Finally got out today to take pictures of my enclosures.
Here is a shot of the boxes that protect my two biggest trachys. The box on the left is 8 feet tall and the box on the right is 6 feet tall. The interior dimensions are 40 inches by 40 inches. As you can see, I have removed the south side foam panel to let in light. I do this every day and it also gives me free heat. It goes back on at night. Each is heated with a 750 watt space heater set at 40F.
The trachy on the right has been with me since 2008 and started as a 3 gallon. I planted the one on the left this past June and was a 15 gallon.
Here is a closeup of the protection. Double poly (one layer on inside, one layer on outside, 1 1/2-inch gap in between. Then 1 1/2-inch foam on the outside screwed on with lag bolts and washers. The lid is a 2-by-2 frame with plywood top and 1 1/2-inch foam insulation underneath.
Here is a shot of the protection for the four trachys I planted this spring. These boxes are 30 inches by 30 inches inside and are doubly poly. These are each heated with a single strand of 100 mini Christmas lights that runs on a thermocube, 35F on/45F off. The 5-gallon bucket is filled with leaves and has a tiny trachy in that is just starting its character leaves. The other side of the property has one of these too. No heat is in these buckets, just a test to see what happens.
And finally, here is a wide-angle shot of my yard.
Some stats for you, current temperature is 28F outside at 1:30 pm.
Inside the 8-foot trachy enclosure the temp is: 64.0F
Inside the 6-foot trachy enclosure the temp is: 56.7F
Inside the little trachy boxes the temp is: 66.7F
They have reached their peak temps with full sun, so all looks good I think.
Last night it fell to 15.2F.
Temp temps in both the insulated boxes were 40F as expected because of the space heaters. The temps in the uninsulated poly boxes fell to 34.0F. So I think the mini lights will be a "win".
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Very nice!
I'd like us to all start "palm hut" threads so we (and new comers) can see the various methods.
You've seen mine by now. Last year, I had a nearly flat roof and had to go out and brush snow off. This year, my palm hut has a steep roof. Are you concerned about "snow load? --Erik
They look real nice. 😀
Shoshone Idaho weather
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Here's to all the global warming pushers, may your winters be -30 below and four feet of snow in your driveway. Because I want you happy.
-Aaron-
Nice Tim!! Hey have you ever had issues with the space heater?? I wen't out and got a new one today. I thik the thermostat was broken on it cause it wouldn't shut off and wasn't getting the palm hut very warm! Bought a new one tonight and it took 5min to warm it up then shut off.
Glad to hear it's all working out so far!!
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Good job. I can help thinking your yard looks like some kind of conceptual art garden. 😉
wxman,
AND THE CIDP??????
Please say you're not leaving that out to die ... 🙁 🙁 🙁
(I'll call the Palm Police on you)...or drive down and dig it out myself.
Great pics of protection and descriptions.
Good planning with tie-downs for windstorms.
By the way, what do your neighbours think?
Scotty, good that you noticed the broken thermostat before the cold hits.
Barb
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If you drink, don't drive. Don't even putt.
I thought it was a P. sylvestris, but no matter--dig it up!
I left my PDP out too long and it saw 26 oF which it did not like one bit. I think it might survive 😳
Whether P. sylvestris or CIDP, dig it up and bring it in or Barb will be down there with a shovel!
--Erik
Barb- They are phoenix sylvestris that I bought off eBay in spring for $7 a piece. Sorry, they already saw 16F and are probably dead. They served their purpose and looked good in the summer, but I don't have enough funds to protect them, and likely they would succumb even with protection in this cold and wet climate. Bringing them in is out of the question, as I'm already overwintering 2 trachycarpus wagnerianus, 1 washingtonia filibusta, 1 christmas palm, 1 siam ruby, 4 musa basjoo, 3 ensete maurelii and 3 musa orinoco. I think I'm planting my ensete where my phoenix were next year. They are getting big in the basement! 😯
Scott - no issues with the space heaters and I hope there are no issues to come this winter since there is no way to gain access to the bottom of the palm structures unless I machete through the plastic. I guess if I had to I would and then patch it with more plastic and tape but it's not preferred.
Jack- Thanks. Did you see a picture of it from this summer? If not, here's a few below:
The grass is Penncross creeping bentgrass which I mow at 1/2-inch with a reel mower. It's the grass they use on golf course greens.
Erik - Not concerned about snowload. It's 1/2-inch plywood supported on a 2-by-2 frame. I could sit up there myself and it wouldn't cave. After every snow I go out there with a snowbrush like you use to brush snow off your car and it takes a min or two to clear them all off. It's more functional to me to use a flat roof and has never posed a problem.
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Looks good Tim!
Your boxes are getting BIG 😆 😆 😆
My washy frames go up today I think, they have a couple frost cloths wrapped around the fronds now to keep them warm. Big palm houses are pain in the you know what 😉
Bill
P.sylvestris, oops sorry (gotta clean my glasses).
But even at $7.00, a shame to use as an annual as truesylvestris are relatively rare in cultivation:
http://www.plantapalm.com/vpe/photos/Species/phoenix_sylvestris.htm
I notice that you're banana smitten 😉
Inside the house must look very tropical!
Agree with Bill that big boxes are a pain, but they sure do the job.
Barb
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If you drink, don't drive. Don't even putt.
As I said before, it could be a house in Los Angeles.
WOW. nicely done. Very impressive set up. My wife thinks I'm nuts protecting palm trees in Kansas, I showed her your set up and she says we're all nuts.
Like Barb asked. what do your neighbors say and think?
Kent in Kansas
where it's cold in winter (always)
and hot in summer (usually)
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My neighbors don't really say much except like "nice yard", etc. In the back of their minds they probably think I'm nuts!!!
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Well, at least they're civil and say something pleasant.
They probably think you have a great hobby, wxman.
Kent, tell W she should be grateful your hobby is palms...you could collect insects and display them on pins all over your walls.
Try decorating around that!
But she may be right... 😉
Barb
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If you drink, don't drive. Don't even putt.
My W makes me hide all the palms and weird stuff out back behind the house so no one sees them unless they fly over.
From the street, we seem to have a typical old double-wide with weeds, tomatoes and chickens.
Kent, when my W says I'm nuts to grow palms in Oklahoma I remind her of her hobby (carriage driving) and she just picks up her tools and helps me. Does your wife have a crazy hobby you can exploit? 😆
