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By the way, just because Memphis is located on a geographical feature called the "Gulf coastal plain", doesn't make it a coastal location. Please look at a map. Memphis to New Orleans is about 400 miles.
Memphis is USDA Zone 7B while Virginia Beach is 8A. That alone should answer this question. Virginia Beach and maybe Cape Charles are the cusp of the subtropics.
Anything near the ocean is going to be benefit.
Having said that, you can grow some of these in Memphis. I grow palms in Maryland 7A. I have not tried a Live Oak. I do not have the space.
By the way, just because Memphis is located on a geographical feature called the "Gulf coastal plain", doesn't make it a coastal location. Please look at a map. Memphis to New Orleans is about 400 miles.
Not coastal.
Yeah...southern Illinois is considered "Gulf coastal plain" as well...and they're not getting that good ol salt air. lol And it snows. Boo.
Why do people not grow palms and Southern Live Oak in Atlanta and Memphis as much as they do in Virginia Beach?
I suspect that the answer that was posted above about people in different cities having different landscaping and aesthetics ideals for their particular regions is very close to the truth. Monkey see monkey do isn't for everyone. It's not necessarily about what type of plant needs what kind of growing conditions or what the geographical location is, it's about the people and their popular gardening trends and what they want their gardens and landscaping to say about them and their regions. Just because a lot of some particular species of plant might be popular and grown by many people in a given location 50 or 100 or 200 miles away (or more) doesn't mean that many people in other regions will want to grow the same thing where that species might also do well.
I'll give you an example about the popularity of palms in my region (coastal Mediterranean climate in zone 9 and 9b in the Canadian Pacific southwest) - there's a couple of cities near where I live where a variety of palm trees and banana trees are a common sight on some of the beaches and beach parks, city boulevards and in many, many people's gardens. They are 2 cities out of 25 good sized cities all within an hour and a half driving distance from each other and all in basically the same growing zone and climate conditions.
Each one of those 25 cities is capable of growing palms and bananas but those 2 particular cities are the only cities out of the 25 where many palm and banana trees will be seen. They are a rare sight (if seen at all) in the other cities which are practically a stone's throw away. The reason why many aren't grown in the other 23 cities - they aren't copy cats, the people in the other cities all want something different that says something unique and individualized about them and their cities and most of them don't like palm trees for a number of reasons. I can relate to that too because although I don't mind banana trees I don't care for palm trees at all and you couldn't pay me to grow them.
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That's because a few eons ago the Gulf went clear up into southern Ill.
Just like the "Staked Plains" don't literally have stakes.
PBS used to run a series featuring a professor from South Carolina who explored different forests and environments in the Southeast. He spoke of that subject and showed maps. Then pointed out features that Florida and Illinois still have in common.
What kind were they, if you know? Sometimes people choose the wrong type for their climate (for example, Chinese Windmill Palms are popular, but they do poorly in Nashville and Knoxville while Needle Palms thrive). Even some of the right types may not tolerate salt spray.
I’m not really familiar with types of palm trees. I went on Google maps and found a few on the boardwalk. I agree with lovnova, most don’t seem to survive for many years.
I think palm trees look kinda weird in Atlanta. Just out of place. They don't survive well unless they're cared for. They're usually <10 feet tall it seems. I see more in Dallas that are taller. More frequent too but that's still just in people's backyards
I live in Virginia Beach very close to the ocean. Many people here plant different kinds of palm trees. Unfortunately it is not unusual at all in the winter for us to get a sudden very cold snap. Palm trees will last maybe a few years and then eventually die.
It's just not quite warm enough in VB for palms to live very long.
Exactly. I have co-workers that have given up on palm trees due to those occasional surprisingly cold winter snaps. My neighbor across the street got rid of his one remaining one and gave up on them for good, last year.
Even an hour south you won't find many. OBX has more palms, but they have a hard time keeping them alive. There is a reason they are not native this far north.
...although I don't mind banana trees I don't care for palm trees at all and you couldn't pay me to grow them.
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Other way around for me. I see people growing Japanese Bananas EVERYWHERE here, and I hate it due to their winter dormancy. Same with Crepemyrtles. Needle Palms would go much better with their Southern Magnolias, not to mention you'd be introducing a species from the same continent (as opposed to foreign ones) rather than just choosing evergreen over deciduous. It's almost as if most people here don't care about species becoming invasive nor people who have seasonal depression.
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Originally Posted by ChessieMom
Exactly. I have co-workers that have given up on palm trees due to those occasional surprisingly cold winter snaps. My neighbor across the street got rid of his one remaining one and gave up on them for good, last year.
Even an hour south you won't find many. OBX has more palms, but they have a hard time keeping them alive. There is a reason they are not native this far north.
Quite the contrary. Cabbage Palmettos are native to the Outer Banks and Dwarf Palmettos to Virginia Beach, the latter even extending across the bay slightly. Similarly, Dwarf Palmetto also reaches well into Arkansas, into Oklahoma (where the McCurtain cultivar originated) and even borders Tennessee in Georgia and comes very close in Alabama and Mississippi.
Often, you'll have better luck if you choose the dwarf palms (Needle Palm or Dwarf Palmetto) rather than wasting time and money on a Chinese Windmill Palm (which prefers mild-summer climates anyways) or Cabbage Palmetto (which prefers the Deep South, of which those three cities are at the northern periphery). Needle Palm isn't even trunkless as it's often believed to be; it's just that the trunk is short and lower leaves must be pruned to show it.
Dwarf Palmetto adaptable range map (Needle Palm is slightly more hardy than even that):map
EDIT: Also, for those saying waterfronts can contribute to looks, I get that, but why does it HAVE to be an ocean to count? Wouldn't a lake or river be good enough, maybe even a pond, swimming pool or large creek for those who can't afford/don't want lakefront/riverfront property? That sounds very restrictive and primitive, especially when you consider the risks along warm ocean currents (hurricanes) and flat coastlines (sea level rise).
Last edited by Sun Belt-lover L.A.M.; 01-07-2020 at 07:37 PM..
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