washingtonia robusta how hardy

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derrick

Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by derrick »

Dont worry its not going out its more 5 c I have the jungle seeds 2008 so are get the ricinus seeds from that book . CHEERS
Axel

Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Axel »

Nathan wrote:
derrick wrote:8c thats ok then i might put it outside spring .I dont want to shock it to much now And they can deal with the rain.
If you live in the city limits of Southampton itself it should be fine outside, even as a small plant. If you live more out in the suburbs then it may need protecting in colder weather. As has been said robusta can take damp/wet weather better than filifera, so are more suited to our climate, though they are not quite as hardy as filifera. Washingtonia robustas seem to be popping up around Portsmouth in the last couple of years, (B&Q to thank I guess), mine has been out for 6 years & was only around 18 inches high when first planted. Its now huge & has giant leaves... They are very fast growing & even if the leaves get damaged by frost they will quickly grow new ones the following summer...

Pic from back bedroom showing Washingtonia robusta starting to get up over the top of the kitchen roof...
Hi Nathan, how big is the washy and the Phoenix canariensis_CIDP behind? I have never seen pics of these before but that surely is a great picture.
Last edited by Axel on Sun Dec 14, 2008 10:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Dave Brown »

I would say no more than -6C for a big W.robusta, but it can tolerate more winter wet. It is not as hardy as Phoenix canariensis_CIDP but can grow out winter damage very fast. My Washie has only ever had -6.1C and was totally defoliated :roll:

I would be worried if we were forecast -8C :roll: Mine is not small... mature and now growing a trunk.
05102008 024.jpg
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grub

Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by grub »

I can say that Robusta will see -9 if dry as that was the temperature acheived in my green house earlier this year :evil:
Nathan

Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Nathan »

Axel wrote:
Nathan wrote:
derrick wrote:8c thats ok then i might put it outside spring .I dont want to shock it to much now And they can deal with the rain.
If you live in the city limits of Southampton itself it should be fine outside, even as a small plant. If you live more out in the suburbs then it may need protecting in colder weather. As has been said robusta can take damp/wet weather better than filifera, so are more suited to our climate, though they are not quite as hardy as filifera. Washingtonia robustas seem to be popping up around Portsmouth in the last couple of years, (B&Q to thank I guess), mine has been out for 6 years & was only around 18 inches high when first planted. Its now huge & has giant leaves... They are very fast growing & even if the leaves get damaged by frost they will quickly grow new ones the following summer...

Pic from back bedroom showing Washingtonia robusta starting to get up over the top of the kitchen roof...
Hi Nathan, how big is the washy and the Phoenix canariensis_CIDP behind? I have never seen pics of these before but that surely is a great picture.
Axel,

My Washie is around 8-9ft tall overall. It has a thick 4-5ft trunk & leaves around a metre across. It was planted out in 2002 as an 18 inch plant...

The Phoenix canariensis_CIDP is a bit taller & its leaves span the width of my tiny garden, it was planted in 2003 as a 4ft plant purchased from a supermarket. Unfortunately due to the size of my garden its hard to get a decent shot of them & every pic I try to take I cannot get the whole plant into shot :roll:
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Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Dave Brown »

grub wrote:I can say that Robusta will see -9 if dry as that was the temperature acheived in my green house earlier this year :evil:
year-but...... the only place to get to -9C and be dry is inside a greenhouse. Highly unlikely outside :lol:
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Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Las Palmas Norte »

All this has me believing you're not likley to see Washingtonia robust become a skyline tree in most parts of England. Am I mistaken, or are there some tall unprotected skyline or large sized specimen there?
Considering they're fast growers I'd be inclined to think big robusta would be easy over the past decade or more.

