Yeah, I'm sold on Washy living in pots.
We've had a couple of inches of rain so far today and about as much more coming. Washy (and Bizzy) are in pots so it can all drain away while the Trachycarpus, Sabal and Rhapidophyllum may just float away today. --Erik

Maybe your Washy will float away too.....and plant itself 😯 😉

This is the "beach" AFTER we did all that drainage work last week. (The mess in the background shows where the work was.)
<a href=" http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/Aa-nUv_NbfhEjImatQc86tt1YkEUkSNZmQJ7eg3F81c?feat=embedwebsit e"><img src=" " /></a>
I hope it doesn't get washed downstream as that would put it in the Gulf of Mexico which isn't too healthy right now. --Erik

Erik, are you saying the water/mud level rose to mid-pot on that palm?
Or was the pot sunk (planted) halfway into the ground?

It'll be nice to see that 15 gallon at home Tim.
Barb

😆
No, not that bad. The pot is painted that way.
Over in OKC it may have been that bad. 🙁

Back to the thread: yes, that large Trachy will be super. I like at least a few large palms in the garden to make a statement. Until I put some in, folks who don't garden much would come to see my palms and be underwhelmed as the little ones were lost among faster-growing plants. --Erik

Oh well-it's a shame though when we invest the time...and you do get attached to these dang palms
when they do so well.
The combination of already cold gound and added moisture from rain/snow melt is what did it in.

I think keeping them dry coming out of winter until they wake up is more important with Washys.

Take it as a warning though Tim,your protection is excellent over winter without a doubt but
you may want to consider putting down a moisture barrier (some plastic)and maybe using leaves or something to
insulate the soil during winter(warm roots are happy roots),that way you can just pull it off the rocks in spring
and your palms are open for business again!

BTW-are you going to pot up that Washy?-I bet it will be growing vigorously by the end of summer
in a pot.

Good luck with your new Trachy!

Thanks for the advice. Only problem with a moisture barrier is with our melting snow up here. When you have 2 feet of snow on the ground melting, the moisture goes down into the soil, and then I think it moves horizontally under the enclosure, so I'd have to plastic up a huge area to keep the moisture out. My trachy didn't skip a beat, so maybe they can tolerate the wetness better than the washy.

I will probably pot it up if I can get a cheap pot big enough to hold it and it also depends on how crappy the root system is.

Man that Sucks, Tim! All that work 😡 Trachys are troopers for sure and you'll have no problems getting them through for the long too.

Washies are a ton of work to keep looking nice up north as you know, I wish I planted one to start instead of 3 🙄 I'll ride them out as
long as possible and replace with something slower growing like butia or something.

Too bad shipping so high otherwise I would have hooked you up to comfort your loss.

You'll do great and be much happier with a large trachy!

Bill

Erik,
I was worried when I saw 8" of rain in OKC this morning, glad it missed you for the most part.

Bill

Bill, thanks. I'll start a "rain thread" so I don't tread on this great one.

Thanks Bill.

Yeah washys are a lot of work. It sailed through the first winter and started pushing fast last spring, but I think that's because the root system had not yet grown out of the enclosure. Now that the root system grew outside the enclosure it got zapped last winter. My trachy still has every frond from when I planted it 2008 and keeps growing strong. I think, too, that I will be happier with a large trachy instead of a washy. Maybe when I have more time, money, and other things I will dabble with washys again.

If my 2 phoenix's perish, they will get replaced with 15 gallon trachys too. I will give them as long as they can handle it though 🙂

I agree with you guys.. Trachy's are much easier for us to grow up north but still, if you saw Bill's Washies in person you would S$%^ your pants! They look great, but a lot of work! You place would like nice with a few big Trachy's Tim... My washie looks pretty crappy and growing soooo slowly!

I like Washy as much as the next, but they are not easy. For the same work you put into a Washy, you could grow a Butia which I think are even better looking, and perhaps a little hardier to boot.
So, yes, get the big Trachy. If you decide to make an effort for a marginal palm, I suggest a big Butia. --Erik

My idea when I got into this was to display the palms(unprotected)as long as possible.
Butias,Trachys and Sabals should allow me to do that,Washys should also allow this to some extent but
the problem(at least where I live and probably most areas)is that temps have been below normal the last 3+
years.
This make growing Washys a problem if there isn't enough heat in the summer,we were all led to believe that
Washys grow a couple feet of trunk every year,I am sure we all would be in if that were the case because it would be worth it.

Anyway..........it will be interesting if we get some hot summers and warmer springs to see just how far north it's worth it to grow them.
You really do need some summer heat for these to store enough nuts for winter!

Cheer up, Jim: 2010 is shaping up to be very warm.
Here is a summary from NOAA:
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/?report=global&year=2010&month=5&submitted=Get+Report#strato
As El Nino fades and a La Nina comes on, the year may not finish quite so well.

As for palms, going Rhapidophyllum/Sabal/Trachycarpus in the ground makes the most sense to me, with special efforts for Butia. No harm in keeping the rest in pots.
I'm already regretting planting my Brahea. --Erik

Did I sound sad or something 😀

I am not,my Washys are exploding!
It remains to be seen if there is enough GDD here for Washys to survive,
my thought has always been-save some leaves and summer heat should do the job.

These 2 enter their 2nd summer with flying(green)colors!