TrachysnowLI
Palms

Palms (Apr to Oct)

Hardy and semi hardy Palms mail order from Jungle Gardens, these are my second favourite plants for tropical effects, some being totally hardy! This particular palm is a  Trachycarpus Fortunei growing in my front garden, totally happy and regularly flowering in coldest Oxfordshire.

Butia Capitata 5L

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Jelly Palm large 5 litre plants җ җ 

Apart from the Trachycarpus family this is one of the best hardy palm alternatives to grow in the UK, frost hardy to about minus 10°C and very difficult to obtain young plants. It is not a fan but a feather palm, looking much more like the traditional date palm with beautiful blue-green leaves. In my own experience it is only marginally hardy in our frost pocket without any protection at all but easy to wrap with a bit of hesian on extra cold nights to protect the crown and new growth.

Trachycarpus fortunei 10L

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Chusan Palm The hardy Palm, 10 litre plants җ җ җ 
My favourite hardy palm from China that I have been growing for maybe 30 years. I have lost one before in a particularly cold and wet winter in Chesham but I think it was the wet rather than the cold that proved fatal. In Oxford we have experienced temperatures down to about minus 15C in the past which did not damage the plant in the picture. Once established it grows quickly and we are probably talking about planting one out in your Garden in its 3rd or 4th year from seed to give it a chance to succeed. A must for any Palm devotee it has a very hairy trunk with huge (and I mean huge up to 4 ft across) fan shaped leaves and grows well in most soils particularly slightly alkaline.  The photograph on the left was taken in our garden, illustrating a 20 years old palm flowering in May.  The one below taken in 2008 is the size of of our 10 litre plants.

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Symbols

To Grow -- Easy Moderate and Challenging

May be ok for a dry Conservatory

Hardiness - To -5°C җ To -10°C җ җ Fully Hardy җ җ җ

Needs Shady Position Sunny Position Water Loving