Will adding palm trees in around the Houston metro make it more beautiful and pretty looking? (Mart: neighborhood, beach)

[55degrees]

I favor having more flowering trees in Houston rather than the palms. Houston has tons of beautiful flowering trees (the purple and pink ones especially), somehow they seem to "fit in" here more than the palm trees do.

[Metro Matt]

Originally Posted by Schumacher713

Palm trees are so ugly and look silly in Houston. Palm trees are for places like Miami.

Houston is a coastal city. I think palm trees are very fitting for the region. Its no different than anywhere else along the Gulf Coast with palms trees.

[LongLiveCassettes]

Originally Posted by OptimusPrime69

I've noticed a lot of the new shopping plazas are adding palm trees for aesthetic purposes and I enjoy them quite a bit. I think Houston should add them along their freeways and parks and whatnot. They're so pretty to look at, not to mention they add to the flora diversity as well as stay green year round.

I want to start a palm tree iniative in Houston? Anyone with me?
yay or nay?

They have palm trees in Sharpstown neighborhood and the PlazAmericas mall from the US 59 feeder road over by Wells Fargo. It's nothing new, it doesn't give much shade, but doesn't need a whole lot of water. Never saw coconuts from them, though.

[LongLiveCassettes]

Originally Posted by madrone2k

I don't understand the extreme hatred toward palm trees that some Houstonians online seem to have. I'm a Houston native and I like palms, in general. While there are some varieties that I don't care for, I do like the ones Highland Village has (I forget what kind).

Some people apparently just want us to have a monoculture of live oaks. Live oaks are nice, but there are a lot of benefits to cultivating a wide variety of trees in our urban area.

I have a live oak allergy, live oaks are the last trees we need along with ragweeds, and cedar, LOL.

[HoustonRonnie]

Well, drive down 288 between downtown and 610. Lots of palm trees in the median in one area....all DEAD.

[madrone2k]

I'd just like us to be planting a bigger variety of trees, taking care to assign them to sites where they can prosper and don't cause problems as they grow. For examples: (1) not planting bushy shrubs where they reduce visibility for drivers pulling out onto a major road or (2) not planting trees that develop large crowns under power lines. The main advantage I see for palm trees is that they can fit into narrow strips along roadways without getting in the way. The palms along River Oaks Shopping Center and Highland Village have prospered there for decades now. But yeah, they get planted in a lot of dumb places, also.

I grew up in (what was) a forested outskirt of Houston, and the variety of native trees and shrubs was remarkable. Over time, that natural diversity diminished as people replaced it with St. Augustine lawns, live oaks, and a few other types.

So, I think it would be great if we could try to maintain some of that original diversity. However, taking a plant that is adapted to living in a forest and plopping it down in the median of a concrete thoroughfare might not work out well.

[Nairobi]

Originally Posted by 55degrees

I favor having more flowering trees in Houston rather than the palms. Houston has tons of beautiful flowering trees (the purple and pink ones especially), somehow they seem to "fit in" here more than the palm trees do.

I assume you're talking about crepe myrtles; also some magnolias, and then the dogwoods in some of the more forested parts of town.

I definitely agree with less palms and pines, with more hardwoods and flowers.

[55degrees]

Originally Posted by Nairobi

I assume you're talking about crepe myrtles; also some magnolias, and then the dogwoods in some of the more forested parts of town.

Yes, I didn't know their names. All of the above. They say "Houston" to me (whether they are native or not) and they look much better than palm trees.

[Nairobi]

Originally Posted by 55degrees

Yes, I didn't know their names. All of the above. They say "Houston" to me (whether they are native or not) and they look much better than palm trees.

I can't say I disagree. A generous sprinkling of palms across the metro is nice, but I'll always prefer bigger, leafy trees for the shade they provide and because they're better for our air. Flowering trees are preferable for obvious reasons. You can never have too many of those.

[xsatyr]

I think I posted in this thread but can't remember. Either way I like when people plant palm trees on their yards. I don't really care for the city to plant them because of the lack of maintenance by the city. Palm trees are an eyesore with dead fronds hanging from them.