Planting needle palms soon...

[Bgoins12]

Ok, So I ordered 2 Needle palms to plan in front of our house..... How far should I plant them from the house? I know they get fairly big, so this would be a great thing to know..

Also.... any tips on planting these?

Thanks!

[hardyjim]

Plant as close to the wall as you want.
If the soil is clay,amend with peat moss composted manure
add other organic matter,coffee grounds,milorganite etc.
You can also add builders sand and pea gravel for drainage.

Make sure your soil temps are over 60(f) 8" down,if possible-
post some pics!

[gpenny]

Mature needle palms can reach diameters of 6 feet by suckering. I have several that large at heights of 6 feet also. However, these plants are 20 plus years old and growing close to their native habitat. My palms grow in semi-shade and in full "scorching" S.C. sun! Soil is sandy loam. I imagine in your area that they will grow very slowly and be "manageable" for many years before reaching large sizes.

[hardyjim]

Also a good thing to protect from moisture during the winter.
A lot of people in the n/east have had spear-pull thinking these are
bomb proof,they pretty much are once established but constant moisture est/or not in the crowns
and freezing temps are a formula for spear-pull and with the slow growth speed of these
recovery can take a loooooooooooooooooong time.

[BILL MA]

I'd say all the needle palms on the Northern part of the east coast will still need really good protection for at least 3 years when planted since all of them really come from Florida. Cold hard palms! Really? Yeah there cold hardy for there 4-5 year existence with maybe 4 minor frosts over there winters.

SC is surely a place not to worry about Needle Palms, but I've seen many people not far North Question the hardy HD blue pots needles.

They surely grown super fast for retail purposes, not hardy for a real freeze situation.

Bill

[gpenny]

Bill
I agree! Even here in S.C. most commercial nurseries sell palms that are shipped up from Florida. We are the "Palmetto" state and almost all palmettos sold in nurseries are shipped from Florida. Butias and needles also. That is why I started growing my own plants from my own trees that have survived 35 winters here in central S.C. Through the years many plants have survived and I've lost a lot. What's left are the stronger plants that I believe are inherently tougher!

[hardyjim]

Totally agree guys/gals-

These palms can be hardened off eventually if protected correctly,tough though.
Most will lose the leaves they arrived with in the process-can't necessarily teach an old leaf new tricks