Palm Trees in Albuquerque (Las Cruces: to buy, maintenance, beach)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I thought it would be good to reply to this post since there have been no replies since the epic freeze of February 2011 when it got down to -10ºF and perhaps even colder in Albuquerque. I have been in Albuquerque only a couple of months and have seen very few palms, although I have not had an opportunity to look much. However, today I did get a chance to walk around on the campus of UNM and decided to find the three palms. They aren't hard to find, and I am happy to say that they appear to be in perfect health. One of them is fruiting. Here is a link to four photos of them that I took today July 5, 2015:
The only other palms that I have seen in person are these:
a very nice windmill palm that is about 8 feet tall located at 2205 7th St NW, just north of I-40;
a small windmill palm at 4505 Homestead NW;
a Washingtonia filifera somewhere SW that I caught a glimpse of in May, that was recovering from frost.
On Google Maps Street View, I have seen recent photos of several windmill palms in front of a house that is located at 4717 Comanche Road NE. There are three palms, one of which is as tall as the one-story house. The second is slightly shorter and the third is about five feet tall. Unfortunately, I have not had a chance to see these palms in person, but Google says the image is from April 2015.
Street View also shows a Washingtonia filifera about five feet tall at the corner of Unser and Flor del Sol NW. The image is from May 2015 and the palm is obviously alive but recovering from severe leaf burn.
Last edited by Poncho_NM; 07-05-2015 at 08:08 PM..
Spent half a morning palm hunting around Albuquerque (with the help of several threads on this forum) and here's what I found. Something about pushing the climate boundary of palms is neat to me, call me crazy! ABQ is without a doubt the coldest climate I've ever seen them. A solid 3 months of the year you've got average night time lows well below freezing.
Nice pics. I would never guess that last one was even Albuquerque based on those healthy palms.
I am no longer so surprised to see them, though. I have been seeing Windmill Palms, Needle Palms, and Banana trees growing in the suburbs of Cincinnati, zone 6a.
Based on that, I would not be afraid to try growing them in Albuquerque.
El Paso used to have a ton of palms but lost many of them to the cold snap during the winter of 2011. There is a reason you don't see them in certain climate zones. They have to not only be able to make it through an average winter but also the record cold snaps that will occur from time to time.
Nice pics. I would never guess that last one was even Albuquerque based on those healthy palms.
I am no longer so surprised to see them, though. I have been seeing Windmill Palms, Needle Palms, and Banana trees growing in the suburbs of Cincinnati, zone 6a.
Based on that, I would not be afraid to try growing them in Albuquerque.
No kidding, I came around the corner in that neighborhood and thought I was in Phoenix!
El Paso used to have a ton of palms but lost many of them to the cold snap during the winter of 2011. There is a reason you don't see them in certain climate zones. They have to not only be able to make it through an average winter but also the record cold snaps that will occur from time to time.
Very true, time will tell. But unless these ABQ palms were mature when planted, they've been there for quite a while.
I never understood why there aren't more palms in an ideal palm climate like Houston, pretty sure you see more around El Paso (and maybe even St. George, UT).
I never understood why there aren't more palms in an ideal palm climate like Houston, pretty sure you see more around El Paso (and maybe even St. George, UT).
Today I learned that palm trees like sandy, well-drained soils. West coast US makes sense as a place they could do ok in, along with islands.
Houston, being bayou country, would have poorly-drained soils, making it hard for palms to spread their roots and avoid root rot.
Palms are also quite decent at surviving in deserts, needing less frequent watering than many other plants. This is confirmed by a drive around Phoenix metro.
I guess that means if not for our cold snaps (and perhaps our wind), Albuquerque would be prime for a palm forest.
Today I learned that palm trees like sandy, well-drained soils. West coast US makes sense as a place they could do ok in, along with islands.
Houston, being bayou country, would have poorly-drained soils, making it hard for palms to spread their roots and avoid root rot.
Palms are also quite decent at surviving in deserts, needing less frequent watering than many other plants. This is confirmed by a drive around Phoenix metro.
I guess that means if not for our cold snaps (and perhaps our wind), Albuquerque would be prime for a palm forest.
Wouldn't New Orleans fall into that same category, though? There are palms everywhere you look in NO.
Wouldn't New Orleans fall into that same category, though? There are palms everywhere you look in NO.
Getting a little off topic, but I would suppose since so much of New Orleans is built on loosely packed landfill, palms tolerate it better than natural gulf coast ranges.
I'm trying to picture Tingley Beach with palm trees mixed in..
Getting a little off topic, but I would suppose since so much of New Orleans is built on loosely packed landfill, palms tolerate it better than natural gulf coast ranges.
I'm trying to picture Tingley Beach with palm trees mixed in..
Haha give it a few years!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Yes, palm trees do grow in Albuquerque
give it a few years!
