Palm Trees In Lubbock - Can They Happen? (Atlanta: work, house)

[Cathy4017]

Originally Posted by Lucidus

Yeah I work on them, fertilize them ,trim them, etc. As for water, I just water my yard normally and they do fine. I do agree though that when they are not taken care of they can get really ugly.

Thanks for the warning....LOL!!

Texas purple sage and ocotillo are on my list...have to look around to see what else is native here or very-well adapted.

I am also going to have part of the yard done in paving stones....I had a yardman in Midland, but this strip of lawn in the back (24 x 60) isn't worth paying someone to mow. Even at that, the part near the patio will probably have another 3-5 feet of rock in it by this time next year. We are on restricted watering, so less grass makes a lot of sense. I notice that even in Midland they are putting in desert landscaping in the front with new construction.

[Lucidus]

Originally Posted by Cathy4017

Thanks for the warning....LOL!!

Texas purple sage and ocotillo are on my list...have to look around to see what else is native here or very-well adapted.

I am also going to have part of the yard done in paving stones....I had a yardman in Midland, but this strip of lawn in the back (24 x 60) isn't worth paying someone to mow. Even at that, the part near the patio will probably have another 3-5 feet of rock in it by this time next year. We are on restricted watering, so less grass makes a lot of sense. I notice that even in Midland they are putting in desert landscaping in the front with new construction.

I love the purple sage. When they bloom, they are absolutely beautiful.

Xeriscaping does make a lot of sense in West Texas, but I just don't like the desert look honestly. But, palms are not a big offender when it comes to water usage. In fact Washingtonias are native to desert areas of California, Nevada, Arizona, and northern Mexico.

[Cathy4017]

Originally Posted by Lucidus

I love the purple sage. When they bloom, they are absolutely beautiful.

Xeriscaping does make a lot of sense in West Texas, but I just don't like the desert look honestly. But, palms are not a big offender when it comes to water usage. In fact Washingtonias are native to desert areas of California, Nevada, Arizona, and northern Mexico.

Midland had an unusual amount of rain this year, and from what I have heard, y'all just recently got more rain and flooding day before yesterday. The drought appears to finally have broken. It will be good for area lakes and reservoirs, too!

I love the desert look....my front is all gravel right now, and I am not inclined to do anything until next fall. West Texas will dry out again, and Xeriscaping does make more sense.

However.....there are several different ways to do Xeriscaping...it does not necessarily have to be a severe desert look.

Alamo has had slightly above average rainfall, but still not that much, compared to the excess that Midland has had so far.

Since I lived there for 30 years, I can remember when we got no more than 5-6 inches for the entire year. There were several bad years in there when I wished I had NO front lawn at all.

[case44]

Love the pics, Lucidus! Wonderful palm trees.

[why_so_much_racism]

Originally Posted by ChristieP

You'd have to bring them inside for the winter. Lubbock is up on the caprock and it gets pretty cold with a north wind, and occasionally snows during the winter.

I am positive it is not too cold in lubbock for palm trees. i spent last semester in the coldest part of spain ( january temperatures typically around 20 degrees, and usually a good bit of snow ) and they have palm trees all over the place! its funny to stand there freezing to death while looking at palm trees. but yes it can done. next time you're in lubbock, take some seed with you lol

[desert sun]

I think it can be done if you plant the right palm,there are a few people here in Albuquerque that have palms and it does get very cold here at night,I even have a few but this will be there first winter and I think Lubbock gets more snow than us,anyways Lubbock and Albuquerque both have sunshine winter days and that helps, if you do plant a palm in Lubbock go with a windmill or mediterraen palm,Ive seen pics of these being grown in CT,KY,IL and Toronto and so on with of course good protection but you should have better luck with them in Lubbock,place it on a south facing wall and keep the center crown of the palm dry in the winter,this is what can kill a palm.Wrap in some burlap,There are some California palms here that have died and some that look really good,the zoo here in Albq. has alot of windmill palms some around 20ft tall.I hope you give it a try after all you wont know unless you try.

[case44]

So, all you Lubbockites out there looking at the great ideas presented, I hope you've got pen and paper and are taking notes.

I always thought that the California Fan and Mexican Fan could each work well and the reason is the sunshine. And Lubbock gets more of it than a lot of places in Texas do. And that's not to mention the hot summers.

[eichler]

Well I'm in Lubbock (on a Texas vacation) and I went into the local Home Depot just to see about this-and indeed they do sell palms in the nursery section so someone must be buying them, altho everywhere around town I have yet to see one in landscaping. What's more surprising is that banana trees, hibiscus and lantana were being sold (and it looks like in pots to plant in the ground not as indoor plants) as well.
I'm no plant expert but I'm curious as to why bananas, hibiscus and lantanas were being sold (I've seen lantanas in landscaping in this part of texas) but no citrus. Plant experts can you answer?

[case44]

Originally Posted by eichler

Well I'm in Lubbock (on a Texas vacation) and I went into the local Home Depot just to see about this-and indeed they do sell palms in the nursery section so someone must be buying them, altho everywhere around town I have yet to see one in landscaping. What's more surprising is that banana trees, hibiscus and lantana were being sold (and it looks like in pots to plant in the ground not as indoor plants) as well.
I'm no plant expert but I'm curious as to why bananas, hibiscus and lantanas were being sold (I've seen lantanas in landscaping in this part of texas) but no citrus. Plant experts can you answer?

I'm not a plant expert, either, but if they're sold in Lubbock, someone is bound to give one a try sooner or later. When someone sees another giving it a try, then chances are, they'll be willing, too. Plus, the best time to plant is in the spring months --- never wait until October. That would allow a palm to be able to mature in the sunshine. It can be done up on the caprock. If you go further north of town, however, you probably won't be able to get good enough results. You're going to be limited on which type of palms you can grow there, but after looking up a few sites, you've got about three or four types that should have no problem growing there. And if you like yucca trees, some of those have a palm tree feel to it when fully grown.

[michaelmac500]

I'm not surprised about Lubbock Home Depots selling bananas, lantana and hibiscus. They may not survive the winter, but their cheap enough to plant as annuals.

A good palm to try in Lubbock would be the Chinese windmill palm (
Trachycarpus fortunei). Plant it with good southern exposer, against a south facing wall.

Another very hardy palm to try is Sabal minor. This palm doesn't form a big trunk, but it dose give a nice subtropical look to the garden (mixed in with annual bananas and hibiscus).

Washingtonia filifera would probably survive, but would take most of the summer to recover from winter damage.

Picture of windmill palms in Las Cruces.


Sabal minor in Atlanta