If you throw a black garbage bin over it, it should be enough protection for an average winter. Once it outgrows the garbage bin in a few years it is probably old enough that it wont need protection anymore. I've seen a few small needle palms at the Central Park Zoo and there are some others around NYC public gardens (I actually have yet to see one planted at a home garden in the area even though I have seen Trachys, Butias, and Sabal minors). I lost a small needle palm to a low of 14F in 2009 because I got my palm from Lowes and the big box stores are known to sell cold tolerant palms that do not actually see cold temperatures which makes them more susceptible to cold damage for the first 3 years or so. -Alex

I think there are few to none in this column(Anyone have any they know of that have been in the ground for 5 years or more with no protection after establishment?) It really depends on the climate,I read alot about trachys surviving hard freezes(0F)in their natural habitat so why not in zone 6a and up unprotected, I personally think the zone thing is greatly misunderstood and is really only a guide to expected low temps and even then(off the top of my head zone 5b -5 to-10 not!are record lows are -30 here although not recently ,I believe 1983 was close to that, and 5yrs ago -14 but that does not tell you "weather"or not it was below 32F for two weeks are not!In 2000-2001 we stayed below 33F for something like 28 days I would like to see any palm with any amount of establishment survive that!needles would melt,trach's would choke and sabals would lose their bals!There is an area in 5b that may be an exception because they usually don't remain below 32F for long periods and have dry winters and dry air which is a big reason why they did not get bud rot like they do in wetter areas .Growing palms in colorado springs usdazone 5b-If you have not seen this website you should- (everyone trying to grow palms in the north should),its still the most informative site I've come across! I know they covered their palms when it was less then -10 but I don't consider this cheating any more than in the south are anywhere else tender veg is temperarally covered,their palms have been in the ground for at least 5 years

Luck of the weather always helps too. Two weeks ago we had 6 sunny days that were 80 85 87 90 90 73. That is a great October blast that our potted cocos would normally never get. This past weekend has been sunny and 68 81 76 (today). Again three nice warm sunny days here near November that they would normally never get. That brings us closer to when they can go out agian next May. If you have a coconut (or just about any other palm) that is a manageable size hget them in full sun anytime it's in the 60s. If it will get too cold move them in for the night and take out the next day. Sun, Sun and more Sun.

Needle palms are probably the only palms that will grow in a zone 6b in Oregon, Sabal minors require a lot of summer heat to grow well (native to the southeast USA). They can handle pretty cold temperatures, probably around 0F when established if the duration is breif, but they wont put out more than a frond or 2 a year in climates that dont get hot (even in climates that are hot, they are slow growers that put out only about 3-4 fronds a year). Trachys are a great choice since they are easy to protect. They are reliably cold hardy to about 7F, lets say 10F to play it safe. They are the most common cold hardy palm grown in my area since they grow trunks so they give the tropical look a bit easier. As for potted palms, there are plenty of good ones. My personal favorite are Spindle palms. They are really tough. I grow at least 15 different species of palms as potted plants currently and this one is the easiest of them that tolerates sun during the summer months. Chamaedoreas are very easy and do great in shade, but will not tolerate sun. Chamaedorea seifrizii is one of my favorites of that species. Solitare palms are really easy indoor palms as well. They dont really grow that well in sun outdoors so partial shade is best. They grow just as well indoors as they do outdoors for me, making a new frond every 6 weeks or so. You can also try yuccas and tropical bulbs (like elephant ears, cannas, etc...) for a tropical look in your zone. They look good with perrenials that are already common in your area so you dont have to worry about it not looking right. Good luck! -Alex