Cheers, Barrie.
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Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Dave Brown »

Barrie, I live in what now seems to be a coastal climate rather than an inland one having the information on other weathersattions. I think Washingtinia robusta is marginal in UK coastal climates, ie, you need a good microclimate as well to guarantee success. The thing is, that even here temps were too cold for Washingtonia. I lost a 4 foot tall specimen in the winter of 1984/5 and would have been hard pressed to get a Washie through the megacold snap in Jan 1987 (-12.9C) Since that time we have got away with it here, with coldest temps being about -8C and coldest since 2000 -6C. :wink:

I think large mature specimens (trunk forming) would come back from total defoliation at -8C, but very few people had large ones 10 years ago, so small ones were planted out and in most cases, lost :roll: I am hoping that as the palm gets taller the growing point is further from the very cold ground layer. As my Washie had the protection of a west facing wall, it has grown large enough now to fend for itself and is growing around 1 foot of trunk and 20 leaves per year. icon_thumright Every spring I breath a sigh of relief that it has made another year. I still expect to lose it at some point, but it looks impressive while I still have it. :D

My advice to anyone thinking of planting one out would be don't be in too much of a hurry, let it bulk up in a pot, when planting out choose a sunny place protected from cold winds, and give overhead protection when forecast below -3C. I have not used rain shelters, but that is one form of overhead protection. I draped fleece over the top while small enough just to stop too much leaf damage. :wink: Once established it's speed of growth is it's main salvation, as it is quick to grow out any winter damage. icon_thumright

Once above about 6 feet it is not possible to give overhead protection, but as said, hopefully by that stage it will cope with the coldest weather we have here. :wink:
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GARYnNAT

Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by GARYnNAT »

My washy has or rather had been in the ground for 3 years, the first couple of years it had a rain shelter built over it for the winter. Last year it was to tall and this along with it's spread and proximity to other large plants meant that a rain shelter was not practical so all it got was a couple of old summer weight duvets thrown over it during the coldest night (min -6c), its now potted up on our deck ready to move. The pergola over the deck has allowed me to put a temporary shelter over it for this winter :D

Not a great pic but gives an indication of its size
garden sept 08 053.jpg
Gary
Axel

Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Axel »

This one is outside amsterdam next to the building of a palmwholsaler. Completely exposed and experienced around -7/-8C.
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Nathan

Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Nathan »

That's a biggun Axel :shock: Is it planted out? How long has it been there??
Axel

Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Axel »

I have only noticed it last summer and it has come through our last winter completely defoliated. I have seen -6.7C last winter so i geuss this one experienced a degree or 2 lower since its so far from any city and its completely exposed. It's planted in a pot about 2 times the size of the trunk.
Nathan

Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Nathan »

Axel wrote:I have only noticed it last summer and it has come through our last winter completely defoliated. I have seen -6.7C last winter so i geuss this one experienced a degree or 2 lower since its so far from any city and its completely exposed. It's planted in a pot about 2 times the size of the trunk.
I wonder how big Washies are likely to get over here? I doubt even in milder areas they will get as big as the one in your pic?? I'm surprised there are not big ones on Tresco. The biggest ones I have seen are at the Ventnor Botanic Garden on the Isle of Wight...
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Last edited by Nathan on Tue Dec 16, 2008 1:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Axel

Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Axel »

I spend some time looking at washy experiences in Dallas and if you look at the growth rate overthere than you realise they really like HEAT, dry heat. Dave's washy has been a great inspiration for me and i bought a similar sized one, but in Dallas i think they reach that size from a tiny plant within 2 or 3 years.

By the way, Dallas is around 0C today but turns to 25C again in the next 2 days. They have some colder nights than most of the UK and they cant keep Phoenix canariensis_CIDP's alive outside the center of town. Their Washie robusta's have full crowns again by april.
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Re: washingtonia robusta how hardy

Post by Dave Brown »

I remember i was enthusing at my washie growing 18 leaves in 2006, and a guy living on an island off the coast of Croasia took the wind out of my sails as he had 46 leaves in the same period :shock: So even in places with just a few degrees more heat the difference can be dramatic. If Tresco does not have a summer as such they may be down to 10 leaves or less. May here is as warm as Tresco in July, and May is my 5th warmest month on average, so I may have 4 or 5 months better growing conditions.

At it's present rate of growth it will be around 20 feet in 2018. freezes excepted, but at some point it's height will keep it mainly above the frost level. It grew 20 leaves this year and was not as hot as most recent years, although unlike some unfortunates further north :roll: we did have a summer.
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