Washingtonia Palms

Washingtonia is a genus of two large, fan palms - one native to Southwest U.S. and the other to Northwest Mexico. Although neither are native to deep south Texas, both have naturalized here.

California or Desert Fan Palm, Washingtonia filifera is indigenous to California and western Arizona. It grows to 60 feet tall and has a stout trunk. Filifera's leaves have a white threads between the split segments.

Mexican Fan Palm, or Washingtonia robusta, is native in the Mexican state of Sonora and the southern Baja California. It is a taller, thinner palm, growing to 90 feet.

Washingtonias cross-pollinate easily so a "pure" species is hard to identify and possibley rare. Both are pretty cold-hardy, surviving temperatures in the 20s (or hardiness zone 8).

This is the most common palm in the Rio Grande Valley, lining roadways, both large and small. It's great in large commercial developments. The size of this palm makes it unsuitable for your average home or yard. But if you happen to have a 3 story home or large yard. it would be a great addition to your landscape.

Plantings of different sized Washingtonias is another attractive use. Some trunks are more self-cleaning than others. Our high humidity helps loosen the leaf's hold on the trunk. Washingtonias are drought-tolerant for short periods, but do better with regular water.

The Whole Picture

My Florida sister, Betsy, reads Cultivating Paradise every now and then. She's so sweet and tells me how much she learns from it - how beautiful the pictures are - yadda, yadda, yadda. Well, today she's coming for a visit. I know she expects to see a lush and well maintained garden. A picture may be worth a thousand words - but it doesn't always tell the whole story.



I shot this Cardboard Palm, Zamia furfuracea, yesterday. (Don't you just love the seed stems - and just wait until they open up and expose the bright red seeds! - but that's another post) Back to my "disclosure" - I would expect this plant is located in a beautiful, well-kept bed - but zoom out, and here, is where she is really residing. . . . .

One of the "staging areas" for our house remodeling . . . Isn't it lovely? - complete with an above ground line to the contractor's toilet. I hope "strolling in the garden" is not on her to-do list.
Sitting on the patio won't be too relaxing either . . .

And, finally my favorite item - our newest garden accessory - the outdoor potty. We had a hurricane in July and it was one of the few items left standing . . .

Pictures don't lie - but what you see may not be what you get . . .

Seed Season

I'm always looking for plants that have pretty Fall seeds - a little something to bring the feel of Autumn to our semi-tropical area. One plant group I sometimes overlook are palms - and many of them produce some striking seed stems - such as the Pygmy Date Palm, Phoenix roebellini.

This January photo shows the inflouresence of a Pygmy Date.

By March, the seeds are small but well-formed.

In May, I don't see much change in the seed - they're just a little bit bigger.

And finally, this morning, the Pygmy Date is sporting these gorgeous maroon and purple-black seeds. I think now is the time to gather a few for a seed exchange - and maybe I'll cut a stem or two for decorations inside the house.