Anyone else in Ohio here? Got a few Q's

[Bgoins12]

If there is anyone else here in Ohio, I have a few questions.

Anyone know of a nursery in the Cleveland area that may happen to have T. Fortuneis? I am looking to put 2 in our front yard, as well as some Needle Palms up against the house, however this being Ohio, it's kinda hard to find this stuff. Or am I going to have no choice but to start seedlings in the house? I am willing to drive up to 150-200 miles to get these if anyone knows where they are at.

Oh, and I live in Zone 6a.... it is extremely rare for it to get below 10* in the winter here, and if it does, it's only for about a hour or 2.

Thanks!

[Paul Ont]

Sorry man- don't think we have anyone else in Ohio on this board. If you try the hardy palms and subtropcials board, you might find some people with answers. There is always mail-order.

Did a quick history of the weather for your area... Looks really similar to my own area (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) same averages and records for the winter (your extreme lows, in the -23f range (-24f, -22f on successive nights in 1994, OUCH!), are a little lower). Interesting! One ofthe big kickers for us is the January with AVERAGES well below freezing, and the daytime high (Averages) not getting much, if at all, above freezing! Oh, and if your particular minimum winter extremes are at 10f, that's a zone 8a rating. I'm guessing though, that, based on the data, you meant -10f! Have you thought about how to protect your plants?

If you are close enough, some of the HD's in southern Kentucky might be carrying hardy palms (needles, minor, trachys) but these will all need protection, especially as newly planted specimens, in a zone 6a (or 7a this far north, for that matter).

[TerdalFarm]

I'll just reiterate what Paul said.
Mail order works for exotic palms, but they are small.
My best trick is to drive south for holidays and stop by nurseries on the way north, thats Texas in my case. Bill is the champ of this method.
As for protection, let me emphasize what Paul was saying: you'll need that for T. fortunei! Barb here has photos of how she overwintered her Trachy in the ground. I keep thinking I live so far south I'm OK, but I've killed a few Trachy over the years and darn near killed another this winter by thinking I don't need much protection just 'cause I live at 35oN latitude.

[Cameron_z6a_N.S.]

no trachys, but this site seems to have some other "hardy" tropicals: http://www.glasshouseworks.com/tropicalsoutdoors.html

[BILL MA]

Hey Bgoins12,
Not sure if I can point you in the right direction but I can offer one suggestion. Take a nice 5-7 day trip to the North Carolina coast. A 10-12 hour drive I'm guessing? You'll find exactly what your looking for there, at a size and price you are looking for as well. April vacation is always a nice time to go if you have kids, a perfect time to plant huge needles, minors and trachys when you get home. Gary Hollar has the best things going in New Bern NC. His plants seem to be at least 5-7 degrees hardier then the HD blue pots, a big difference.

Bill

[BILL MA]

By the way if you can avoid mail order I would seriously recommend it!

Bill

[TerdalFarm]

I agree on the mail order, but I also admit I have an expensive shipment coming in this week from California....