Suggestions and ideas please !

I've been to Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens today and have come back home with my mind brimming over with new design and planting ideas

I'd be interested to hear what others have experienced when growing 'tropical/exotic' plants because i'm considering buying a Jubaea or a Trithrinax for my front garden.
Does anyone have either of these in their garden ?

My own garden is on a windy hillside, we get south westerlies which aren't cold but very destructive so a palm or fern with finely dissected fronds would be frazzled within a very short time.
Also, the area is very dry, free draining soil and winds make it so, therefore i need to choose a plant that will withstand both elements.
It must be hardy too.
I've done some research and the one to withstand the winds would be the Trithrinax.

Experiences and ideas needed please

 

Chamaerops Humilis can handle fairly strong wind ... only grows 6-8 feet tall and is hardy to -15 degrees C ...

grows slow, so if you do decide to get one, get the largest you can afford ... prepare the planting hole well (add perlite etc to make it free draining) ... some rootgrow and a regular dose of palmbooster .... mulch with 3 inches of well rotted farmyard manure in winter

these are becoming very popular in the affluent suburbs of London ... the palms also make sideshoots that can be left, or pruned ... I have planted several in small gardens recently

http://www.plantation2000.com.au/images/plants/large/Chamaerops humilis.jpg

there is a 'blue' version of this palm aswell (Chamaerops humilis 'Cerifera')

http://www.rarepalmseeds.com/images/ChaCer.jpg


have a look at this site for additional ideas:
Hardy Palms. Palm Tree Specialists London. UK. Palm Nursery.

 

Thank you JWK and Dim

JWK, this is a supplier of the Trithrinax and Jubaea ...... exotic plants - Palms and Palm-Like > Trithrinax campestris -

I have quite a fair budget allowed for this little project and would like to get about 3 plants and they'll be going into the front and back garden.

Dim, i like both of those examples you've given, also, tall is fine ...... i particularly like the Jubaea and the Trith (and even better that they're very hardy and wind resistant !!! ) , but as i said originally, i'm open to all suggestions and having folks who grow this type of plant is very very helpful.

 

the guys on the hardy tropicals forum would be the best to advise
Hardy Tropicals UK - Forum Home

 

Thanks Dim, i've just had a quick look will return to it later.

It's a good site and interesting to read, in the first few minutes, that quite a lot of these palms are very slow growing ...... i, of course, want a 20' palm to grow at 'yesterdays' speed :WINK1:

I am veering towards one, like the Trith. that has a trunk, because this is a look, aswell as being so tactile, that appeals to me.
However, i'm still absorbing info and peoples comments like a sponge at the moment.

 

Yes, i would definately ask them the trunks circumference because the pot size isn't always indicative, i've bought mature trees in the past so from experience i know to ask about girth.

I'll look again at P. canariensis.

 

If I were to spend a considerable amount of money on a palm that will be planted in the garden, I would wait till spring ... this will give the palm several months to establish before the cold sets in

we may have another bad winter this year?

 

I've already thought that, Dim, i believe that planting anything after July is a risky thing - because of that very fact.

 

I've just looked at the Palm Farm site you linked in a different thread and it says it's only hardy down to minus 5 and last year we experienced minus 12 - which IS unheard of but, if these temps are going to be more common i'm going to look for specimens that are hardier - down further than that.

It's lovely to have experienced 'tropical members' because it makes a novice 'tropical' person be at a huge advantage !

 

Louise, I would go for a Butia Capitata, something more hardy than the more exotic Trithrinax. Jubea are renown for their slow growth.
A Chamaerops Humilis Cerifera (Blue Fan Palm) makes a great specimen plant.
As John has said a CIDP may be a better choice but they are 'common' now as a palm and if they get going will have a massive spread, I lost mine last Winter.

 

I've done no more guys, i put it on the backburner for a while whilst i think it through more.

The choice of Trithrinax was after doing a lot of research and comparisons, it was that that showed to be the hardiest and best buy !
I whittled down numerous nurseries on the subject and started comparing 3 of them, whittled down my choice of tree and this one was the hardiest and the most appealing.

Sadly i can't give you the nursery names now because i lost all my stored information when a virus attacked the computer the other day