Saw Palmetto Zone 7?

14 years ago

I live on TN/KY border in zone 7. I would like to get a Saw Palmetto from a nursery but b4 i do, i need to know how i would protect it in the ground and if it would even live here. any info or advice is appreciated! thanx

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Comments (4)

User
14 years ago
Unprotected, it is supposed to be hardy to zone 8. Protected is of course another story. I don't protect mine so that means I am limited to Trachycarpus (Windmills), Rhaphidophyllum (Needles) and a few Sabals. But members here grow things that are more than one zone away and I am sure you could do it.
NoVaPlantGuy_Z7b_8a
14 years ago
I know there is a saw palmetto outdoors in downtown Washington D.C. at the US Botanic Garden, but downtown DC does tend to be more of a cold zone 8, so not sure if that will be too much inspiration for you. It is also not protected that I know of, but it is in a protected outdoor area. IT is exposed to the sky and frosts, but it has 1 story buildings on all 4 sides of the small "courtyard" it is in.
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Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but you would probably become very frustrated trying to grow Saw Palmetto, Serenoa repens. I have tried for many years to grow it and it is the same small, single fan I planted back then. I have removed a large section of the underground trunk and roots, 7-8" in dia. and 4-5' long and planted it, without success. Once removed from the sandy soil and milder climate of the coastal plains, it is very unhappy. There is a dwarf Palmetto, Sabal minor, that resembles the Saw Palmetto, but doesn't have serrated leaves, that should do well in your climate. It also doesn't have the huge underground trunks that can destroy underground utilities, especially sewer lines or septic system field lines! :Rb Here is a link that might be useful:
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Serenoa are great palms...bulletproof, as long as the roots are not disturbed. They put up fronds much quicker than most give them credit for; however, they do not attain vertical height. I have found that they produce mature fronds earlier than sabal minor. The drawback is that the roots are very sensitive and can't be transplanted easily. But anyway, 8a or maybe 7b is their limit without protection. I think their native boundary is somewhere in inland Georgia. 6b is similar to my climate, some years they would be ok without protection if kept dry when cold. But its only a matter of time before that hard freeze. I have found they do well in containers and are easy to protect due to their short stature.
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UPDATE: Due to the end of winter and warm temperatures, I took the winter protection off my small Sabal Palmetto. I took some pictures, and it seems to have sustained minor, if any, damage. Also two of my Sabal Minors This was the protection: two bottomed out buckets (ended up removing the PVC pipe because moisture would condense and not dry out before nightfall, afraid of freezing) filled in between with dead leaves. Top is a wooden frame with acrylic sheet to allow light in. During cold nights I had a flat piece of wood to entirely seal the opening on the green tub. During warmer days in the winter, moisture from the soil would condense on the sides of the innermost bucket and also on the tree. I was afraid this would freeze on the tree when nightfall came so the open air acrylic covering allowed it to air out while also protect it from rain and snow. The location of the tree is also in "L" of the house, shielded from wind, so even when the top wasn't completely sealed, it was well protected from winter winds.
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Renee, Cat's Whiskers have two blossom colors, white and light purple. The white blossomed one is my absolute favorite flowering plant. Sometimes one can get lucky here in my Zone 8b and get one to winter over in a very protected spot. I have never been able to. However, it easily roots in water in about a week. So, as cold weather approaches I root up a bunch of cuttings, pot them and grow them on by a bright window until spring. Very easy to grow but are heavy feeders. To overwinter your present plant, surround it with chicken wire and wrap burlap or muslin or landscape fabric around the wire and then pile oak leaves inside the frame. It might work. Hope so. Have you noticed that humming birds love Cat's Whiskers?
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tallafl
14 years ago
I think you could do it, but you have to really love these palms to have enough patience for them. They grow painfully slow, and are a little touchy before they get established. I've lost 5-10% of mine just out of the blue. They get bud rot or something, I don't know. I would be sure to keep them as dry as you can during the winter, and start off with some from a northerly seed source like Georgia or Alabama. The green ones are slower growing but more cold hardy.
brooklyngreg
14 years ago
SUre you can do it. Plant it in the spring (early May) so its well estblished by fall. Plant it on the sunny side of the house and cover it with a plastic covered wood frame in the winter with a small vent you cover on below 20 nights.

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Saw Palmetto Zone 7?

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