Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Nigel Fear

Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by Nigel Fear »

Mark wrote:Nigel, I have a few Trachys that have sprouted from a batch of seeds that were thrown on the ground
DSCF3957.JPG
I f you are going to Akamba I will lift a couple for you.
Thats generous of you Mark, but its T. Waggie I;m after, if thats what it is then great,
if its T.Fortunei, I.ve got a few already ranging from seedlings upwards. :)
pete G

Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by pete G »

Dave where are you?

We need to know if your waggie is producing seed.

My guess is, that if it is, the seed is probably a hybrid of waggie x fortunei, unless of course you have two waggies flowering.
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Dave Brown
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Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by Dave Brown »

Fletch, they are are slow to start with and at best will only have 5 or 6 leaves after 2 years. but you have also said that the last 2 years have not had a summer where you are. The reason Trachycarpus are expensive are they are so Sloooww growing when young. The palms in my picture are around 4 years old. From about 5 years old they accelerate rapidly :wink:
Best regards
Dave
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themes

Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by themes »

Nigel Fear wrote:Not been that adventurous with Trachycarpus I'm afraid, fortunei and waggie apart from the last couple of years. but the variation of fortunei seedlings just amazes me, from the same mother. icon_thumright


This got me looking around the garden properly at them. Have some with Nearly full if not full leaves, some that are more prostrate and one that has leaves that droop downwards which I have not seen much of in pics..maybe I need to look at more pics. I also took in some tlc trachys this year..so its hard to see what the leaves are going to be like until a new flush appears..fingers crossed. The ones with the rounder leaves hate the wind more than the prostrate trachys..might have to give them some more protection
DavidF

Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by DavidF »

Fletch, they are are slow to start with and at best will only have 5 or 6 leaves after 2 years. but you have also said that the last 2 years have not had a summer where you are. The reason Trachycarpus are expensive are they are so Sloooww growing when young. The palms in my picture are around 4 years old. From about 5 years old they accelerate rapidly
Oh well that's good to know Dave, thanks for that. I concentrated so much on my allotment last Spring that I have to admit I neglected a lot of my seedlings and palms. This Spring I'm determined to do some re-potting/planting and give them a better chance this year.
Robin Cassell

Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by Robin Cassell »

Dave..You said the large Trachycarpus underneaeth the bare trunk one was also a seedling..so how long do they take to get to that size and how big is the trunk now? this is crucial to my planting scheme time frame..i.e. will I be alive when they are recogniseable as palms!!!!
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Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by Dave Brown »

Robin, the large seedling is 9 years this year, but it is in competition with mum, so may have got bigger if planted on its own. Have a self sown seedling in the back which is on its own and is the same size in 7 years. :wink:

Mo, the rounder leaved ones seem to have longer individual leaflets and are more prone to wind damge, The ones with a less full leaf the leaflets are fused for more of their length giving a tougher leaf. At the other end of the scale some are more delta shaped with leaflets fused for 3/4 of their length :wink:

Fletch, they stay samller in small pots, particularly if allowed to dry out. They are surprisingly drought hardy, but don't grow their best in dry conditions. :wink:
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Dave
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SteveP

Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by SteveP »

Robin wrote:this is crucial to my planting scheme time frame
Robin, as Dave and the others have said they are fairly slow growing when very small and if the plant is to form part of an immediate planting scheme my advice, if you can afford it, is to buy a larger plant - say with 20-30cm of trunk or even bigger. Growth, however, can still be variable. Some just race away whilst others will 'sit' for a few years before getting going. Personally I think a good source of moisture is the key.

Cheers
Steve
themes

Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by themes »

Just looking back at my trachys in summer..each looks so different..
IMAG0145.jpg
The one on the left has leaves that curve down..I know that Trachycarpus fortunei can be variable and elongate esp in shade..looks very takil like..I got this as a standard fortunei. The one to the right looks more rigid but it has rounded leaves.
IMAG0146.jpg
This is rounded leaves too similar to the fortunei prev on the right..The leaves are also more fatter. Looks good as these ones are protected from the winds. I have some exposed and they have not fared as well. IMO looks best in part shade or deep shade. I had some Trachycarpus in sun but the foliage yellows and burns..going to keep them shaded a tad.
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Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by Las Palmas Norte »

April 2003 to Sept. 2010 growth

Cheers, Barrie.
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Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by redsquirrel »

that is a good show of the acceleration dave mentioned. all the hard work growth took part getting to the first pic size icon_thumright
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Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by Las Palmas Norte »

These would be even larger if I'd managed more summer watering.
This year I was more diligent but in years past, they did suffer from being too dry.

Cheers, Barrie.
grub

Re: Trachycarpus seedlings gone bonkers.

Post by grub »

Lord I'd kill for growth like that!
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