Archontophoenix cunninghamiana {bangalow palm}

[Ste]

Has anyone tried this palm? I've read that it can take as low as -5. I see this palm quite a lot on holiday and really like it. I think I might give it a try, keep it in the garden all summer and bring it inside during winter. Are our summers warm enough for this to actually grow or would it struggle and need much more heat?

[billdango]

Has anyone tried this palm? I've read that it can take as low as -5. I see this palm quite a lot on holiday and really like it. I think I might give it a try, keep it in the garden all summer and bring it inside during winter. Are our summers warm enough for this to actually grow or would it struggle and need much more heat?

It grows well in Lisbon along with H forsteriana but Lisbon rarely has any frost so I don,t know if it will be possible outside in UK.

billdango

[GREVILLE]

It would need to be sited in a sun-trap and probably double as a specimen houseplant, something I managed to do for about seven years in the 1990's. When the spear cleared ten feet in height I couldn't overwinter it inside any longer and had to leave it outside. It's first winter holiday coincided with a ten day freeze in 1997 and that was it!

Any sub zeroes for these would have to be very brief and followed by double digit temperatures in the day.

[Nathan]

I had a few of these growing outside for several years, until the recent cold winters The first cold winter severely damaged them, then the second cold winter finished them off completely...

They grew surprisingly well here, my biggest & best one was planted as an 18 inch tall plant & it was about 9ft with a woody trunk starting to form when it died. They don't need summer heat, just lots of water...

They did have a mature one on Tresco, but that was killed during the winter of 1987...

If the winters get back to being mild I will definitely plant them again

[Adam]

i have three which go outside in summer and come inside in the winter, they grow relatively ok in our summers outside but if you try to maximise their growth by putting them in the sun expect them to burn quite badly as mine do every year and then spend the whole summer growing out of the damage

[Dave Brown]

The bangalow palm takes full sun in Australia so would be able to here, but the problem is they go all soft if grown inside, then burn when placed outside again. As they seem to be ok when just frost free, maybe a solution would be to erect a winter protection box with a little heating in cold weather.

[Nathan]

Mine didn't appear to grow any quicker when exposed to sun, one growing in complete shade shade grew just as fast. In Australia, in their natural habitat, they are an understory palm only poking out of the canopy when mature...

So yes they can take full sun, but if you are growing one as an indoor/outdoor palm I would just keep it in the shade when outside & LOTS of water, never let them dry out...

[billdango]

The bangalow palm takes full sun in Australia so would be able to here, but the problem is they go all soft if grown inside, then burn when placed outside again. As they seem to be ok when just frost free, maybe a solution would be to erect a winter protection box with a little heating in cold weather.

I will do that i'ff my Syagrus carks it.

With luck it may grow quicker then my queen palm.

billdango

[targui]

The Bangalow palm has about the same hardiness as the New Zealand Nikau palm, but handles direct sun better.
They will not take minus 5c of frost. At minus 2c they will sustain damage, anything over that will be fatal
on most occasions. They prefer rich soil and coastal conditions. The southern limit of the Bangalow in eastern
Australia is latitude 35.35 degrees south, at Batemans Bay on New South Wales southern coast. Bangalows will not
thrive as an indoor plant as they require high humidity. This palm seems to flower better in open situations
rather than under the shady canopy of trees and bush.

[Ste]

Thanks for the replies. I actually typed in the wrong palm - the one I prefer and was meant to post about was actually the Archontophoenix Alexandrae. But after reading up a little on it, it does seem like the Cunninghamiana would be a better choice for here as its more cold hardy. Shame really as the Alexandrae looks the nicer palm.

[targui]

I think the Alexander or King palm would struggle to exist in the U.K. It like its
cousin the Bangalow does not like indoor conditions, requiring higher humidity.
Its natural range in Australia is from latitude 12 degrees south of the equator to
approximately 24.5 dgrees south, just past the tropic of capricorn. It is
essentially a tropical palm but will grow in warm temperate coastal areas as
long as there is no prolonged cold or frost. I have a nice specimen in my
garden which is flowering. It is about 8.5 meters tall.

[Nigel Fear]

I also had one for a few years, and can confirm that frost damage to the leave occurs at around -2 or -3,[ unless under a canopy], -5 is fatal.
A fully mature one might take slightly lower, but I doubt it.

[flounder]

My only experience with them is the germinate faster than washingtonia, grow slower as seedlings than butia and in low humidity crisp up faster than spagnum moss

[redsquirrel]

I think the Alexander or King palm would struggle to exist in the U.K. It like its
cousin the Bangalow does not like indoor conditions, requiring higher humidity.
Its natural range in Australia is from latitude 12 degrees south of the equator to
approximately 24.5 dgrees south, just past the tropic of capricorn. It is
essentially a tropical palm but will grow in warm temperate coastal areas as
long as there is no prolonged cold or frost. I have a nice specimen in my
garden which is flowering. It is about 8.5 meters tall.

im getting some surprisingly good results with adonidia merrillii (sp) growing well in the bathroom window,2 split leaves already from march seed sowing

[Troppoz]

The Bangalow palm has about the same hardiness as the New Zealand Nikau palm, but handles direct sun better.
They will not take minus 5c of frost. At minus 2c they will sustain damage, anything over that will be fatal
on most occasions. They prefer rich soil and coastal conditions. The southern limit of the Bangalow in eastern
Australia is latitude 35.35 degrees south, at Batemans Bay on New South Wales southern coast. Bangalows will not
thrive as an indoor plant as they require high humidity. This palm seems to flower better in open situations
rather than under the shady canopy of trees and bush.

Targui that might be the southern limit of its natural range (though Im sure Ive seen them growing in scrub around Bega much further south) but they actually can handle Hobarts climate and are planted extensively in Melbourne. Considering that Hobarts climate is only marginally warmer than Southampton they could be considered amrginal for the milder parts of the UK as Nathans efforts show.