.
When you live in a tropical climate you tend to
take for granted what your able to grow because you have seen those type of plants all your life.. I guess it's
actually kind of like an oak or pine to us we just don't worry about any protection just like hardly any body that lives in a warmer climateand grows tropicals does either.

Topher--that's exactly right. That probably explains why there are so many northerners and other zone pushers on this message board. Up here we all need help in learning the ropes to protect, but in a truly tropical climate (Hawaii, The Keys, V.I., etc) they got it handled by mother nature. I have yet to see anyone from those locations ever make a post on this forum.

There's a Lowes on 236 if you take the north exit from MCO. It's about 1 or 2 miles away from the airport on the left hand side.

Big Queens, Canaries; Foxtails and Bottles. When you see the prices in Orlando, you'll be pissed about what you've paid through other sources.

Check out some of the few private nurseries in the area. I am sure they have large palms they can plant for very little $$. I would expect a large date to be less than $1k planted. Remember, that oak may help protect smaller tropicals you want to grow, because without canopy, the Orlando area gets lots of frost in winter and can get cold depending on where you are. My friends in Apopka were 27F this winter, while I was 33.4F on the same night! Greg in DRY DRY Tampa Bay, New Port Richey still waiting for that "rainy" season!

If you need a canopy, maybe look to plant some Slash Pine.

Thanks, Greg. You don't think $1,000 for a 16ft Date Palm is far too low, planted? If that's the true cost, then that's excellent news! Date Palms should be hardy all the way down to zone 8b, so Orlando 9b should be more than all right for that particular palm.

Also I'm primarily looking in the town of Windermere, FL and I believe their coldest day recorded this past winter was a low of 34F sometime in February. All the lakes in that town really seem to help keep the overnight temps up.

New Port Richey huh? My favorite Aunt and Uncle live right there off US-19 -- I was there visiting in January after being away for a good 10 years and I was shocked how much that area has grown. NPR is such a nice town, you have the Gulf, Beaches, etc. all right at your front door.

This is a picture of the tree in question (in the center of the circle drive) - I think it's an oak, but whatever it is, it's ugly as hell. And a 16' (or maybe a bit smaller) Date Palm would be perfect there. Down with the oaks! =P

No, it is not too low. Sometimes good landscaping/tree companies do installing and can get a great deal. It is worth shopping around. They're costs are lower because they just purchase for the job. Be careful with what you plant. In 1983 it was below 20F and in 1989 it snowed (dusting) and hit 23F in Orlando. Don't let the "tourist" forecasts fool you. If Disney was to release that they have hard frosts in winter, the tourists might go south! But, it only lasts a day or two but 23F can do its damage. Yes, dates are fully hardy but rarely produce fruit. I have P. sylvestris, robellini, reclinata (which I love) among my palms. The Queens do the best to create a fast canopy. I have Slash Pines in the front, and while my Bromeliads love living under them, they shed constantly on them and my car, sidewalk etc... Clumping Queens work well, then you can grow something marginal underneath! Greg

Check out TNT palms and tropicals on 441 in Leesburg.

I'm well aware that the Orlando metro area has seen hard frosts over the years. However, it is a solid zone 9b and worth experimenting with zone 10a/b palms. Maybe I only get a few years out of them; however, if planted in the right location and taking the necessary care, they could last a very, very long time.

If you look at the weather comparison of Windermere, FL and New Port Richey, FL on weather.com, you can see that day for day, the winter averages and records are nearly exactly the same. Average January highs are both 72 and average low both 50. Both have similar record lows as well, 19F back in the 1980s; and recent upper 20s in the more recent years.

Do you grow any zone 10 palms there in Tampa Bay area? If so, what do you have?

Paul in Chicagoland where it's been one hell of a rainy and cool July. =P Looking forward to a hopefully warmer and drier August.

Yes, the climate is the same, except the temp for New Port Richey is taken at the Exec airport 5 miles inland from me, where it gets colder w/frost. I am less than a mile from the Gulf. Even the neighborhood east of me is colder, as I can see some damage there that doesn't exist round my 'hood! I grow Areca (as does everyone) because they are clumpers which will come back from freezes. I also grow Caryota mitis (currently 20') but was 35' before the hurricanes took my trees and smashed it..it was leveled when they fixed the house and came back from roots. I have a mature Triangle (30'+) and trunked Crotons in the front (they have 2-3' of wood trunk and are over six feet high) but my front is well protected by trees. I currently have a Heliconia latisphata 'Mexican Gold' in full bloom. The clump is about 8' wide with mature stems 12' high, with a count of 11 open claws each a foot or more long. So, its possible. Just be aware that a mature frozen palm will be killer to remove and the void it leaves. Greg who is STILL waiting folr the rainy season (yet the radar is lit up everywhere else) waking up to 79.8F at 630am...

ptmcclanahan, you will still propably push the zone. you will want coconuts and all that zone 10 stuff.LOL

Yep i agree that climate will make you put all kinds
of diffrient tropical plants in the ground !